Application of Alternative Sanctions in Serbia between 2006 and 2012

Normative preconditions for the introduction of modern alternative sanctions in the penal system of the Republic of Serbia were established on January 1st 2006, when current Criminal Code came into force. Since then, some alterations of relevant legislative framework have occurred and the Administration for the Enforcement of Criminal Sanctions has been making some significant efforts to implement this type of criminal sanctions as well as to improve the conditions for their application. In addition, alterations of existing national legal sources and adoption of new laws and strategic documents that would be more focused on alternative sanctions and enforcement of probation are also planned. In this paper, after brief introductory remarks on the term and importance of alternative sanctions, general statistics on the number, the structure, the release and the recidivism of persons deprived of liberty in Serbia between 2006 and 2012 are presented. After that, data on the enforcement of alternative sanctions in that period, including the number of prison staff and probation officers and other statistics pertinent to this issue are critically analyzed. Finally, in the conclusion, positive and negative aspects of the enforcement of alternative sanctions in Serbia are assessed, with special focus on the supervision of offenders, and ideas and suggestions for future development and improvement of this field in our country in accordance with international standards are proposed