September 5, 2018 South Africa: inmates claim harsh conditions in super-maximum prison News Material conditions South Africa KwaZulu-Natal Correctional Services authorities have dismissed claims of inhumane conditions at the country’s only super-maximum prison in Ebongweni, Kokstad.
December 6, 2017 South Africa: why we should care about inhumane prison conditions? News Material conditions South Africa On the anniversary this week of Sonke Gender Justice and Lawyers for Human Rights’ Pollsmoor overcrowding court victory, we should remember why the state of our prisons matter – and consider what we should be doing to improve conditions.
October 18, 2017 South Africa: economy of visiting Testimonial Social ties South Africa Derrick Thulani Ndlovu was sentenced to 18 years in prison in South Africa. He tells us, through his memories of visits, how prisoners and loved ones, on each side of the bars, see confinement.
October 11, 2017 South Africa: justice at last for reformed prisoner whose dream new life was destroyed in a heartbeat News South Africa Thanks to an electronic monitoring device that went missing, Dineo Kgatle spent 26 months behind bars for doing nothing wrong. In a ruling that could see a precedent-setting damages claim, his arrest and incarceration have been declared unlawful.
September 28, 2017 Madagascar : pour la première fois en quarante ans, un journaliste condamné à Madagascar News Africa South Africa This article is not available in English. If you wish, you can consult the French version.
September 18, 2017 South Africa : Is Ebongweni C-Max prison living up to its promises? News South Africa Prison violence, the disruptive behaviour of some inmates, high numbers of escapes in the 1990s and a public demand to be tough on crime led the South African government to replicate the American approach of dealing with very violent and dangerous offenders: building two super-maximum security pris…
July 18, 2017 Factsheet: the state of South Africa’s prisons News South Africa South Africa’s most famous ex-prisoner wrote in his autobiography that “no one truly knows a nation until one has been inside its jails”. In this factsheet, we provide data to show what’s going on inside South African prisons.
July 4, 2017 South Africa: jails are a ticking time bomb and our leaders need to act News South Africa Last week a prisoner at Johannesburg’s notorious “Sun City” jail told parliamentary officials the prison system was better under the National Party government.
July 4, 2017 South Africa: setback for oversight role into prison deaths News South Africa The Judicial Inspectorate of Correctional Services (JICS) electronic system used to analyse unnatural deaths of inmates in custody has been deemed dysfunctional.
July 3, 2017 South Africa : Violent chaos as riot breaks out at Pretoria prison [video] News Violence South Africa Sunday afternoon was not a peaceful day for staff at the Kgosi Mampuru II prison in Pretoria. As many as 19 people were injured after prisoners started rioting after expressing issues with how parole was being dealt with.
July 2, 2017 Riot breaks out at Pretoria prison [video] News Protest South Africa Prisoners serving life and long term sentences at Pretoria’s Kgosi Mampuru II prison rioted on Sunday afternoon. The injury count ranged from two to 19‚ as prisoners disputed the official count.
June 26, 2017 South Africa: ‘Sun City’ prison inmates treated to a saucy ‘strip show’ News South Africa The prison authorities claim they approved a Youth Day celebration, not a mini Moulin Rouge.
June 14, 2017 South Africa: no solution for 'scary' staff shortages at prisons News South Africa Port Elizabeth – St Albans Prison in the Eastern Cape will not see a solution any time soon as far as staff shortages are concerned, an issue which aids the wheeling and dealings of gangsterism within prison walls.
June 14, 2017 South Africa: no solution for 'scary' staff shortages at prisons News South Africa St Albans Prison in the Eastern Cape will not see a solution any time soon as far as staff shortages are concerned, an issue which aids the wheeling and dealings of gangsterism within prison walls.
May 20, 2017 South Africa prisons under pressure as number of long-term sentences surge News South Africa Minister Michael Masutha says between 2003 & 2016 there was a decrease in short-term sentences, while those of between 10 & 15 years in jail rose by 77%.
May 18, 2017 South Africa: prisons under pressure as number of long-term sentences surge News South Africa Minister Michael Masutha says between 2003 & 2016 there was a decrease in short-term sentences, while those of between 10 & 15 years in jail rose by 77%.
April 10, 2017 South Africa's parole system to be revised News South Africa Acting Minister of Justice and Correctional Services Faith Muthambi on Monday announced that the department is in the process of finalising a position document for the redrafting of the country’s parole system.
April 5, 2017 South Africa: probe into two solitary confinement suicides in Western Cape Jail News Discipline Suicide South Africa Two inmates at Helderstroom Prison in Caledon, who were held in solitary confinement, have committed suicide within three months of each other.
February 13, 2017 South Africa: increase in number of 'lifers' keeps jail system topped up News South Africa South Africa’s prisons are fast filling up with “lifers”, most of them sentenced to time behind bars for murder, violent robbery and rape.
February 10, 2017 South Africa: law to stop detention of mentally ill in prisons News Mental health South Africa In February, the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services introduced a Bill amending the Criminal Procedure Act, 1977 (CPA) to Parliament. The Bill seeks to stop the incarceration of accused persons who are mentally ill or intellectually disabled in prisons.
January 18, 2017 South Africa: prison boss makes appeal to reduce overcrowding in jails News Overcrowding South Africa Johannesburg – Correctional Services National Commissioner Zach Modise on Wednesday appealed to government security agencies to reduce overcrowding in the country’s correctional facilities.
December 27, 2016 Afrique du Sud : trois morts dans une mutinerie en prison News Protest Violence South Africa Sorry, this article is not available in English. If you wish, you can consult the French version.
December 5, 2016 South Africa: court victory for Pollsmoor prisoners News South Africa “How do human beings live in a detention facility while there are rats?” asks judge.
November 18, 2016 South Africa: prison torture chamber exposed on camera News Torture South Africa Torture and assault of prison inmates has been exposed in CCTV footage.
