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Results from Penal Reform International’s project on women in criminal justice system in Georgia
In December 2016, Penal Reform International concluded a one-year project that was dedicated to pursuing a gender-specific criminal justice system in Georgia, in line with the UN Bangkok Rules. The work, funded by Open Society Georgia Foundation (OSGF), included advocacy and technical assistance to implement gender-specific approaches, in legislation, policy and practice. As part of […]
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PRI joins penal reform leaders to discuss prison-based rehabilitation
Photo: Miranda Merkviladze, PRI representative, giving a press interview at the meeting. PRI joined a three-day meeting convened by United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Vienna on 23-25 January 2017 to discuss the promotion of prison rehabilitation and reintegration. Experts from a number of regions and civil society representatives shared experiences and viewpoints on […]
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Penal Reform International mourning loss of founding member, Professor Sir Nigel Rodley
Photo of Sir Nigel Rodley with PRI and other delegates at the Intergovernmental Expert Group on the revision of the UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners in Cape Town, 2015. Penal Reform International is deeply saddened to hear of the loss of Professor Sir Nigel Rodley, a founding member of the organisation, after he passed […]
Press release
Central Asian penal reform leaders gather in Tajikistan to promote rehabilitation programmes in prisons
On 20-21 December 2016, over 50 policy-makers, justice professionals and other experts gathered from around Central Asia for a workshop convened by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime – in co-operation with PRI and hosted by the Government of Tajikistan – in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. Discussions centered around the importance of rehabilitation programmes in prison, […]
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PRI contributes to consultation on prison health
Public Health England (PHE), in partnership with the World Health Organization Health in Prisons Programme (WHO HIPP), held its fourth annual international Health and Justice Conference in Copenhagen, Denmark from 3-4 November 2016. A meeting report of the conference is now available. The main aim of the conference was to share good practice on prison […]
Press release
Pioneering research on women serving community service and probation in Kenya
Nairobi, 3 October 2016 Today, Penal Reform International (PRI) and the Kenya Probation and Aftercare Service (PAS) publish a research report and short documentary, as partners in a pilot project on women serving community service and probation orders in Kenya. The research seeks to identify and understand the distinct challenges women face when completing these orders […]
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Government, civil society and international experts gather in Kazakhstan, to discuss treatment of children in institutions
Between 13 and 15 September, PRI’s Central Asia office hosted an International Symposium on the prevention of violence against children in closed institutions in Central Asia in Astana, Kazakhstan. Around two hundred delegates attended from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan – penitentiary staff, judicial personnel, police, representatives from various child rights organisations (state and NGOs), as […]
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Delegates from across Africa discuss factors for successful community service as ExTRA project ends
At the end of June, PRI’s new Africa Office welcomed Directors or Probation and Community Service from all over the East African region to Kampala for the PRI’s ExTRA Project End-term Evaluation meeting. The project has focussed on community service as an alternative to imprisonment for petty offences and is now complete after two years of […]
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Mandela Day highlighted by leading international human rights experts
Today is Nelson Mandela International Day, the first since the UN unanimously agreed a revised set of Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners and decided the standards would be known as the ‘Nelson Mandela Rules’ to honour the legacy of the late South African President, a prisoner himself for 27 years and a committed advocate for […]
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Preventing radicalisation in prisons discussed at expert roundtable in Kazakhstan
At the end of June, PRI Central Asia and the Penal Committee, Ministry of Interior, Kazakhstan, supported by the US embassy, jointly organised a roundtable to discuss strategies for preventing radicalisation in prisons. Data shows that the number of those convicted of violent extremist and terrorist crimes is growing everywhere. In Kazakhstan, currently more than 120 […]