Press release
Launch of the call for a global study on children deprived of liberty
Defence for Children International, together with partner NGOs, including Penal Reform International, are launching a Call for a Global Study on Children Deprived of their Liberty today at the United Nations Office in Geneva. Press release, 13 March 2014 Today at the United Nations Office in Geneva, Defence for Children International (DCI), in collaboration with partner NGOs*, […]
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PRI’s priorities at the March 2014 Human Rights Council
Next week will see the start of the 25th Regular Session of the UN Human Rights Council (3-28 March 2014 in Geneva) and PRI will be participating on three key issues: the abolition of the death penalty, justice for children and the revision of the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners. PRI’s statement within the […]
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PRI and IPJJ publish new resource addressing the needs of girls in criminal justice systems
Age, gender and their small numbers make girls one of the most vulnerable and neglected groups involved in criminal justice systems. While far from being a homogenous group with characteristics and needs that vary between countries, we know that there are many issues that they face in common. These include the fact that they may […]
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Kazakhstan prison Ombudsman visits Slovenian counterparts
This week, PRI facilitated a visit to the Slovenian Ombudsman by a delegation from the Ombudsman’s office in Kazakhstan, including the Askar Shakirov, Ombudsman of Kazakhstan and Rustam Kypshakbayev, a specialist from the Ombudsman office. This visit was undertaken as part of a new 10-month PRI Central Asia project funded by the Organisation for Security and […]
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PRI discusses priorities for prison reform at regional and national fora in India
Over the last week PRI and the Penal Reform and Justice Association (PRAJA) have been running a series of training of trainer workshops high-level seminars for prison officials highlighting the need for professionalisation of the prison service and wider penal and criminal justice reform in India. On the 22nd February, PRI will hold a high-level national seminar […]
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Seminar discusses how to increase the use of probation in Bangladesh
On Friday 20 December, PRI and its partner organisation, the Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST) held a joint seminar on the use of probation as an alternative to imprisonment in Bangladesh. While the legislative framework in Bangladesh allows for offenders charged with a wide range of minor offences to be placed on probation, […]
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PRI Board Member Dirk van Zyl Smit to lead new global study on life sentences
PRI is delighted to hear that its Board Member Professor Dirk van Zyl Smit will be leading a new global study on life sentences. Professor van Zyl Smit is Professor of Comparative and International Penal Law in the School of Law at the University of Nottingham, which has been awarded a £222,000 grant for the project […]
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Human rights and prison management the focus of prison service training in Kolkata last week
On 9-12 December 2013, PRI and the Penal Reform and Justice Association (PRAJA) ran a training of trainers workshop (ToT) on human rights and prison management for Indian Prison Officials. Twenty prison managers from India’s eastern states – Jharkhand, Mizoram and West Bengal – took part in the four-day course on human rights and prison management, which […]
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PRI and the Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST) to hold seminar on probation on 20 December
This Saturday, PRI and its local partner BLAST, will be holding a national seminar on probation as an alternative to imprisonment. While the legislative framework in Bangladesh allows for offenders charged with a wide range of minor offences to be placed on probation, it is rarely used, and overreliance on prison sentences has contributed to severe […]
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New resource for detention monitoring bodies launched
On Friday, PRI and its partner the Association for the Prevention of Torture (APT) launched the a new joint publication – the Detention Monitoring Tool – at the Palais Wilson, Headquarters of the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva. Monitoring bodies are most effective when they focus on a preventive approach, ie […]