The quality and the number of activities depend on various factors: the goodwill of the warden, the participation of external actors, the presence of volunteers and the attitude of local institutions. There are prisons with well-organised activities, while in others there is no such organisation, in which case inmates stay inside their cell watching TV all day long.

92% of the facilities visited by Antigone had a space for cultural activities. Rooms measure 30 to 50 m². They are equipped with tables and plastic chairs, a television, playing cards, and sometimes musical instruments.

The most common activities are music courses, different workshops, and reading.

For more information see “Additional comments”.

In each facility, there should be a special commission, partly composed of inmates. The commission makes a selection of books based on cultural pluralism. All external donations are accepted. Sometimes inmates can go to the library and easily choose a book, whereas sometimes they have to request it, which might leads to a long waiting list.

Some prisons have only one library, whereas in big facilities there can be small libraries within blocks. There is a lack of books in foreign languages (like Arabic or Slavic). Libraries are not modern. Computerized catalogues are rare.

Inmates are paid for their work. The remuneration is calculated according to the difficulty and quantity of work.

Offenders are not paid if the prison sentence is substituted by community work. Lavoro sostitutivo is free work in favour of the community (e.g. work for municipalities, educational services, for civil and environmental protection).

Foreigners receive literacy and Italian courses. They can obtain a certificate attesting their knowledge of the language.

In general, inmates have to fill an application in order to participate in educational courses or trainings.

A scholarship can be awarded for inmates who distinguish in academic courses or vocational trainings.

Young offenders detained in IPMs are generally offered vocational training and other types of activities.

A vocational training to become sommelier or wine steward is organised in Lecce Prison. These courses are part of a programme that gives inmates new skills and helps developing a bond between the institution and the region (that is known for its negroamaro grapes). The programme has been enthusiastically accepted by inmates. In eight lessons, 30 men and women, divided into separate groups, learnt how to taste, choose and serve local wines.

The Ministry of Justice intended to improve the access to the internet in 2017. This project failed to provide significant changes. Some exceptions can be made for distance learning courses or for communication with relatives via Skype. In Giudecca prison, some women have been allowed to do homework with their children through the internet.

The practice of religion is so far rather well regarded by the administration. The major obstacle to the full enjoyment of this constitutionally guaranteed right is the lack of suitable places.

The prison administration often does not provide religious assistance to foreign prisoners who practice a different cult than Catholicism.

Muslim prisoners often do not have adequate spaces for religious practices.

In most cases, such religious assistance is provided on voluntary basis by external participants.

All prisons are equipped with Christian Catholic confessional premises, attended by Catholic priests.

Antigone has observed (during the visits to 86 facilities) that only 20 prisons had spaces for no-Catholic religions. This means that in 77% of institutions inmates do not have a place to pray except from their cells.

In 2015, the prison administration signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Union of Italian Islamic Communities (UCOII), authorising entry to imams in eight facilities. The initial intention was to ensure the right to worship and at the same time prevent radicalisation inside prisons (based on the idea that an official imam can counteract the influence of some prisoners-leaders preaching jihadist ideologies).

Imams sometimes need this expressed authorisation to enter prison. As of 2017, there were only 47 authorised Imams despite a large number of Muslims inmates.

Financial resources should be deposited in a special bank account.

Inmates can receive money by:

• Postal order - the order is addressed to the warden with the full name of the recipient. The sum is deposited by the administration on the inmate’s personal account.
• Money delivery at the counter - money is deposited during family visits with the agreement of the penitentiary administration.
• Credit on the prison Direction’s transaction account - the family must indicate the name of the recipient. Not all prisons accept this type of payment.

Inmates can send money to their families (350 euros per month)¹.

Inmates can communicate with the penitentiary administration through ‘domandine’. These are used for all types of requests, including meetings with prison chaplains, educators, volunteers and directors and to purchase goods.

People convicted for criminal offences against the State or the judicial system, or sentenced to at least three years of imprisonment, “lose the right to vote”.