Information, topic by topic, on prisons across the world

March 24, 2022

India: State extends jail term for those found using cell phone in prison

News

Asia Justice India

Prisoners using prohibited articles inside the jail are imposed imprisonment of six months and fine not exceeding Rs 200.

March 9, 2022

Japan: “It is about politics, fear and power”

Interview

Asia Access to legal rights Justice Material conditions Death penalty Japan

Death penalty is an ongoing issue despite international criticism. What is the current situation in Japan regarding the death penalty?

February 24, 2022

Tailandia: Liberan bajo fianza a una figura del movimiento prodemocracia

News

Asia Justice Thailand

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

January 26, 2022

Singapore: A second chance in Prison School helps inmate score 2A1s at O levels

News

Asia Activities Singapore

Richard (not his real name) never thought he would get a second chance to retake the O-level examinations again.

January 18, 2022

Years in the Row

Analysis Thematic paper

Africa Women Asia Europe Minors Foreign prisoners Discipline Health Mental health Drugs Material conditions Overcrowding Death penalty Torture

Some people fear death every morning. Others are sentenced to death in countries that no longer carry out executions. At least 483 executions were documented in 2020. Prison Insider publishes an overview of practices in nine countries that have not abolished the death penalty.

January 18, 2022

Japan: detention conditions of people sentenced to death

Analysis

Asia Access to legal rights Material conditions Death penalty Torture Social ties Japan

No executions were recorded in Japan in 2020, for the first time since 2011. Reportedly, more than 25% of people sentenced to death are over the age of 70 and two of them have been incarcerated for over 40 years.

January 18, 2022

Indonesia: detention conditions of people sentenced to death

Analysis

Asia Access to legal rights Material conditions Death penalty Torture Social ties Indonesia

No execution has been recorded since 2016. The number of sentences, however, has been on the rise. Since 2014, Indonesia has increased its efforts in the war on drugs after Indonesian President Widodo described it as a “national emergency”.

January 18, 2022

Pakistan: detention conditions of people sentenced to death

Analysis

Asia Access to legal rights Material conditions Death penalty Torture Social ties Pakistan

In 2015, Pakistan accounted for 20% of executions worldwide. However, 2020 saw a suspension of executions and a decline in sentences. Currently, there are more than 4,000 prisoners sentenced to death awaiting execution.

January 18, 2022

Malaysia: detention conditions of people sentenced to death

Asia Access to legal rights Material conditions Death penalty Torture Social ties Malaysia

In 2018, Malaysia had a change in government for the first time since its independence. The new administration has committed to abolishing the death penalty for all crimes. Malaysia has had a moratorium on executions since this date.

January 18, 2022

India: detention conditions of people sentenced to death

Analysis

Asia Access to legal rights Material conditions Death penalty Torture Social ties India

Most prisoners sentenced to death in India have their sentences commuted to life imprisonment during their judicial process. This can take several years given the duration of the procedures.

December 21, 2021

Corée du Nord : L’horreur des exécutions publiques

News

Asia Death penalty North Korea

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

December 21, 2021

Le Japon exécute des condamnés à mort, pour la première fois depuis 2019

News

Asia Justice Death penalty Japan

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

December 15, 2021

Singapore: days ahead to die

Interview

Asia Justice Drugs Death penalty Singapore

The city-state is a strong supporter of the death penalty. Death sentences are regularly handed down for drug-related offences, as witnessed in neighbouring countries. Is abolition on the horizon?

December 7, 2021

Russia: “They’re killing us!”

News Investigations

Asia Europe Discipline Torture Russia

Prison Insider was contacted by an anonymous Russian source. They asked us to expose the abuse inflicted on prisoners in the Angarsk Penal Colony No. 15 following the riot there in April 2020. We explain how the events unfolded below.

December 6, 2021

Japon : Les prisons japonaises s’adaptent au vieillissement de leurs détenus

News

Asia Elderly prisoners Activities Japan

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

November 22, 2021

Myanmar: In Myanmar’s Insein Prison, inmates shared bath water and were denied medical care

News

Coronavirus Asia Health Material conditions Myanmar (Burma)

Former detainee says dismal conditions led to rare protest by prisoners and lingering trauma after release.

November 19, 2021

Myanmar : Insein, le visage carcéral de la junte birmane

News

Asia Foreign prisoners Material conditions Overcrowding Myanmar (Burma)

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

November 18, 2021

Japon : des condamnés à mort poursuivent le gouvernement en justice

News

Asia Justice Death penalty Japan

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

October 26, 2021

Myanmar: 120 political prisoners released from Dawei Prison

News

Asia Justice Myanmar (Burma)

A member of the Dawei District Strike Committee told Mizzima that about 120 detainees arrested by the military council, including Ko Kyaw Htwe, Dawei District Strike Committee member, have been released from Dawei Prison.

October 26, 2021

Malaysia : Single mother with nine children sentenced to death for meth possession

News

Women Asia Drugs Death penalty Malaysia

Incident has ignited fierce debate on women’s rights and capital punishment in Malaysia.

October 12, 2021

India: ‘Prison To Pride’, Yerwada Central Jail To Soon Launch Sports Training For Prisoners

News

Asia Activities India

Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) has appointed expert coaches to train players from Yerwada Central Jail.

October 12, 2021

India: death rate up, jails to get ‘suicide watchers’

News

Asia Suicide India

The Punjab Prisons is training a unique squad of “suicide watchers” as a study of suicides between 2017 and 2019 found that nearly 42 per cent of the victims died by suicide within a month of incarceration. Fifteen per cent could not last even 48 hours in jail.

October 7, 2021

Global Prison Trends 2021

Report

Africa Coronavirus Women Asia Europe Minors Middle East Oceania Health Material conditions Overcrowding Death penalty

More than eleven million people are imprisoned around the world. Of this number, 70% are awaiting trial, a percentage that has been continuously increasing since 2000.

September 27, 2021

Global prison crisis

Interview

Africa Coronavirus Crises Asia Europe Middle East Oceania Overcrowding

The world prison population is still increasing. How does the COVID-19 crisis differ from other ongoing or future crises? Are prison environments doomed to be in perpetual crisis?