Italy
Capital city — Rome
Country population
i2019/ EurostatType of government
Human Development Index
Homicide rate (per 100,000 inhabitants)
Name of authority in charge of the pris…
Total number of prisoners
i29/02/2020Incarceration rate (per 100,000 inhabit…
i2020Average length of imprisonment (in mont…
i2018/ Council of Europe, SPACE I – 2019 Report, p. 119.Prison density
i31/01/2020Total number of prison facilities
i31/01/2020An NPM has been established
Female prisoners
i29/02/2020Incarcerated minors
0.3 %This figure repre…
i15/02/2020/ Ministry of Justice Minors and young adults under the care of Child Protective Services.Untried prisoners
i31/12/2019Death penalty is abolished
yes, since 1994The death penalty…
Daily life
Activities
All prisoners are entitled to spend at least one hour a day in the open air
The prison service offers activities to prisoners
yes
The prison service is required to organise cultural, physical, and recreational activities (Article 27 of the Prison Rules). The number and quality of the activities depends on several factors: the involvement of external participants, the goodwill of the warden, and local institutions. AS or 41-bis prisoners are not authorised to participate in communal activities with the others.
There are designated places for physical activities and sports
Most facilities have athletic fields and gymnasiums.
There are designated places for cultural activities
yes
The main cultural activities offered to prisoners are theatre workshops, film discussions, literature and writing workshops, art, journalism, and music.1
Theatre is a key socio-cultural activity. Antigone stresses the importance of this activity for the rehabilitation of prisoners.2
Antigone, Fourteenth Report on Prison Conditions, 2018 (in Italian). ↩
Antigone, Fifteenth Report on Prison Conditions, 2019 (in Italian). ↩
Number and percentage of prisoners who participate in socio-cultural activities
-
In 2018, the administration counted 34,896 prisoners who had participated in “cultural or recreational” activities, with as many as 4,665 prisoners having taken part in theatre workshops and 1,200 in the development of shows.
Number and percentage of prisoners who participate in sport activities
Prisoners are not involved in the selection of their activities. This choice is up to the administration and external participants.
Access to activities is not subject to any conditions. Restrictions can, however, be imposed as part of disciplinary measures or on prisoners who are in solitary confinement.
Prison facilities have a library
most facilities
The largest facilities have a library in each section that is freely accessible when cells are open.
Other facilities only possess a single library. Sign-up to a waiting list is required to access it.
Prisoners participate in a committee to select the books.
Work
Work is compulsory
Number and percentage of prisoners who work
The prison administration directly employs 15,689 prisoners. The number of prisoners working for organisations (businesses or associations) outside of prisons is 2,381.
Variation in the number of prisoners who work
increase of 24.2%
The number of prisoners working as of December 31, 2014 was 14,550. They thus represented 27.62% of the incarcerated population.
All prisoners are allowed to work
Prisoners convicted of having mafia associations or of other serious crimes are not authorised to work outside of prisons. They are allowed to work outside after serving 2/3 of their sentence.
Labour as a punitive measure is prohibited
People desiring to work must sign up for a waiting list.
Most of the proposed jobs are in the scope of general service: cooking, meal distribution, maintenance, and laundry.
Some prisoners are assigned secretarial jobs or are tasked with writing documents for other prisoners.
However, the administration has its own fabrication workshops, for uniforms or furniture for example. 1
Ministry of Justice, Lavoro dei detenuti, 2019. ↩
Work is distributed in accordance with the skills required and with consideration to the duration of the prisoner’s sentence, the number of dependent children, and the economic situation of each individual prisoner.
Prisoners are paid for their work
yes
Salaries are
slightly below the national minimum wage
Wages cannot be below two thirds of wages for the same job on the outside.
Their income is subject to social contributions
Prisoners have the right to join trade unions
Education and vocational training
Authority(ies) in charge of education and vocational training
Ministry of Education, universities and research.
In 2019, the Ministry of Education, Universities, and Research formed an agreement with the Ministry of Justice in order to bolster education in prisons.
Prisoners enrolled in educational training
In 2018, there were 20,357 prisoners pursuing scholastic endeavours. More than half of them were foreigners, and most were taking reading or Italian courses. The number of prisoners pursuing a university education was 714 for the same period. It primarily included Italians.
The regional prison heads organise vocational training with authorities and agencies for local employment.
