Information, topic by topic, on prisons across the world

September 27, 2023

Canada: close to ordinary violence

Testimonial

North America Mental health Violence Social ties Canada

Olivia* supports a close schizophrenic friend through his life sentence. She recounts the time spent helping him and understanding his illness. She reveals the shortcomings of the penal system as well as the violence perpetrated by prison staff.

September 1, 2023

Republic of the Congo : prisons in 2023

Analysis

Africa Pre-trial detention Women Minors Foreign prisoners LGBTQI Long-term prisoners Access to legal rights Discipline Justice Health Mental health Material conditions Suicide Overcrowding Torture Violence Activities Social ties Work Congo - Brazzaville

All there is to know about Congolese prisons in 2023. Key figures, life in detention, references: discover all the data gathered by Prison Insider.

September 1, 2023

United Kingdom: jail housing Charles Bronson is "fundamentally unsafe", says watchdog

News

Europe Violence United Kingdom

‘Urgent support’ needed over high levels of violence and drugs at understaffed HMP Woodhill

July 27, 2023

Ecuador: recovering remains after prison violence, death toll unclear

News

South America Violence Ecuador

June 28, 2023

Honduras: 41 dead after riot erupts in honduran women’s prison

News

Central America and the Caribbean Women Violence Honduras

The inmates were found shot or burned to death in the latest spasm of violence in the country’s troubled prison system.

May 30, 2023

Fresh claims of violence, abuse in youth detention

News

Minors Oceania Material conditions Torture Violence Australia

The troubled Banksia Hill youth detention centre is facing fresh scrutiny amid allegations a girl was sexually harassed by custodial officers. Detainees at Banksia Hill and Casuarina Prison’s Unit 18 youth facility claim they have been subjected to excessive use of force, ongoing lockdowns, forced…

May 26, 2023

India: Tihar Jail violence, no quick-fix solutions, judicial reforms necessary

News

Asia Violence India

Tihar Jail, located in New Delhi, is one of South Asia’s largest and most notorious prison complexes. The prison was intended as a correctional facility, but the growing spate of violence and gang wars within the jail has cast a shadow over its reputation yet again. Why have the authorities been un…

May 15, 2023

Is dynamic security a realistic utopia?

Interview

Europe Discipline Violence

Dynamic security represents a new way of thinking about safety in which interpersonal relationships are fundamental. How does it contribute to easing tensions and preventing violence? Guillaume Brie answers our questions.

May 12, 2023

Egypt: tales of oppression, abuse and human rights violations in women's prison

News

Africa Women Torture Violence Egypt

High walls, mobile prison, overcrowded rooms, and no regard for one’s bodily autonomy: this is what many women and girls deal with in Egypt’s prisons, only for being human rights activists, journalists, or political opponents to the regime. Over the past seven years, Egypt’s prisons, especially the…

April 3, 2023

North Korea: torture, forced abortions and insects for food inside North Korean jails

News

Asia Material conditions Torture Violence North Korea

Extrajudicial executions, rape, forced abortions, jail without trial, torture, starvation rations that leave prisoners so hungry some turn to eating insects.

March 29, 2023

Filming the obscurity

Interview

Africa Asia Europe Facilities Overcrowding Violence Rehabilitation

The Netflix documentary series “Inside the World’s Toughest Prisons” gives viewers a visual representation of what daily life is like for prisoners around the world. Prison Insider met its host, Raphael Rowe. Interview.

February 22, 2023

Egypt: The country's model prison rife with abuses

News

Africa Access to legal rights Torture Violence Egypt

The new prison of Badr which Egypt touted as a model for reform denies inmates healthcare

February 15, 2023

Russia: prisoners of the battlefield

Interview

Crises Europe Violence Russia

The conflict in Ukraine also impacts the individuals incarcerated in Russia. Many of them have been recruited by the Wagner Group over the past few months to participate in the fighting. Dmitry Gurin from EPLN shared with us what they know about this recruitment campaign.

February 8, 2023

Poland: Prisoners beaten, suffocated and waterboarded

News

Europe Torture Violence Poland

Inmates at Barczewo prison have faced physical and mental torture, including beatings, suffocation and waterboarding, according to a new report.

January 24, 2023

USA: the Holmesburg prison experiments

Interview

North America Health Violence United States

Allen M. Hornblum, author of “Acres of Skin”, tells us about the Holmesburg Prison Experiments (1951-1974). What makes prisoners particularly vulnerable to these forms of abuse? What impact have they had on prison practices today? Interview.

January 17, 2023

Chad: protesters' hellish ordeal in remote desert prison

News

Africa Material conditions Violence Chad

Dehydrated as their crowded truck snaked through the dunes, some drank urine to survive, while those who died were tossed into the Chadian desert.

January 11, 2023

Belarus: Former detainee speaks of torture

News

Europe Violence Belarus

In Belarus, daily detentions, torture, and beatings on political grounds have been going on for over two years.

January 2, 2023

Belgium : prisons in 2023

Analysis

Pre-trial detention Women Europe Minors Foreign prisoners LGBTQI Long-term prisoners Access to legal rights Discipline Justice Health Mental health Material conditions Suicide Overcrowding Torture Violence Activities Social ties Work Belgium

All there is to know about Congolese prisons in 2023. Key figures, life in detention, references: discover all the data gathered by Prison Insider.

December 30, 2022

France : prisons in 2022

Analysis

Pre-trial detention Women Europe Minors Foreign prisoners LGBTQI Long-term prisoners Access to legal rights Discipline Justice Health Mental health Material conditions Suicide Overcrowding Torture Violence Activities Social ties Work France

All there is to know about French prisons in 2022. Key figures, life in detention, references: discover all the data gathered by Prison Insider.