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Report

The abolition of the death penalty and its alternative sanction in Central Asia: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan

The death penalty is the ultimate cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment. It represents an unacceptable denial of human dignity and integrity. It is irrevocable, and where criminal justice systems are open to error or discrimination, the death penalty will inevitably be inflicted on the innocent. In many countries that retain the death penalty there is a […]

Languages: English, Russian

Briefing

Access to justice: discrimination against women in criminal justice systems

More than 625,000 women and girls are held in prisons around the world. The majority are imprisoned for petty, non-violent offences, and frequently as a result, directly or indirectly, of discrimination and deprivation, often experienced at the hands of their husbands or partners, their family and the community. This briefing paper outlines the ways in […]

Languages: English

Multimedia

Children, the law and Bangladesh: Interview with Imman Ali, PRI Board Member and Judge in the Supreme Court of Bangladesh

Justice Imman Ali is a judge of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh. He has a particular interest in justice for children and women and has delivered a number of judgments dealing with legal and social aspects concerning children, their trial, detention and education. In this interview, he discusses problems facing children […]

Languages: English

Report

Pre-trial detention and its alternatives in Armenia

Excessive use of pre-trial detention is a global problem. According to the Open Society Justice Initiative, on any given day an estimated 3 million people around the world are under pre-trial detention. In the course of a single year around 10 million will be detained awaiting trial. This research presents views of different parties who […]

Languages: English

On-line conference with public monitoring commissions

This document proposes a number of measures to improve the penal system in Kazakhstan, and summarises recommendations adopted at a conference with the chairs of public monitoring commissions on 12 January 2012.

Languages: English

Report

Paralegals in Rwanda: a case study

Penal Reform International’s work from 1998 to 2010 in the Great Lakes region of Africa aimed to reduce the pre-trial prison population. The organisation monitored the process of Gacaca – the name given to the system of community-based courts for prosecuting genocide suspects – and its work expanded to include providing paralegal services. In July […]

Languages: English

Training

Toolkit: Interviewing Children, their Guardians, and Staff of Juvenile Detention Facilities

PRI’s activities around juvenile justice focus on diverting children from the adult justice system, promoting alternative sanctions to imprisonment and, where imprisonment is used, improving conditions of detention. In order to do this, interviewing children who are deprived of their liberty is vital in getting a full understanding of the situation in a country. This […]

Languages: English, Russian

Briefing

Deprivation of Children’s Liberty as the Last Resort: Independent monitoring mechanisms to safeguard children in detention

The African Child Policy Forum and Defence for Children International held a global conference in Kampala on 7-8 November 2011 to highlight the destructive impact on deprivation of liberty for children. The conference highlighted the critical importance of access to justice for children in Africa, whose rights are frequently denied and violated. The conference documents summarise […]

Languages: English, French, Spanish