Education is provided
in all facilities
Education is available for all prisoners
The administration is required to pay particular attention to the education and training of prisoners under the age of 25 (Article 19 of the Prison Rules).
The prison service implements measures to fight illiteracy
Prisoners are allowed to pass diplomas and entry examinations
Number and percentage of prisoners enrolled in vocational training
Vocational training is provided
yes
The main training courses offered are in art and culture, food and beverage, construction, agriculture, and gardening.
Prisoners from the Lecce casa circondariale can pursue sommelier training. Other facilities, such as the Bollate casa di reclusione in Milan, have a restaurant for training for careers in food and beverage. The Bollate restaurant is open to the public.
Vocational training is available for all prisoners
The number of places for these training courses is limited.
Distance courses are available
Restrictive prison regimes and a lack of facilitators or teachers often leads to distance learning.
Prisoners have access to computers
in some facilities
In some facilities, prisoners following a university programme can use computers.1
Antigone, Fifteenth Report on Prison Conditions, 2019 (in Italian). ↩
Access to information
Prisoners are allowed to keep themselves informed regularly on public affairs
yes
Prisoners have access to a television
yes
There is usually a television in activity rooms, common areas, or in cells.
Prisoners have access to a radio
Prisoners have access to the press
The prison service allows access to Internet
in some facilities
Internet access is possible in some facilities for sending emails, conducting videoconferencing interviews, or university studies.
Religion
The most represented religions in prison are Catholicism, Islam, and Orthodox Christianity.
-
The latest official statistics on the faiths of prisoners are from 2016. As of 31 December 2016, Catholic prisoners represent 54.7% of the incarcerated population. Muslims and Orthodox Christians represent 11.4% and 4.2% respectively. A large number of prisoners refused to respond to the questionnaire.
Prisoners are free to practice their religion and follow their beliefs
yes
Article 19 of the Constitution guarantees the freedom of worship to all.
Dedicated places of worship are available
in all facilities
All facilities have a Catholic place of worship.
There are chaplains in the prisons
depends on the religions
The prison administration has established conventions with the Vatican and the Union of the Italian Islamic Community and Organisations (UCOII). Some facilities benefit exclusively from Catholic chaplains.
The prison service remunerates the chaplains
depends on the religions
The administration only pays Catholic chaplains. Religious guidance is provided on a voluntary basis.
External actors
Individuals or organisations from the outside are allowed to participate in prison activities
Authorisations for external actors to take part in prison activities are provided by
the prison governor and the supervisory magistrate
The administration makes annual agreements with the different associations. Authorisation of entry for an individual person must come from the warden and the supervisory magistrate. (Article 78 of the Prison Rules).
Catholic associations, such as Caritas, are especially present in prisons. Numerous athletic associations, legal assistance groups, and associations for the maintenance of familial relationships such as Bambinisenzasbarre) have permission to enter.
Most external participants are volunteers.
Financial resources
Prisoners are allowed to make use of financial resources
Prisoners who work receive payment through a savings account. Their loved ones can send them money either by postal money order, at the prison service window during a visit, or by bank wire in certain prisons. Prisoners can also send up to 350 EUR per month to their loved ones.[^note] [^note]: Ministry of Justice, Inviare soldi a ricevere soldi da persona detenuta, 2019.
Financial resources are accessible
in an account
Those who are only accused can keep up to 2,065.82 EUR in a personal account. Convicted prisoners cannot have more than 1,032.91 EUR. The administration keeps anything in excess of these amounts in a separate bank account for the condemned person.
Destitute prisoners receive financial or in-kind support
The administration is required to provide in-kind assistance (clothing, hygienic products) to destitute prisoners. Aid is most often provided by associations.
Expression of prisoners
Prisoners are allowed to discuss matters relating to their conditions of imprisonment
yes
Any request made to the prison administration is made exclusively by filling out a form (domandina). This may relate to prison conditions.
Prisoners have the right of association
no
Prisoners have the right to vote
yes, convicted prisoners with a sentence of less than three years
Article 28 of the Penal Code specifies the procedures for suspension of civic rights.
Some prisons have workshops for audiovisual and written productions.
Prisoners in the Padua and Venice (women) prisons contribute to an online newspaper, Ristretti.
Prisoners in Rebibbia (Rome), Bollate (Milan), and Vallette (Turin) produce a weekly radio programme titled Jailhouse Rock. It is rebroadcast in different regions by local radio stations.