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Iran
Political prisoner Davood Hadadinia has begun a hunger strike in Yasouj Prison to protest his continued detention and the lack of progress in processing his case.
North America
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Canada
It’s election day at prisons and jails across the country, and as incarcerated people cast their ballots behind bars, a Canadian Senator is trying to break down barriers so they can make an informed choice.
Middle East
Justice
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Suicide
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Egypt
A 29-year-old man committed suicide in his cell at Badr 3 Prison, located east of Cairo, the Shehab Centre for Human Rights said. The rights group added that the suicide took place after a series of violations carried out by the prison’s administration against the man, identified as Alaa Jamal.
South Africa: seven officials from Mangaung prison suspended after murder of incarcerated person
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Africa
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South Africa
Seven prison officials at the Mangaung Correctional Centre have been suspended following the murder of an imprisoned person. Mpho Mkhumbeni died on 12 March, following an unauthorised raid of his cell where he was pepper-sprayed and beaten the night before.
Culture
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Azerbaijan
Afiyyaddin Mammadov, the detained chair of the Labor Desk Trade Union Confederation, writes that in detention centers and in penitentiary facilities, access to the media and information is restricted, censorship is applied, and laws are being violated.
Europe
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Belgium
The state of prisons - notably overcrowding, poor staff working conditions and inadequate access to support for imprisoned people - are not conducive to rehabilitation, according to a new report by the Brussels Federation of Institutions for Inmates and Former Prisoners (Fidex).
Pre-trial detention
Europe
Mental health
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United Kingdom
Jordan Burns made several attempts to take his own life during 10 months as an unconvicted person on remand at Scotland’s HMP Addiewell before he suffered an overdose whilst alone in his cell. His grieving mother Janice is suing the prison so it “never happens again”.
North America
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United States
Thirteen incarcerated and formerly incarcerated individuals who died within the past year were remembered during the fourth annual Mourning Our Losses ceremony last month inside San Quentin Rehabilitation Center.
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Israel
Israeli authorities released 23-year-old Ahmad Manasra from Nafha Prison in the Negev Desert, ending 10 years of imprisonment. Ahmad Manasra’s lawyer told Al Mayadeen that his client was released in a highly fragile mental state.
Women
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Pakistan
The Sindh government intends to build special hostels to provide secure accommodation facilities to former incarcerated female to help their drive to gain economic independence in their lives after release from jail.
Africa
Women
Material conditions
Overcrowding
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Sudan
The authorities at Wau Central Prison said they released 31 incarcerated people, 4 men and 27 women, after a local company called Lukluk paid off their fines.
North America
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United States
A new law cedes much of the power of the parole board to an algorithm that prevents thousands of imprisoned people from early release. The risk assessment tool, TIGER, does not take into account efforts they make to rehabilitate themselves.
Crises
North America
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United States
United States District Judge Robert Pitman called the lack of air conditioning in incarcerated people facilities “plainly unconstitutional,” but he stopped short of requiring action.
Asia
Long-term prisoners
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Azerbaijan
Multiple imprisoned people have gone on hunger strike over the last two weeks. The first person to do so, prominent opposition politician Tofig Yagublu, a member of the opposition Musavat Party, announced his ‘death hunger strike’ in March after being sentenced to nine years in prison.
Europe
Material conditions
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United Kingdom
HM Inspectorate of Prisons has identified the issue as one of those which frustrate incarcerated people’s efforts to resolve everyday issues such as requests for extra toilet rolls for a cell, making an appointment to speak to staff in another department and applying for courses or prison jobs.
Crises
Asia
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Myanmar (Burma)
According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), more than 2,000 political prisoners have died in Myanmar’s prisons since the country was plunged into conflict by a military coup more than four years ago.
Crises
Pre-trial detention
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Middle East
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Israel
Detained Palestinian have come forward with harrowing accounts of abuse by Israeli military and prison staff in a new BBC investigation featuring testimonies from former imprisoned people recently released in Gaza.