Irish Penal Reform Trust

International News

CoE: Revised European Prison Rules

1st July 2020

The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe (CoE) has adopted a Recommendation which updates the 2006 European Prison Rules. Among other amendments, the revised rules establish that states should set in their national legislation the maximum period for which solitary confinement may be imposed.

Special SPACE I Report: Prisons and Prisoners in Europe in Pandemic Times

18th June 2020

The Council of Europe and the University of Lausanne launched this special SPACE I COVID-19 project in order to measure and better understand the impacts of the pandemic on the prison population in member states.

APT and ODIHR: Monitoring Places of Detention through the COVID-19 pandemic

4th June 2020

People detained prior to the pandemic have seen their rights restricted further and are exposed to greater health risks. This new practical guidance from the APT and ODIHR details how these who monitor places of detention can continue their monitoring functions during COVID-19.

TNI webinar: COVID-19 and the global fight against mass incarceration

3rd June 2020

This webinar, hosted by the Transnational Institute, examined the drivers of mass incarceration globally, and how COVID-19 has exposed these issues.

COPE webinar: ‘Keeping children connected to a parent in prison in the COVID-19 crisis and beyond’

27th May 2020

This Children of Prisoners Europe (COPE) webinar featured a series of insightful presentations, subsequent questions and discussion about the challenges that the pandemic presents for prisons, and in particular for prisoners and their families.

UN Committee against Torture publishes list of issues prior to reporting

25th May 2020

In advance of Ireland’s third periodic hearing under the UN Convention against Torture, the Committee against Torture has requested information on a list of issues from Ireland. This was informed by submissions by civil society, including IPRT.

INCLO: Civil society response to COVID-19 in prisons

21st May 2020

IPRT Executive Director Fíona Ní Chinnéide presented at an International Network of Civil Liberties Organizations (INCLO) webinar on the impacts of COVID-19 in prisons in Ireland.

UK: Ending the Detention of Unsentenced Children during the COVID-19 Pandemic

18th May 2020

Custody is a damaging environment for children in normal times, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, conditions in custody have worsened for imprisoned children. The Howard League has produced guidance for legal practitioners on how to keep unsentenced children out of pre-trial detention.

UNODC, WHO, UNAIDS and OHCHR issue joint statement on COVID-19 in prisons and other closed settings

13th May 2020

UN agencies have issued a joint statement on COVID-19 in closed settings to draw attention to the increased vulnerability of those deprived of their liberty. The human rights-led statement focuses on strategies which are crucial to protecting those in places of detention from COVID-19.

HM Inspectorate of Prisons for Scotland Remote Monitoring Framework

5th May 2020

HM Inspectorate of Prisons for Scotland has now developed an adapted methodology to inspection and monitoring, resulting in a Remote Monitoring Framework and Liaison Visits Framework, which will allow for the continued safe visitation to prisons and other settings, ensuring human rights are upheld.

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