Tool 5: Places of Deprivation of Liberty and Gender Ê Disproportionately high levels of exposure to verbal, emotional and physical violence prior to and during imprisonment. Ê High levels of mental health needs associated with external causes. Many transgender individuals experience or have experienced gender dysphoria, and the extreme distress of imprisonment may lead to mental health problems or exacerbate existing mental disabilities. Ê High rates of suicide and self-harm in places of deprivation of liberty. Ê High rates of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections. Ê High levels of substance use, including alcohol. Ê Negative consequences of self-administered substances for body modification, and complications from poorly performed sex reassignment interventions. Ê Difficulty in accessing relevant hormone treatments. Ê Sexual and reproductive health issues. Ê Stigmatization, isolation and abandonment by their families, including after release.1 Working with children and young people The above points can all apply to children, adolescents and young adults deprived of their liberty, yet there may be further age-related gender considerations. Ê As adolescence is a time of rapid change and growth, a child deprived of its liberty at age 12 is likely to have very different needs to those detained at age 17. Ê Age and the boundary deemed the distinction between childhood or adolescence and adulthood are understood differently across different cultures. Usually the boundary is at a specific age, e.g. 18 years, meaning that a young person can be moved to an adult institution overnight, yet may still require many of the supports provided for those at juvenile facilities. Ê Education about puberty and sexual maturation should be provided where relevant, with access and appropriate introduction to sanitary products and sexual health advice. Ê Girls can often face greater issues in accessing formal education, and this should be provided to them on an equal footing with boys. Ê Young people may face pressure or coercion from older detainees. Ê Specific support may be needed for young LGBTI people, who might face additional stigma and fear repercussions of revealing their sexual orientation or gender identity and expression. 1.2 Why now? A decade has passed since the DCAF, OSCE/ODIHR, UN-INSTRAW Tool on “Penal Reform and Gender” was published as part of the Gender and Security Sector Reform Toolkit. A period of ten years is sufficient time to reflect on new and emerging good practices, how successes in increasing gender equality have been achieved, and persistent challenges. Many pieces of important national and international legislation have been passed relating to gender equality, as well as key UN standards with specific directives for places of deprivation of liberty. The most significant of these are listed below. Ê The UN Rules for the Treatment of Women Prisoners and Non-Custodial Measures for Women Offenders (the Bangkok Rules). Adopted by the UN General Assembly in December 2010, the Bangkok Rules were created with the explicit intention to fill a clear absence of standards providing for the specific characteristics and needs of women offenders and prisoners. 3