Today, the polarisation of societal debates, differences and tensions within society as well as prejudices are increasingly taking place on social media, in places under the protection of presumed anonymity. Legislation has responded with an adaptation of the provision of Section 283 of the Criminal Code (StGB; incitement of hatred) which has resulted in an increase in convictions concerning hate speech.
This article is written by Jürgen Kaiser, Head of the NEUSTART Social Work Department
NEUSTART Bayern gGmbH in cooperation with Verein NEUSTART and in collaboration with the judiciary (state prosecutors and judges) has developed a rational and socially constructive response to the current challenge in terms of hate crime as part of the Austrian probation service: The “Dialogue instead of hate” programme aims to sensitise people to discrimination, raise awareness for injustice and lead to reflection and consequently a change in behaviour.
The intervention programme aims to provide state prosecutor offices and courts an effective and specifically deterrent instrument for handling incitement. The programme covers topics such as clarification of the norm, processing of the offence, raising of awareness, understanding and dialogue. The reflection with social workers in direct support but also, if applicable, with experts for various thematic areas of incitement, has a lasting and specifically deterrent effect.
The programme is carried out by specially trained probation officers. This far, the social integration of the clients is good; only a very small group of participants of the programme are assessed as socially isolated. Migrants and refugees are the almost exclusive target of discrimination. The main medium of incitement is Facebook. The modules are worked through in a mix of individual setting and group setting. For instance, in all cases completed up to now, the offence was processed in an individual setting. Particularly the modules “media expertise”, “discourse expertise” and “awareness for discrimination” proved to be easily practicable in a group setting. The programme is very well received among referrers, the press and by experts and is experienced as a suitable response to the referred offences.
The program was accompanied by evaluative research by the University of Graz. The study provides more in-depth insights into the nature of the cases, offences, clients and above all includes feedback from the clients. On the one hand, results indicate a largely positive acceptance of the programme by the clients and on the other, a change in attitude and/or a change in behaviour respectively in the sense of acceptance of the legal norm, reflection of own behaviour and use of social media with higher awareness and respect.
In Austria, probation is provided by NEUSTART, a private non-profit organisation. NEUSTART is offering various justice-connected services for victims and offenders like VOM, unpaid work, electronic monitoring etc.
Keep up to date with the latest developments, stories, and updates on probation from across Europe and beyond. Find relevant news and insights shaping the field today.
From 18-20 November 2025, 15th Plenary Meeting of the Council for Penological Co-operation took part in Council of Europe, Strasbourg. CEP was represented by President Annie Devos, Vice-Presidents Danijela Mrhar Prelic (PC-CP member) and Daniel Danglades and Secretary General Jana Spero Kamenjarin.
The CEP Expert Group on Mental Health met on 19 November 2025 to continue its work on developing a European mental health training curriculum for probation officers. Since last year, the group has been working intensively and meticulously to produce a solid first version of the curriculum.
CEP has released the first cross-European study examining stress, burnout, and morale among probation staff. The report was produced by Professor Charlie Brooker, Professor Karen Tocque, Professor Ioan Durnescu and Liliana Lupsica, whose combined expertise in public health, criminology, and organisational analysis provides an important contribution to our understanding of well-being in probation work.
On 12 and 13 November 2025, CEP Secretary General Jana Špero Kamenjarin participated in the Multilateral Meeting on Women in Prison: Advancing Gender-Sensitive Policies and Practices, at the Council of Europe in Strasbourg. The meeting brought together representatives from 40 member states, penitentiary administrations, and international experts, united by a shared commitment to improving rehabilitation, reducing re-offending, and promoting gender equality in places of deprivation of liberty.
This book, Forensic Social Work – Supporting Desistance, has been released by Routledge. It is a practice-oriented resource exploring how forensic social work can support desistance and foster meaningful change in the lives of justice-involved individuals.
The 16th episode of Division_Y features Stephan Leißner, a public probation and parole officer at the Coburg Regional Court in Bavaria, Germany.
