Tool 5: Places of Deprivation of Liberty and Gender
There are no (non-security-related) restrictions placed on who is able to visit a detainee,
and LGBTI detainees are able to receive visits from their partners without discrimination.
Detained children (even adults) of same-sex parents are able to receive visits from both
parents, and recognized non-blood-related parents are treated on an equal footing with
blood-related parents.
Those working with men appreciate the cultural expectations felt by many men to protect
and provide for partners, children and wider families, and understand that their inability to
fulfil this responsibility while they have lost their liberty can lead to mental health problems
and perpetuate antisocial behaviour. Programmes with men in places of deprivation of
liberty facilitate ways for them to remain involved in family and community life, and focus
on parenting and fatherhood to build skills and facilitate healthy father–child relationships.
3.6 Comprehensive, integrated and culturally relevant physical
and mental healthcare is offered
There is an acknowledgement that populations deprived of their liberty often include
people with a wide range of physical and mental health problems at a higher rate than in
the general population,2 and the physical constraints of the surroundings can perpetuate
issues such as communicable diseases and trauma.
Places of deprivation of liberty cater for the specific health and sanitation needs of women,
and specialized medical staff are fully trained in providing culturally appropriate care and
treatment relevant to the populations held. The standard of and access to healthcare are at
least of the standard provided in the broader community.
Juvenile female detainees have access to age-specific and gender-specific programmes
and services, such as counselling for sexual abuse or violence. They receive education on
women’s healthcare and have regular access to gynaecologists, similar to adult female
prisoners. Pregnant juvenile female detainees receive support and medical care equivalent
to that provided for adult female detainees, with the additional awareness that they may
be at greater risk of health complications during pregnancy due to their age (see Bangkok
Rules, Rules 38 and 39).
Substance-misuse and offending-behaviour programmes are designed and delivered for each
specific gender, acknowledging the gendered pathways that may have led the individual to
that point. Trauma-informed treatment programmes, psychological care and counselling are
provided, taking into account prior victimization and abuse, the special needs of pregnant
women and women with children, and detainees’ diverse cultural backgrounds (see Bangkok
Rules, Rule 15).
3.7 Equality of opportunity to improve socio-economic status is
achieved via gender-responsive strategies
Female detainees (including children and juveniles) have equal access to education and
vocational training as is available to male detainees of the same age (see Bangkok Rules,
Rule 37). Education is a balanced and comprehensive set of options which take account of
the gender-appropriate needs of women and girls (see Bangkok Rules, Rule 42).
Places of deprivation of liberty provide programmes flexible enough to respond to the
needs of pregnant women, nursing mothers and women with children, as well as those
who have psychosocial support needs. Childcare facilities or arrangements are provided to
enable women prisoners with children to participate in prison activities.
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