The decree provides rewards for prisoners who have shown good conduct and dedication in work.
Alternative sentences mainly concern women and juvenile prisoners.
In May 2014, the parliament adopted a law criminalizing torture and creating an institution to play the role of the National Preventive Mechanism (Mecanisme National de Prevention,MNP): the National Observatory for the Prevention of Torture and Other Similar Practices (l’Observatoire national de prévention de la torture autres pratiques assimilées). The MNP is not yet operational because a decree providing for its operation is under development.
