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 prison overcrowding (Bangladesh’s prisons are 214.8% over capacity according to latest figures). However, there is growing recognition of the negative impact of the overuse of imprisonment and of the need to develop alternatives.
The seminar will be chaired by the Hon Justice M Imman Ali, a member of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh and a PRI Board Member, and will include representatives from the government, prison service and the judiciary.
The seminar will launch a new report – Development and use of the probation in Bangladesh – which examines the history of probation, its use today and presents recommendations for its future development. Other sessions will cover international best practice, the use of probation for women offenders, the role of probation officers and of lawyers, and current initiatives by the prison service.
Further information
Download the seminar agenda
Read the executive summary of the report (English). It will also be available in Bangla.