Female Prisons Around the World: Facts and Figures About Women in Prison
Chapter 1- Introduction
Around the World there are more women in prison than ever before. Despite statistics, research and various active groups that support women, there is very little published about this topic. All countries have different jurisdictions and it is extremely difficult to make precise comparisons of either the crimes women have committed, or their conditions within imprisonment. Many campaigners and interested reform organisations have hoped that the United Nations Rules for the Treatment of Women Prisoners and Non-Custodial Measures for Women Offenders 2010 — commonly known as The Bangkok Rules (United Nations General Assembly, 2011) will improve the conditions as well as dramatically reducing the number of women in prison.
Throughout this book there is international data and case studies that are intended to illustrate important points. This book provides examples of alternative forms of detention and sentences that have been used. There are illustrations of the unintended consequences from imprisoning women for non-violent crimes, for short periods of time, and recognizes that solutions to one problem can lead to the creation of other ones.
Aim
The aim of this book is to provide an overview of the conditions and research about women in prison. Even though there has been a higher growth in the number of women, compared to men, this subject has not increased its publications accordingly. Government funding is scarce, university courses do not cover this topic on its own and in some countries there is very little information.
A lot can be learned from sharing information and having access to research, facts and figures. Within this short book, there are nation reports which provide data about the following:
§ Data about the population of women in prison
§ Details about the female prison estate
§ An overview of important research
Prisoners’ Rights
International human rights mean that prisoners should be protected from cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment. There are international mechanisms for safeguarding prisoners that are important, but complicated to enforce. Human rights are often used as a last resort and associated with the conditions and treatment of prisoners. It has been claimed that conditions in prisons across the world can shock and in some instances are so bereft of humanity that they challenge the notion of a civilized society (Perlin, 2014).
International human rights for all prisoners are safeguarded through covenants such as the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (1987). This international legislation gives freedom from torture, inhuman, or degrading treatment. It is universal legislation that in conjunction with regional and domestic legislative frameworks must guide the work of activists, practitioners and other stakeholders to support the human rights of people in detention and criminal justice systems.
Academics, politicians and others are divided about the usefulness of human rights for challenging issues relating to women such as: underlying health; social; or welfare problems. Female prisoners are acknowledged to represent a population who have had a lifetime of discrimination. Many people question the applicability of rights and claim that human rights cannot be translated into a reality.
The United Nations
International issues are important in the 21st century because of the global increase in female imprisonment. The United Nations (UN) divides the world into five geopolitical regions. From May 2014, 192 of the 193 UN member states are divided as follows:
· The African Group with 54-member states
· The Asia-Pacific Group with 53-member states
· The Eastern European Group with 23-member states,
· The Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC) with 33-member states
· The Western Europe and Others Group with 28-member states plus 1-member state (the United States) as an observer state.
These groupings change by negotiations through the United Nations. It is important to recognize how the UN has divided its members for monitoring issues relating to imprisonment, including violations of human rights. The worldwide trends of female imprisonment have generally seen the highest rises within Latin-America and Asia. It is expected that the rates of incarceration for women in China will increase by 2020. Throughout this book, these groupings will be used to highlight female prisons from around the world.
Contents
Chapter 1- Introduction…………………………………………………………….4
Chapter 2- The African Group………………………………………………………7
Chapter 3- The Asia-Pacific Group………………………………………………..9
Chapter 4- Canada and United States…………………………………………….11
Chapter 5- Eastern Europe ………………………………………………………..14
Chapter 6- Europe……………………………………………………………………………..16
Chapter 7 — Latin American and Caribbean Group ….………………………….22
Chapter 8 — Middle East ………………………………………………………………..25
Chapter 9 — Oceania……………………………………………………………………29
Chapter 10- Scandinavia……………………………………………………………31
Chapter 11-United Kingdom…………………………………………………………………….36
Chapter 12 — Conclusion……………………………………………………………39
Chapter 13 — Tables ………………………………………………………………..41
Chapter 14 — References……………………………………………………………44
Chapter 15 — Index…………………………………………………………………45
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