Information, topic by topic, on prisons across the world

March 18, 2019

Ireland: 35 cases of tuberculosis

News

Europe Health Ireland

Figures show 26 prisoners and nine officers contracted contagious disease over 10 years.

March 18, 2019

France: "les prisons ne remplissent pas leurs missions"

News

Europe France

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

March 17, 2019

Venezuala: Varela prohíbe a periodistas grabar y tomar fotos en las cárceles Fénix y Uribana

News

Venezuela

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

March 17, 2019

Bolivia: ONU advierte corrupción generalizada en cárceles

News

South America Bolivia

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

March 17, 2019

Taipei: suicide caused by poor conditions at prison, report says

News

Asia Discipline Suicide Taiwan

One suicide and several suicide attempts have resulted from poor conditions at the Lyudao Prison on Taitung County’s Green Island (綠島), three Control Yuan members said yesterday, citing an investigation they conducted.

March 17, 2019

Argentina: Gustavo Ferrari, “Los delincuentes hoy tienen recursos de todo tipo para mantenerse libres”

News

South America Argentina

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

March 16, 2019

Colombia: la agencia de publicidad que opera desde la cárcel

News

South America Colombia

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

March 14, 2019

India: should 400,000 prisoners get to vote in the 2019 election?

News

Asia India

India’s preparing to vote again. Some 900 million of its 1.3 billion people are expected to exercise their franchise over April and May. Amidst this massive celebration of democracy, a small but significant section of the population is still waiting to know whether it will be part of the process. T…

March 14, 2019

USA: the school-to-prison pipeline is getting worse for black and brown girls

News

North America United States

In the US, black and Latinx girls are disproportionately punished and assaulted by school administrators for simple infractions such as showing emotions.

March 14, 2019

France: durcissement du régime disciplinaire en prison

News

Europe France

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

March 13, 2019

France: le responsable des parloirs accusé d’avoir "laissé passer des colis"

News

Europe France

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

March 13, 2019

Costa Rica habilita espacios en cárceles para mejorar vida de mujeres presas

News

Central America and the Caribbean Costa Rica

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

March 13, 2019

Uruguay: cárceles “pobres” e “inhumanas”

News

South America Torture New Zealand

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

March 13, 2019

Peru: los derechos humanos en las cárceles

News

South America Peru

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

March 13, 2019

Swaziland: up to 1,000 prisoners could be freed from jail early

News

Africa Eswatini

As many as 1,000 prisoners in Swaziland / eSwatini could be released from jail before the end of their sentences because the government cannot afford to keep them locked up. The move follows reports that His Majesty’s Correctional Services that run jails in the kingdom could not afford to feed all…

March 13, 2019

Malaysia to keep death penalty, but no longer mandatory

News

Malaysia

Malaysia has rowed back on an earlier plan to completely repeal the death penalty, saying that while the government will abolish mandatory capital punishment, it will leave it for courts to decide whether a person convicted of a serious crime will hang. The mandatory death penalty for 11 criminal o…

March 13, 2019

Bolivia: cárceles, el interpelado es el estado

News

South America Bolivia

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

March 13, 2019

UK: ‘In probation, we’re poorly paid and the caseloads are unmanageable’

News

Europe United Kingdom

Steve Brown has just completed three months on home detention curfew, having left prison at the end of November. Things are looking up. He has had his electronic tag removed and last week moved into new supported accommodation. “I’m in a good place,” he says, “but no thanks to the probation service…

March 12, 2019

USA: federal prisons official used prisons labor

News

North America United States

The Bureau of Prison’s South Central regional director utilized incarcerated people from a Texas prison to work on a landscaping project at his church. A high-ranking Federal Bureau of Prisons official used incarcerated people from a Texas prison to provide labor for his church to finish a landscap…

March 12, 2019

USA: Gov. Newsom to order halt to California’s death penalty

News

Death penalty United States

Gov. Gavin Newsom is suspending the death penalty in California, calling it discriminatory and immoral, and is granting reprieves to the 737 condemned inmates on the nation’s largest Death Row.

March 12, 2019

Bolivia: comenzó el registro biométrico de 19.000 presos en cárceles

News

South America Bolivia

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

March 11, 2019

Russia: allegations of torture in the Northern Caucasian region

News

Asia Europe Torture Russia

The Council of Europe’s Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) has today issued a public statement on the Russian Federation urging the Russian authorities to take decisive action to eradicate the phenomenon of ill-treatment by law enforcement…

March 11, 2019

Iran says it has freed 51,000 prisoners

News

Middle East Iran

An official said 51,000 Iranian prisoners have so far been released under the recent clemency granted by the Leader of the Islamic Revolution on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution’s victory.

March 11, 2019

Spain: brain zap prison experiment suspended

News

Europe Spain

Government officials in Spain have suspended tests to see if zapping the brains of prisoners can make them less aggressive, following an exclusive report by New Scientist on the experiment. The research, involving inmates at Huelva prison, was scheduled to begin this month. The day after New Scient…