News
Press conference held in Kazakhstan on prison reform: expectations and reality
On 23 February 2017, Penal Reform International Central Asia, convened a press conference on ‘Prison reform in Kazakhstan: expectations and reality’. It coincided with the 10th anniversary of the UN Subcommittee for the Prevention of Torture, the UN detention monitoring body. PRI presented some trends in prison reform globally, and developments in Kazakhstan over the […]
News
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 […]
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, […]
News
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 […]
News
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 […]
News
Panel on human rights of women in conflict with the law at the Human Rights Council
At an event organised on the side-lines of the 32nd Human Rights Council, the various human rights issues faced by women in conflict with the law were addressed by a panel of experts from member states, UN bodies and Penal Reform International. The Ambassador of Denmark, Carsten Steur, noted in his opening remarks that while […]
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PRI at the UN Crime Commission 2016
The UN Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice will convene in Vienna on 23-27 May 2016. Held annually it is the principal policy-making body of the UN in the field of crime prevention and criminal justice and is therefore of key relevance to PRI’s mission. The Commission is the preparatory body for and implements many […]
News
Essex expert group meets to discuss the implementation of the newly adopted Nelson Mandela Rules
On 7-8 April 2016, PRI and the University of Essex Human Rights Centre hosted a meeting of criminal justice experts to review the revised UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, adopted as the Nelson Mandela Rules in December 2015. The experts identified legal, policy and operational issues that may arise for prison […]
Press release
Invite to UNGASS event: Human rights impacts of drug policies
How can better drug policies help improve prison conditions and protect human rights? Together with the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, PRI is organising a side-event at the UN General Assembly Special Session on drugs (UNGASS) on 18 April 2016 on Human rights impacts of drug policies. Monday 18 April 2016 8.30-9.30am […]
News
Save the date: Briefing on the Nelson Mandela Rules, Geneva
Together with the Quaker UN Office (QUNO), and the Permanent Representations of Switzerland and Uruguay to the UN in Geneva, Penal Reform International invites delegates, representatives of NGOs and interested stakeholders to a briefing on 4 February 2015 in Geneva on the recently adopted revised UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, the ‘Nelson Mandela […]