The Role of Treatment and Rehabilitation of Thieves in Iraqi Penal Policy

Abstract

This study examines the extent to which Iraqi penal policy, in addressing the crime of theft, aligns with the therapeutic philosophy based on treatment and rehabilitation, as opposed to the traditional philosophy based on punishment. The significance of the study lies in its connection to a large category of convicted persons, as theft crimes constitute a notable proportion of court cases and of inmates in correctional institutions. The problem of the study is encapsulated in a central question: To what extent does Iraqi penal policy, in addressing the crime of theft, lean towards the traditional philosophy based on punishment, or towards the therapeutic philosophy based on treatment and rehabilitation? And does the Iraqi legal system incorporate a genuine therapeutic and rehabilitative dimension directed at thieves, or does this dimension remain a general discourse with no tangible application? To answer this question, we adopted the descriptive-analytical method, with recourse to the comparative method where appropriate, examining the relevant Iraqi legislative texts, particularly the Penal Code No. 111 of 1969, the Law on the Rehabilitation of Convicts No. 14 of 2018, the Prison Service Law No. 151 of 1969, and the Juvenile Care Law No. 76 of 1983. We then moved to the practical mechanisms applied to thieves inside correctional institutions and after their release.

We reached several conclusions, the most important of which are: that the therapeutic dimension in Iraqi penal policy does exist but is scattered across general texts that do not specifically address thieves, making it closer to a general orientation than to an integrated policy; that the Iraqi legislator implicitly acknowledges the failure of punishment alone to reform the thief by aggravating the penalty for recidivists under Articles (139) and (140) of the Penal Code; that vocational training represents the most suitable tool for theft crimes since their motive is often economic; and that alternative penalties and post-release care have not been sufficiently utilized in these crimes despite their suitability. The study recommends adding an explicit provision to the Law on the Rehabilitation of Convicts No. 14 of 2018 specifically addressing thieves with defined therapeutic and rehabilitative programs, activating alternative penalties, and developing post-release care programs to include adult thieves, not only juveniles.