5
0
Violence continues to dominate prison life around the world with various root causes including inadequate staffing, overcrowding and corruption. Violence linked to criminal gangs and social and political instability is on the rise.
There have been numerous cases of criminal groups seizing control of or attacking prisons. In Haiti, gangs stormed the country’s biggest prison in March 2024, leading to the escape of nearly 4,000 people and at least 12 deaths, triggering a state of emergency and a night-time curfew. In Honduras, at least 46 women in prison were killed after an outbreak of violence between gangs. Recent incidents of gang violence and revolts against authorities have also happened in Venezuela and Mexico over the past year. In Sierra Leone, 20 people were killed and nearly 2,000 people in prison escaped when a prison was attacked by assailants in 2023.
There is increasing concern about gang recruitment within prisons, including in Ecuador, where most of the country’s 36 prisons are now under some degree of gang control, and there have been more than 600 fatalities in 14 prison massacres since 2019. In January 2024, troops stormed a prison in Guayaquil to take back control from drug gangs. In Mexico, criminal gangs are also thought to fully or partly control over half the country’s prisons.
In Europe, the impact of organised crime in prison is also becoming a bigger concern. For example, in Sweden there has been a recent increase in the proportion of prison population affiliated with organised crime, a trend reported in other European countries. Europol has reported that leaders of criminal networks often manage to continue their operations from prison by reorganising and maintaining their influence over extended periods. For example, a leader with connections to the Western Balkans directed drug and firearm trafficking activities from his prison cell in Italy, with operations in multiple European countries, including Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany.
Torture and other ill-treatment of people in prison by staff remains a global problem, particularly where there is conflict or a lack of rule of law. (See Prisons in fragile and conflict-affected settings) In Hong Kong, political activists have alleged physical and sexual abuse, and concern has been raised over torture and abuse of children in pre-trial facilities in Albania. High-levels of abuse of women in prison continue to be reported in Egypt, and torture is described as routine in Syrian prisons. The UN Special Rapporteur on Torture has called on Israel to investigate multiple allegations of torture and ill-treatment of Palestinians in Israeli detention centres, including beatings, sleep deprivation, the prolonged use of stress positions and sexual assault. Dozens of political opponents are reported to have been killed in prison in Myanmar during 2023. Widespread violence, including sexual violence and humiliation has been documented in a study in the Central African Republic.
High-income countries are not immune from cases of torture and ill-treatment. In Belgium, a video of a person being tortured in a prison emerged in March 2024 sparking calls for the Minister of Justice to resign. A report from the Council of Europe from December 2023 stated that torture and ill-treatment are present in places of detention in the region pointing to documentation of such cases in penal institutions in Bulgaria, Croatia Cyprus, France, Lithuania, Moldova, Montenegro, Portugal and Romania by the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture.
Prison staff are at high risk of violence and verbal abuse, in many cases exacerbated by prison overcrowding and staff shortages, creating insecurity. In Europe, analysis shows that the picture is mixed in terms of its extent and responses. While violent incidents against prison staff have increased in Sweden, Luxembourg and Catalonia over the past three years, in Slovakia and Ukraine, incidents are rare.
Over the past year there have been some highly publicised incidents, leading to calls from prison staff and unions for greater protection. For example, in France, two prison officers were killed in May when a prison van carrying a high-profile individual was ambushed, leading to nationwide strikes demanding more security and better pay. An attack by detainee in Belgium which injured two prison staff led to a strike in January 2024, also on the grounds of working conditions. In England and Wales, 8,516 assaults on prison staff were recorded between 2022-2023, with attacks in women’s prisons at their highest ever level. Authorities have introduced body-worn cameras for all prison staff, and the use of a chemical irritant spray (PAVA) in adult male prisons, which sparked questions by civil society over its effectiveness and its disproportionate use on Black people and Muslim people.
Investments in security equipment to respond to violence and insecurity is a common trend. For instance, in Brandenburg, Germany, an increase in prison violence prompted a €200,000 Euro investment in protective equipment in 2023. In 2023, authorities in France developed a national plan to combat violence to be implemented in each prison facility. The plan foresees several measures such as enhanced support for targeted staff, intensified local violence audits, increased training for incident management, dynamic security measures and improved safety equipment evaluations. Beyond Europe, the Guyana prison service is investing in new scanners and considering drone patrols to prevent contraband entering the prison. In Pune, India, more than 7,000 CCTV cameras and new scanners are planned for the State’s prisons.
Exploring various ways to improve safety remains a subject of both policy and research interest. One effective case has been seen in Guyana, where alongside improved security measures, the expansion of technical and vocational skills training programmes was credited with a significant reduction in prison violence during 2023. Evidence points to improved food and nutrition in prisons being linked to reductions in violent incidents, as does the location of prisons near green spaces. An inquiry into physical and verbal abuse towards people in prison by staff in Japanese prisons recommended that staff use more polite forms of address towards people in prison and that prison staff receive increased support and mental health consultations; it also recommended introducing surveys of people in prison to better understand potential problems. Conflict awareness and peer mediation programmes have been found to reduce levels of violence in prisons in Ireland.
Prison authorities in Belgium and Slovakia have stated that ‘airdropping’ of illicit items by drone is reported to be one of the biggest security threats they currently face – a problem mirrored elsewhere. In 2024, Italian authorities arrested 31 people for using drones to deliver phones, weapons and drugs to gang leaders in prison. In Canada, the growth in smuggling contraband using drones has led to increased violence, with 75% of contraband seizures attributed to drone drops. Drones have also been linked to major security incidents, like in Ecuador, where in 2023, a drone carrying explosives blasted a hole in the roof of a maximum-security prison. In response, more countries are employing drone detection technology. The Scottish Prison Service is trialling technology that alerts authorities to drone activity in airspace near prisons. In England and Wales, a new law makes it an offence to fly drones within 400 metres of prisons and Young Offender Institutions, with drone operators facing fines of up to GBP £2,500.
Average Rating