Welcome to Penal Reform International's monthly e-newsletter, a round-up of PRI and other penal reform news from around the world and a variety of criminal justice and human rights resources.
The views expressed in the news items below are not necessarily those of PRI.
Next month the UN General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) on the world drug problem will take place in New York. Read more about what UNGASS is about.
PRI will be holding a side-event together with the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on 18 April on the human rights impacts of drug policies. Find out more here.
UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND)
The 59th regular session of the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) in Vienna focused on the upcoming UNGASS. Negotiations continued on the UNGASS ‘outcome document’, with attitudes ranging from support for the existing ‘war on drugs’ to calls for a health-based, harm reduction approach to drug use. The Outcome Document was agreed on the last day of the CND, but there was widespread criticism of the process by which it was reached, including in a sharplyworded letter from nearly 200 NGOs. Oliver Robertson attended the CND meeting on behalf of PRI and reflects on what this document means for prospects of a shift in international drug policy in this blog.
At the CND, PRI delivered a statement on the use of the death penalty for drugs and spoke in side events on ‘Alternatives to imprisonment and proportionate responses to drug offences’ and on ‘Ensuring more proportionate, humane and effective approaches to drug policy’. Comprehensive accounts of the CND public discussions are available at http://cndblog.org/.
Attention now moves to New York, where the UNGASS will take place on 19-21 April. At UNGASS, PRI is co-organising a side-event on Human Rights Impacts of Drugs, together with the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. It will be held on Monday 18 April at 8.30am in Conference Room B, UNHQ New York.
Other news and resources ahead of UNGASS
IDPC produces Drug Policy Guide
The International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC), of which PRI is a member, has produced the third edition of its drug policy guide, which brings together global evidence, best practice and experiences to provide expert analysis across the spectrum of drug policy. Chapter 3 offers guidance on the criminal justice system – including alternatives to incarceration, proportionate sentencing, regulated markets and decriminalisation, as well as policies in prisons.
March’s expert blog is written by Femke Hofstee-van der Meulen, Director of Prison Watch. It explores The Netherlands’ unique practice of providing a volunteer visitation service of Dutch nationals to its citizens held in foreign prisons.
As part of the research, Prison Watch developed a universal picture dictionary for foreign detainees who don’t speak the main language of a prison. The full dictionary can be accessed here.
This blog summarises practices surrounding the use of prison clothing around the world, and asks if penal policy-makers and prison administrations should consider more fully the impact of their clothing policies
After the adoption of the revised Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners by the UN General Assembly in December, the focus is now on supporting their implementation in practice. PRI has begun a series of consultations with prison administrations to support this process. The first of these was held on 10 March coordinated by our new Africa office. Omar Phoenix Khan reports on the discussions.
PRI and partner organisation, Foundation for Human Rights Initiative(FHRI) organised a workshop in Kampala in March with 23 Judges and members of the Judicial Studies Institute to discuss provisions regarding non-custodial measures in the UN Bangkok Rules. Read a blog about the discussions here.
The workshop followed PRI/FHRI’s 2015 report,Who are women prisoners? Survey results from Uganda.
The Special Rapporteur noted many issues woman face in prisons including violence from prison staff and illegal and degrading body searches. Notable recommendations of the report include the full application of the Bangkok Rules and the use of pre-trial detention as only a last resort in accordance with the Tokyo Rules.
The report specifically noted the need to apply the Convention against Torture to members of the LGBTI community in prisons, recognising their vulnerability to violence from prison staff and prisoners alike.
PRI’s Policy Director, Andrea Huber, moderated a side-event panel at the Human Rights Council where the report was presented and discussed, and hosted by the Special Rapporteur.
In East Africa, rats used to detect landmines have been retrained to detect Tuberculosis (TB) to carry out mass screenings in prisons. The project may be expanded to other countries says the director of the organisation charged with the job, Anti-Personnel Landmines Detection Product Development (APOPO).
The Law and Human Rights Ministry’s Director General of correctional institutions, I Wayan Dusak, has stated that a lack of training programmes for prison guards has compounded issues in Indonesian prisons, in particular the proliferation of drugs. See PRI’s Short Guide on the Mandela Rules to read about the provisions on staff training.
European Court on Human Rights issues two judgements on prisoners' rights
The ECHR has ruled that a man’s right to privacy was breached by the Northern Ireland Prison Service in the recording and retention of footage of a strip search in which consent was not given.
The Court also ruled that Switzerland were in line with the European Convention on Human Rights by requiring a prisoner to work despite him being of retirement age. The Court found that the requirement to work in prison (without consent) did not constitute ‘forced or compulsory labour’.
Joint statement to UN Human Rights Council on HIV/AIDS in prisons by PRI and QUNO
The Human Rights Council held a plenary session on 11 March which addressed human rights issues and the efforts to end the HIV/ADIS epidemic by 2030. PRI and QUNO issued an oral statement highlighting the specific challenges HIV/AIDS poses in prisons.
In related news, read here a report from Human Rights Watch on the failure of prisons in Louisiana to provide adequate testing and treatment for HIV.
Amnesty International reports on large scale torture in Kazakstan
Amnesty Internationalhas published a reportdetailing the prevalence of torture in Kazakhstan’s detention facilities, and the failure to register and prosecute the individuals and authorities that are responsible.
PRI’s Central Asia office runs a number of programmes with the goal of reducing the ill-treatment and torture in the region’s prisons. A three-year project, funded by the European Commission, for example, aims to reduce violence against children in detention in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.
New laws in Australia, more home detention for young offenders
A new Youth Justice Administration Act allows Australian courts the option to sentence young people to home detention for up to a year, up from a previous maximum of six months. The Youth Minister stressed that this would allow young people to maintain family and community connections and enhance the capacity of offenders to participate in education and training.
International law dictates that children should only be detained as a measure of last resort. Read here a report on a PRI project’s success in diverting children away from the criminal justice system in Jordan.
Study on girls in criminal justice system in US
The US-based NGO, Centre for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP) has released its first report in a series on girls in the justice system. The study aims to shift the narrative surrounding girls of colour and status offences from a focus on delinquency and misbehaviour to structural discrimination, trauma and youth well-being. The series promotes policies aimed at developing a trauma-informed approach to juvenile justice.
Read also this article on the the importance of treating for trauma in juvenile justice-involved youth.
