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February 2, 2017

Honduras: where chaos reigns. Inside the San Pedro Sula prison

News

America Central America and the Caribbean Honduras

In San Pedro Sula’s jailhouse, chaos reigns. The inmates, trapped in their collective misery, battle for control over every inch of their tight quarters. Farm animals and guard dogs roam free and feed off scraps, which can include a human heart. Every day is visitors’ day, and the economy bustles w…

February 1, 2017

Canada: conjugal visits increase success of prisoner rehabilitation

News

America North America Social ties Canada

It looks like a normal three-bedroom family home. A ceiling fan whirrs over a pair of sofas in the living room. The hallway shelves carry a pile of bed sheets. A refrigerator hums quietly in the kitchen as sunlight peaks in through a curtained window.

February 1, 2017

Chile: Riot in one of the most dangerous prisons in the country leaves 40 inmates wounded

News

America South America Protest Violence Chile

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

February 1, 2017

USA : Donald Trump nomme Neil Gorsuch comme juge à la Cour suprême, un conservateur qui va plaire aux pro-peine de mort

News

Violence United States

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

February 1, 2017

UK: Exeter prison struggling with drugs and rising violence, say inspectors

News

Drugs Violence United Kingdom

Assault and self-harm figures at Devon jail are revealed as justice secretary prepares to publish prison reform bill. Prison inspectors have warned that the situation at Exeter jail is “fragile”, with drugs thrown over the wall on a daily basis and only 29 officers on duty for 490 prisoners.

February 1, 2017

Chaos pénitentiaire au Brésil

News

America South America Drugs Brazil

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

January 31, 2017

Brasil: Así es la vida de los poderosos presos de "Lava Jato" en cárceles de Brasil

News

Brazil

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

January 31, 2017

Cameroun : la "vie abominable" d'un détenu de la prison centrale de Yaoundé

News

Africa Cameroon

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

January 31, 2017

UK: prison suicides and how to stop them

News

Suicide United Kingdom

Once upon a time, in 2013, in England and Wales, there were 76 people known to have died by suicide in prison. This was a higher rate of such deaths than in the general population. It concerned everyone who tried to make prisons safe. We have evidence of a higher than average rate of mental disorde…

January 31, 2017

Who is really in control of Brazil’s prisons?

News

Brazil

Prisoners in Brazil have outnumbered prison staff by the hundreds. The legitimacy of the Brazilian prison system has come in for deep scrutiny following a series of violent encounters between rival gangs in the north of the country.

January 31, 2017

Nigeria: 47,229 awaiting trial in our prisons, says Osinbajo

News

Africa Nigeria

The Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, monday lamented the delay in the country’s justice administration, which he said was the reason 47,229 detainees “are still awaiting trial in the prisons.”

January 31, 2017

United States: number of U.S. prisoners serving life sentences has quadrupled

News

America North America Long-term prisoners United States

The number of U.S. prisoners serving life sentences has more than quadrupled over the past three decades, and those eligible for parole are waiting longer to be released, according to a report released Tuesday.

January 31, 2017

Saudi Arabia: over 5,000 detained in intelligence prisons

News

Saudi Arabia

The number of detainees in intelligence prisons all over the Kingdom has reached 5,094, the Interior Ministry announced. The ministry said 4,257 of the detainees were Saudis and the rest belonged to 40 nationalities.

January 31, 2017

United Kingdom: jails unsafe and 'full of drugs', says Chief Inspector of Prisons

News

Drugs United Kingdom

Peter Clarke said recommendations made on the back of inspections appear to ‘fall on deaf ears’ in some instances

January 31, 2017

United Kingdom: prisons watchdog blames ‘failure of leadership’ for dire state of jails in England and Wales

News

Europe United Kingdom

Prisons in England and Wales are struggling due to a “failure of leadership” on behalf of ministers, the watchdog said today.

January 31, 2017

Empowering prisoners In Africa through legal education

News

Too often it is the poorest, least educated and most vulnerable who find themselves in prison. Across Africa, there are some inmates who will never meet a lawyer. They are crammed into facilities, some operating at 300% capacity.

January 31, 2017

Cambodia: drug campaign nets 1,000

News

Asia Drugs Cambodia

More than 1,000 people have been arrested in the first dozen days of the government’s drug crackdown, in what critics have labelled a heavy-handed campaign that could have unintended consequences.

January 31, 2017

Exclusive: Cameroonian prisoners smuggle out footage of horrific jail conditions

News

Africa Cameroon

The main prison in Yaoundé, Cameroon is “overpopulated, filthy and rife with corruption and abuse”, according to an inmate who contacted FRANCE 24’s The Observers from behind bars. This man secretly filmed, with the help of some of his inmates, the overcrowded cells and “revolting” conditions in wh…

January 31, 2017

Guerre antidrogue aux Philippines : possible crime contre l'humanité

News

Asia Drugs Philippines

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

January 30, 2017

Turkey, Hungary and Romania drive 23% rise in ECHR applications

News

Europe Middle East

Crackdown after failed coup and prison conditions in Romania and Hungary fuel spike in human rights court applications. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s response to the attempted coup in Turkey along with poor conditions in prisons in Hungary and Romania have driven a 23% year-on-year rise in the number of a…

January 30, 2017

Ireland: life sentence prisoners served 22 years average in prison

News

Long-term prisoners Ireland

Prisoners released in 2016 served on average four years more than those released in 2015. Life sentence prisoners released in 2016 served an average 22 years in custody, an increase of four-and-a-half years on 2015.

January 30, 2017

Courts around Australia face huge backlog of criminal cases, report finds

News

Oceania Justice Australia

About a quarter of pending cases in NSW, Tasmania, South Australia and the ACT are taking more than a year to process, well above target of 10%

January 30, 2017

USA: time for Pa. to end its prison-industrial complex

News

United States

One of the challenges of the Trump era in America is that we can’t forget about the important issues that aren’t swept up in the daily maelstrom of Trumpworld. On the national stage – and to a certain extent, on the local level as well – a number of important topics seem to have been pushed to the…

January 30, 2017

Australia: record NSW prison population, rising assault rate, show a system "in a crisis"

News

Oceania Australia

The number of assaults in overcrowded NSW prisons has soared by 37 per cent in the past two years, as the prison population reaches a record high.