Foreword 2015 had a cruel start with the attacks on 7, 8 and 9 January, and the resulting debate on the question of Islamist radicalisation in prisons. It was also marked by the immigrant crisis, mostly those from the war-torn areas of the Middle East. It ended with the horrifying attacks in November, the adoption of Law no. 2015-1501 dated 20 November 2015 proroguing the application of Law no. 55-385 dated 3 April 1955, pertaining to the state of emergency and strengthening the effectiveness of its provisions, and with the introduction of the constitutional bill on the protection of the Nation. No one can deny that the seriousness of the situation has led the public authorities to ensure and reinforce the security of citizens. However, throughout the past year, fierce debates have raged on the difficult balance between fundamental rights and security. Finding this balance is not an easy task, and it is the reason for the very existence of the CGLPL: to ensure in all circumstances, even the most serious ones, that the fundamental rights of persons deprived of their liberty are respected. There’s no denying that this is not always the case; in this new national and international order, the authorities are being forced to focus more on security at the expense of respecting fundamental rights. It therefore falls on the CGLPL to ensure that the public authorities are always reminded to respect the fundamental rights of persons deprived of their liberty. The situation in 2015 has given it plenty of opportunities to do so. First, prison overcrowding must be denounced, as it has been pinpointed as the cause of several violations of the rights. There has been no change in the current situation when compared to earlier. Currently, the overcrowding rate in prisons is approximately 35%, with peaks approaching 100% in Ile-de-France and in certain overseas departments; this overcrowding has increasingly severe consequences: lack of privacy and tensions between fellow prisoners or with the prison guards, difficulty in accessing work and other activities, insufficient healthcare, weakening of family bonds due to a lack of visiting rooms and deterioration of the working conditions of the staff. In this situation, it is impossible to provide individual cells, despite legal obligations to do so. The said obligation has once again been deferred to 2019 in dubious conditions. The public authorities must have the courage to implement a prison regulation mechanism, since it has not been able to curb prison overcrowding, despite the yet to be perceived effects of the Law dated 15 August 2014, pertaining to the individualisation of sentences and strengthening the effectiveness of penal sanctions. They must also question the effectiveness of short sentences, which cause significant ruptures in the life of a convicted person without allowing him/her to benefit from any aid in prison due to the shortness of his/her stay. In an Opinion dated 11 June 2015, the CGLPL drew the attention of the Executive on the dangers that may result from grouping together prisoners showing signs of radicalisation or those prosecuted in relation to cases of terrorism in dedicated wings within penal institutions. This measure may lead to risks that do not seem to have been taken into account, especially the cohabitation of persons with highly disparate levels of attachment to the radicalisation process and difficulties in identifying the affected individuals. The CGLPL also highlighted that a continuous evaluation of the de-radicalisation programmes will be necessary and that it must be ensured that the resources allocated to them do not burden the care of the entire prison population. Even though, once again, proposals have been made for activating the preventive detention measure, instituted by the Law dated 25 February 2008, and have been rapidly gaining 10