Today, marking the 11th anniverary of the adoption of the UN Rules for the Treatment of Women Prisoners and Non-custodial Measures for Women Offenders (‘the Bangkok Rules’), PRI in collaboration with the Thailand Institute of Justice, published the second edition of our Guidance document on the Bangkok Rules.
 
This guidance document has been updated to reflect new standards and practices around the world that seek to create more effective criminal justice systems that respect women’s rights. The 11 thematic chapters offer practical guidance to a range of actors, on areas such as non-custodial measures for women in contact with the law, healthcare in prison, contact with the outside world, rehabilitation, as well as guidance regarding prison staff. 

Accompanying this guidance document is an interactive map showcasing promising practices regarding the implementation of the Bangkok Rules. These initiatives – ranging from innovative alternatives to imprisonment, gender-sensitive prison practices, to inspiring reintegration programmes and more – offer practical and human rights-based ideas for responding to the specific needs of women in the criminal justice system. 

People in prison are among the most vulnerable to suffering from the negative effects of natural hazards - yet they are often forgotten in disaster risk reduction. This month, PRI published a new guide, Natural Hazards and Prisons: Protecting human rights of people in prison in disaster prevention, response and recovery. Based on primary research, this guide – the first of its kind – presents practical measures with a human rights-based approach for practitioners and frontline staff working in prison systems.

At the online launch of the guide this month, Mr Morris Tidball-Binz, UN Special Rapporteur on extra-judicial summary or arbitrary executions, highlighted the importance of rights-based guidance in this area. Watch the recording of the event here. 

This month, PRI and Harm Reduction International published the first ever in-depth review of policies and practices related to COVID-19 vaccination in prisons across 177 countries. The report, COVID-19 vaccinations for prison populations and staff: Report on global scan, finds that most countries failed to adequately plan for vaccination in prisons and highlights a critical lack of data collection and transparency on this aspect of the COVID-19 response. 

At the online launch of the report this month, speakers from WHO, ICRC, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, and Justice Project Pakistan discussed the findings and ways forward to ensure the protection of people detained and working in prisons. Watch the recording of this event here.