Life imprisonment and human dignity

Recognition of human dignity and respect for fundamental human rights cannotbe restricted to a single category of human beings. The idea that anyone couldbe considered non-persona, to whom an “Enemy criminal law” may be applied,is incompatible with an ultima ratio liberal notion of criminal law.The humanisation of criminal law is manifested in the growing number ofcontemporary societies that have abolished or limited the death penalty.Nevertheless, life or long-term imprisonment sentences still prevail, and are onthe rise, despite lacking theoretical or philosophical justification in the lawsthat prescribe them.In this article we will attempt to answer various questions regarding a possiblejustification for life imprisonment. Different theories will be examined regardingthe goals of sentencing in order to determine, on discussing each theory, whetherit is possible to justify life imprisonment or other long-term incarceration.