April 2008

At the 17th Session of the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, in Vienna from 14-18 April 2008,  PRI joined with UNICEF, OHCHR, OMCT and several other members of the Interagency Panel on Juvenile Justice to present an oral statement to the Commission. The statement recalled ECOSOC resolution 2007/23, inviting Member States ‘to adopt comprehensive national action plans on crime prevention and juvenile justice reform, containing, in particular, specific targets with regard to reducing the pre-trial detention and imprisonment of children, including through the use of diversion, restorative justice and alternatives to imprisonment and ensuring that proper detention conditions prevail.’ It also called on Member States to fulfil their obligations under the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, with regard to, amongst others, the use of detention only as a last resort and the non-application of the death penalty on juveniles.

18 April 2008

As an active member of the World Coalition Against the Death Penalty, PRI has joined with other Coalition members in expressing dismay at the US Supreme Court decision to continue to allow execution by means of lethal injection. A press release issued on 18 April 2008 on behalf of Coalition members reads as follows:

‘The World Coalition Against the Death Penalty condemns the April 16th decision of the United States Supreme Court upholding the lethal injection as a humane method of executing a human being.

3 April 2008 

On 7 April - World Health Day - PRI is hosting a roundtable meeting on Mental health and prisoners.  The meeting, due to be held in London, will bring together a group of leading international experts on mental health and penal reform.

The aim of the roundtable is to inform and raise discussion amongst government development agencies, ministries of foreign affairs and other opinion makers. The roundtable will look, from a global perspective, at shortfalls in the way that governmental and prison authorities currently deal with prisoners’ mental health problems, identify good practice and discuss how implementation of the latter can be advanced. 

27 February 2008

PRI has published a Compendium of Comparative Prison Legislation, which aims to provide legislators, government officials, prison administrators and all concerned with penal reform with positive, realistic and contemporary examples of national laws from around the world.