The article ” Prison is not for punishment in Sweden. We get people into better shape” written by Erwin James outlines the underlying fact of imprisonment as a means of rehabilitation rather than punishment in Sweden. The criminal justice system in Sweden focus on reintegrating In my opinion, the prison system adopted in Sweden seem as a good move to reintegrate individuals into society after rehabilitation.

I believe that increasing punishment cannot solely deter criminal behaviour. For example, the more severely children are punished, the more aggressive and violent they become as adults. In fact, recidivism rates in Sweden are about 40 % which is tremendously less than those in most of the European countries that support prison as a system of punishment.However, I would also argue that offenders of violent crimes may view rehabilitation in a different light. This is relevant to the fact that many criminals find prisons to have become very lenient today. For instance, homeless people may intentionally commit crime for mere guaranteed food and place to stay. Oberg in his speech states that some criminals need a punitive turn though the main idea of prison is to reform prisoners’ lives through rehabilitation.

Finally, it is necessary to note that “perception about the nature of the penal system” is as important as advocating punishment or rehabilitation. If prisons are viewed as a bad place to go after committing crime, it may have a deterrent effect on the individual. However, jails offering rehabilitative services prove to be more humane as it helps the criminals realise their self-sufficiency or self-worth through their extensive counselling and other services. Thus, I believe that