IPRT promotes a penal system that is: humane as experienced by people who are detained, protects and promotes human rights and equality, and strives to achieve international best practice in formal regimes, daily practices and overall culture.
It is the sentence of deprivation of liberty in itself that is the core punitive sanction, the conditions and treatment while in prison should not be used as additional punishment.
Accordingly, we believe that while restrictions on the freedom of movement are necessarily introduced while in prison, prisoners should retain all other rights to the greatest possible degree while serving their sentences. In particular, IPRT believes that prisoners have the right to be treated with dignity and respect for their rights; they have the right to safety and security of the person, the right to be treated humanely and be free from torture, degrading or inhuman treatment or punishment.
We work to ensure that regimes in prisons and children detention facilities are humane, and reflect human rights standards as a minimum in the short term, striving for international best practice in the medium to long term.
5th December 2018
The Irish Times reports on numbers being forced to sleep on prison floors due to overcrowding.
26th October 2018
The second a series of three annual reports providing a comprehensive report on human rights and best practice in Ireland’s penal system.
26th October 2018
ADVISORY: IPRT has published the second annual 'PIPS' report, showing limited progress within the last 12 months in meeting human rights in Irish prisons.
26th October 2018
IPRT hosted 'Progressing inside? Ireland’s prison system in 2018' on 26 October 2018 in the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission. Central to the seminar was the launch of the second annual 'Progress in the Penal System' report.
10th August 2018
The Irish Prison Service Statistics Office has recently published its quarterly statistical analysis cell occupancy and in-cell sanitation for July 2018.
13th March 2018
Nasc has launched a new report on Tuesday 13th March 2018, ahead of plans for a new immigration detention centre in Dublin Airport.
21st July 2017
An article by Cormac O’Keeffe in The Irish Examiner on how the United Nations Committee against Torture (UNCAT) has been told of failings in oversight, in the investigation of complaints, of ill treatment and of concerns about prison healthcare in Irish prisons.
18th July 2017
IPRT welcomes the publication of IHREC’s report in advance of the 2nd periodic review of UNCAT Ireland and the Convention against Torture. The IHREC report highlights the need for the State to ratify OPCAT which would provide a clear ‘roadmap’ and timeline for the implementation of OPCAT. Ireland signed the OPCAT in 2007 but has yet to ratify it. The ratification of OPCAT would mean strengthening the inspection and monitoring process in all places where persons are deprived of their liberty with the overall aim of protecting against ill-treatment.
7th July 2017
On 29th June 2017, Minister for Justice and Equality, Charles Flanagan TD, introduced an amendment to Rule 27 (1) of the Prison Rules 2007 to 2017.
18th May 2017
IPRT has secured funding for a 3-year annual flagship project, with the overall objective of providing a comprehensive report on human rights issues in Irish prisons.
Respect for rights in the penal system with prison as a last resort.