-27
conventions, even if they are not consistent with international laws or even
Constitutional laws. Also, different professionals have a different view of
prison life. The lack of a common culture among prison staff members,
and in particular, a culture that takes into account international standards,
are among the the factors contributing to the increased use of solitary
confinement and its banalization. For these reasons, it is necessary to build
a dialogue with the various actors involved in the process of deprivation of
liberty, to reason with them about the causes of isolation, to make it a real
problem and to look for alternatives. In short, the overarching ideal is to
promote a culture more respectful of human rights.
In order to do so it can also be useful to invest human resources and
energy to build a common legal ground with prison staff. The prison
administration should organize common training sessions for all staff
together, and not separate trainings. The training sessions should not
be only legal, but should also include how to tackle practical difficult
situations, issues and cases in the field. Training sessions must include
also medical issues; prison guards must have the same basic scientific
knowledge as medical staff.
2.3.2. Solitary confinement and organisation of prison administration
The prevention of torture is also connected to the organisation of prison
administration, for example the advancements in careers and the power
of the penitentiary guards, and of trade unions. It is important to get in
contact with them and to find a common background also with them,
which can be, for example, workers’rights. It is also important to build an
alliance with prison doctors, who - with time - might pick up the same
mentality of the prison guards. Thus, it is important to ensure that prison
doctors uphold the international law against the culture of the prison.
This is very true especially in the case of solitary confinement, where
many times the problems are the doctors themselves.
Monitoring Solitary Confinement in Prison
Select target paragraph3
Connect to a paragraph
Connect to an entity
Disable highlights
Add to table of contents