Information, topic by topic, on prisons across the world

April 16, 2019

Salvador: dans une prison surpeuplée, de redoutables gangsters apprennent un métier

News

Central America and the Caribbean Overcrowding El Salvador

This article is not available in English. This article is available in the following versions: French

April 16, 2019

UK: elite officers sent to Welsh prisons more than 50 times

News

Europe United Kingdom

A group of elite prison officers were sent to deal with incidents in Welsh jails more than 50 times last year. These included hostage situations, prisoners climbing at heights or barricading themselves in. The Freedom of Information figures show they were called more than 600 times in total to pris…

April 16, 2019

El triángulo del hacinamiento en cárceles de Centroamérica

News

This article is not available in English. This article is available in the following versions: Spanish

April 15, 2019

France: fouilles à nu, l’exception qui infirme la règle

News

Europe France

This article is not available in English. This article is available in the following versions: French

April 15, 2019

Zimbabwe: call to commit all women inmates to open prison

News

Africa Women Facilities Zimbabwe

THE Zimbabwe Prison Correctional Services (ZPCS) has called on government to commit all women inmates to the open prison system. ZPCS’s assistant commissioner, Christmas Tarwira said this development will greatly assist mothers incarcerated and living with their minors. “We want the government to b…

April 15, 2019

Bolivia: una consulta a los reos revela serias deficiencias en las cárceles

News

South America Bolivia

This article is not available in English. This article is available in the following versions: Spanish

April 14, 2019

USA: can better data fix Florida’s prisons?

News

North America United States

A landmark law lets the state track people through the justice system. But that’s tougher than it sounds.

April 10, 2019

Death penalty 2018: dramatic fall in global executions

News

Death penalty Violence

Global executions fell by almost one-third last year to the lowest figure in at least a decade, Amnesty International said in its 2018 global review of the death penalty published today. The statistics assess known executions worldwide except in China, where figures thought to be in their thousands…

April 10, 2019

Bolivia: tortura y tratos crueles por policías son frecuentes en cárceles

News

South America Torture Bolivia

This article is not available in English. This article is available in the following versions: Spanish

April 10, 2019

Russia: detienen las clases de yoga en las cárceles por 'crear' presos homosexuales

News

Asia Europe Russia

This article is not available in English. This article is available in the following versions: Spanish

April 10, 2019

Spain: cárceles menos ocupadas, menos muertos y menos fugas que en Europa

News

Europe Spain

This article is not available in English. This article is available in the following versions: Spanish

April 9, 2019

Netherlands: better prison food could be key in reducing re-offending

News

Europe Material conditions Netherlands

The Netherlands should look to Scandinavian examples and allow more prisoners to prepare and cook their own food, because there is evidence that they are less likely to re-offend, according to research carried out by the justice ministry.

April 9, 2019

USA: California inmates detail prison conditions of maggots, mice falling in dining hall

News

North America Material conditions United States

Maggots and mice have fallen onto inmates’ dining tables at a California state prison where holes in the roof also allow rain and bird droppings to seep through and streak the walls, according to an inmate lawsuit that charges the state isn’t moving fast enough to repair deteriorating prisons.

April 8, 2019

Belgium: le comité de surveillance dénonce une surpopulation record à 142% à la prison de Lantin

News

Europe Overcrowding Belgium

This article is not available in English. This article is available in the following versions: French

April 8, 2019

Paraguay: la bomba de tiempo

News

South America Paraguay

This article is not available in English. This article is available in the following versions: Spanish

April 8, 2019

Greenland: monitoring and rehab

Interview

Greenland

The country, which has a very small population, is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. Although it has enjoyed autonomy with respect to its justice system since 2009, the prison system remains under Danish control. Greenland currently has 139 prisoners and six prisons. It has an incarceration rate of 2…

April 6, 2019

USA: should a pregnant person ever go to prison?

News

North America United States

Siwatu-Salama Ra knew it was time to go to the hospital. As the early stages of her labor began on a day in late May 2018, officers placed handcuffs on her wrists and led her into the transport van. She arrived to the hospital and to a delivery room where, inside, armed guards would wait all day an…

April 5, 2019

USA: if prisons don’t work, what will?

News

North America United States

The Democratic presidential candidates should look at what a growing number of prosecutors are doing to end mass incarceration.

April 5, 2019

USA: America is finally being exposed to the devastating reality of prison violence

News

North America Violence United States

Recent reports show how overcrowding, understaffing, and limited resources are contributing to violence in prisons.

April 5, 2019

France: élections européennes, tous les détenus ne voteront pas avec la même facilité

News

Europe France

This article is not available in English. This article is available in the following versions: French

April 4, 2019

USA: in Alabama prison reveal horrific conditions and abuse

News

North America United States

A trove of photographs depicting brutalized and murdered prisoners in Alabama’s St. Clair Correctional Facility has thrust the treatment of our nation’s 2.3 million incarcerated people into public view. The first horror is what these people have endured in prison. The second horror is that while sh…

April 2, 2019

France: "graves problèmes" de surpopulation carcérale

News

Europe Overcrowding France

This article is not available in English. This article is available in the following versions: French

April 2, 2019

USA: free prison calls could finally be coming to connecticut

News

North America United States

Connecticut may soon be the first state in the nation to make calls from prison free for incarcerated people and their families, following on the heels of New York City, which became the first city to do so last year. Decades of research have shown that keeping in touch with loved ones while incarc…

April 2, 2019

France: loi de réforme de la justice : principales dispositions pénales

News

Europe France

This article is not available in English. This article is available in the following versions: French