Information, topic by topic, on prisons across the world

November 21, 2018

USA: should women work in men’s prisons? These women say yes

News

Women United States

Since the 1970s, when women began gaining greater access to jobs within the Federal Bureau of Prisons, the number of women employed by the agency has risen to more than 10,000 — a third of its total work force — in its 122 prisons.

November 19, 2018

USA: women who work in federal prisons — How we got their story

News

Women United States

Ever since journalists exposed Harvey Weinstein for his predatory behavior toward women, we’ve learned that workplace sexual harassment and even assault seem to plague every major industry, from manufacturing to the media. Perhaps it’s not surprising, then, that women who work in the male-dominated…

November 17, 2018

USA: hazing, humiliation, terror — working while female in federal prison

News

Women United States

Inmates expose themselves and threaten rape. Male guards let them do it. Women who complain are ‘pretty much blackballed.’

October 31, 2018

United kingdom: prison sentences for women of less than a year should be abolished, say mps and peers

News

Women Europe United Kingdom

“It would save lives and reduce crime.”

October 20, 2018

France: pourquoi les femmes incarcérées sont les grandes oubliées

News

Women Europe France

This article is not available in English. If you wish, you can consult the French version.

October 9, 2018

USA: more women are behind bars now. One prison wants to change that.

News

Women United States

Despite their names, state “departments of correction” in the United States aren’t known for correcting much. More than seven of every 10 prisoners, according to some studies, are arrested again less than four years after they are released.

September 28, 2018

UK: Why doesn't prison work for women?

News

Women Europe United Kingdom

Women make up just under 5% of the prison population in England and Wales, yet they are more likely than men to reoffend. Why doesn’t prison work for women and what is being done to improve outcomes for them? “The last day, I was given a bin bag of my stuff. The door closed behind me, and it was ov…

September 18, 2018

USA: federal prisons fail to provide adequate services for female inmates

News

Women United States

The study by the Justice Department’s Office of Inspector General reveals a system that fails to meet certain basic needs of prisoners in ways large and small.

September 9, 2018

United Kingdom: sexual assaults in women's prison reignite debate over transgender inmates

News

Women LGBTQI United Kingdom

A leading prison reformer has said prisoners who have committed violent offences against women should not be able to transfer to women’s prisons if they have not legally changed their gender, after it emerged that a transgender inmate had sexually assaulted fellow prisoners after transferring to a…

September 6, 2018

Australia: female prisoner dies in Brisbane prison

News

Women Oceania Australia

A 51-year-old female prisoner died at Brisbane Women’s Correctional Centre in the early hours of Thursday morning.

August 22, 2018

USA: inside a radical experiment to transform the lives of incarcerated women

News

Women United States

A new prison unit aims to reduce recidivism in Connecticut. But can it become the standard nationwide?

July 31, 2018

France: intimacy inside four walls

Testimonial

Women Europe Social ties France

Celine’s partner is serving a sentence of ten years. After months of visits in the regular visitation rooms, permission for a nine-hour stay is granted. Céline tells the story.

July 29, 2018

USA: in battle for freedom, women inmates fight blazes

News

Women United States

About 4,000 inmates each week fight wildfires alongside civilian firefighters. That number includes approximately 250 women.

June 27, 2018

UK: government scraps proposed women's 'community prisons' in new strategy to reduce female offending

News

Women Facilities United Kingdom

Campaigners warn funding offered for community focussed plans is “wholly inadequate”.

June 27, 2018

UK: in prison I saw the futility of locking up women for minor crimes

News

Women United Kingdom

I spent nine weeks behind bars. I’m glad the government is scrapping plans to build new female prisons

June 20, 2018

France: insalubrité et sur-occupation à la maison d'arrêt des femmes de Mulhouse

News

Women Europe France

This article is not available in English. If you wish, you can consult the French version.

June 2, 2018

Global prison trends 2018

Analysis Report

North America Central America and the Caribbean Pre-trial detention South America Women Asia Europe Middle East Long-term prisoners Justice Overcrowding

Penal Reform International and the Thailand Institute of Justice co-published their 2018 annual report aiming to provide a global account on the state of prisons and the use of imprisonment throughout the world.

May 28, 2018

France : "la prison m'a sauvée", à Fleury-Mérogis, le fragile retour des femmes radicalisées

News

Women Europe France

This article is not available in English. If you wish, you can consult the French version.

May 21, 2018

USA: portrait of despair, opioids land more women behind bars

News

Women United States

On opposite sides of the county jail, a mother and her son chat about school, girls, birthday gifts — and their future together. They aren’t allowed to see each other face-to-face, so the inmate and the fifth-grader connect by video.

May 18, 2018

Switzerland: everyday is the same

Testimonial

Women Europe Switzerland

Inma is incarcerated in the prison of Champ-Dollon in Switzerland. She talks about the ritornello of a day spent in detention.

May 2, 2018

UK: nearly 100 women die in prison over 11-year period due to ‘glaring failures’

News

Women United Kingdom

More than 10 years after major review outlined need for more holistic approach to vulnerable women in custody, there has been ‘little systemic change’ as female inmates ‘continue to die’, warns charity.

May 2, 2018

UK: MoJ postpones plans to reduce female prison population

News

Women United Kingdom

Strategy to cut numbers being jailed for non-violent offences was to be launched this month. A multimillion pound government strategy to reduce the number of women being jailed for non-violent offences has been postponed, the Guardian can disclose.

April 30, 2018

USA: women in prison take home economics, while men take carpentry

News

Women United States

Decades after a government report on deep inequity in the vocational offerings of the nation’s criminal-justice system, little has changed.

April 25, 2018

USA: female incarceration reveals a cruel and broken justice system

News

Women United States

Although boys are disproportionately represented in juvenile and criminal proceedings, girls are the fastest-growing segment of the juvenile population and are often in the system for reasons very different from boys. A groundbreaking report released in 2015 unearthed a “sexual abuse to prison pipe…