The «right to hope» of a person sentenced to life imprisonment VS the right to the safety of society and the victim

Abstract

Long terms of imprisonment, including life imprisonment, without a legal procedure for reducing the term of such punishment are not humane and contradict fundamental human rights as understood by the European Court of Human Rights. It was found that the practice of replacing life imprisonment with imprisonment under the amnesty procedure in Ukraine did not correspond to the positions of the European Court of Human Rights, in particular, because there was no clear legal mechanism for reviewing the decision on the imposition of life imprisonment after a certain period of time.
 According to the Law of Ukraine «On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine Regarding the Implementation of Decisions of the European Court of Human Rights» dated October 18, 2022 No. 2689-IX, amendments were made to Article 154 of the Criminal Enforcement Code of Ukraine. Pursuant to these changes, in accordance with Articles 81 and 82 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, conditional early release from serving a sentence, replacement of a sentence of life imprisonment with a sentence of imprisonment for a certain period of time, or replacement of the unserved part of the sentence with a lighter one may be applied. After replacing life imprisonment with term imprisonment, the question of conditional early release from serving the sentence can be raised.
 It was established that the two-stage mechanism for revising life imprisonment of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine corresponds to the practice of the European Court of Human Rights and constitutional provisions, because it ensures a person’s «right to hope» after a certain period of time.
 At the same time, there remains the question of the actual involvement of the victim in this process, the provision of a real opportunity to influence and participate in the process of revising life imprisonment and compensation for damages, as well as ensuring the safety of the society. In addition, it is necessary to ensure the real reintegration of such a person into society.
 The proposals should also be accompanied by changes to the Criminal Procedure Code, as well as the Criminal Executive Code of Ukraine.