Looking ahead to CSW69; news from DRC, Kenya & USA; opportunities and more
February 2025 newsletter from Women Beyond Walls
Dear Friends
This month we are looking ahead to the sixty-ninth session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW69) which will take place from 10 to 21 March, 2025 at United Nations Headquarters in New York. This session will be of particular significance as it will review the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, a policy framework that outlined progressive steps and advances for women’s rights and achieving gender equality.
Ahead of CSW69, we continue to call for the inclusion of criminalised, incarcerated and formerly-incarcerated women in all high-level forums on women’s rights as well as organisations and movements working with and for them . In 2023, we published an open letter to high-level forums requesting that women’s incarceration be considered a priority topic, which is a request we continue to push for. At CSW68 in 2024, we also co-organised a side event which addressed women’s incarceration from a global perspective, particularly highlighting the link between poverty and women’s incarceration and discussing innovative solutions to address the criminalisation of poverty for women.
We also urge sessions and forums to hold consultations with women with lived-experience and groups working with and for incarcerated women and girls to ensure that the right voices can be projected in this space. We call for increased funding for groups and organisations working with and for incarcerated women and girls worldwide, more information for which you can find in our Forgotten by Funders exploratory report. We will be continuing our call for the need to reform laws globally that criminalise women due to poverty and status - look out for our upcoming collaborative report with Penal Reform International which maps out this issue. In the meantime we would also encourage you to read Penal Reform International’s blog on the five takeaways from CSW68 on the criminalisation of poverty for women which helps us to reflect on this important issue ahead of CSW69.
If you are holding any relevant official events or parallel events that you would like us to include in our special Women Beyond Walls CSW69 Guide, or if you would like to share your thoughts on what should be in focus at CSW69 to help end the over-criminalisation and over-incarceration of women and girls, please email us at hello@womenbeyondwalls.org or leave us a comment on our LinkedIn by 27 February 2025
With gratitude and solidarity,
The Women Beyond Walls Team
News from Women Beyond Walls
On 22 January 2025, Sabrina Mahtani spoke at the International Association of Women Judges’ Europe and MENA conference, highlighting ways to improve justice outcomes for women and girls and how poverty is a driver behind women’s incarceration.
On 7 February 2025, Women Beyond Walls and Penal Reform International addressed the United Nations Commission on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women in Geneva, Switzerland, highlighting findings from our forthcoming report. We were grateful to engage the Committee on this issue and for their receptive feedback and look forward to future collaboration.
As you read this newsletter, Women Beyond Walls will be joining others at the International Corrections and Prisons Association and the Thailand Institute of Justice for the Women in Corrections Conference on 19-21 February, 2025 in Bangkok, Thailand.
News from around the world
Democratic Republic of the Congo - It has been reported that hundreds of women have been raped and burned to death in a prison in Goma. The report states that the women’s wing of Goma’s Munzenze prison was attacked and set on fire after the M23 rebel group entered the Congolese city. UN peacekeepers have been unable to visit the prison to investigate further because of restrictions imposed by the rebels. This tragic incident highlights the vulnerability of women in detention in conflict settings and the urgent need to push for alternatives to incarceration, while providing critical support in the interim.
England and Wales - Last month, the Court of Appeal heard an appeal of a young pregnant woman who appealed against a sentence of 5 years’ imprisonment for possession of a prohibited firearm (Bassaragh v R). At the time of the sentence hearing, the appellant was unknowingly pregnant and learned of her pregnancy after being sentenced. The appeal was allowed and the sentence of 5 years imprisonment was quashed and replaced with a 2 year suspended sentence on the basis of pregnancy being considered exceptional circumstances, as well as the low risk of “repeat offending” and “strong prospect of rehabilitation”.
Kenya - A judge has declared that criminalising attempted suicide is unconstitutional. Judge Lawrence Mugambi has called into question the law that states that “any person who attempts to kill himself is guilty of a misdemeanour and is subject to imprisonment of up to two years, a fine, or both”, stating that it “indignifies and disgraces victims of suicide ideation in the eyes of the community for actions that are beyond their mental control.” Human rights and mental health groups and campaigners have welcomed the decision as an “important shift in perceptions.”
UK - The UK government launched the Women’s Justice Board on 21 January. The Board aims to reduce the number of women in prison, cut returns back to prison, and better support children impacted by parental imprisonment. The Women’s Justice Board will meet four times a year, and the first meeting will “review the current issues contributing to female offending and how these can be tackled.” You can read the Lord Chancellor’s mission statement for the Board here. Members of the Board include the Chief Executive of Clinks and the JABBS Foundation for Women and Girls, as well as Dr Shona Minson who conducted extensive research into the effect of maternal incarceration on children.
USA - It is reported that the safety and wellbeing of incarcerated transgender women in federal prisons in the USA is being threatened under the new Trump administration, with incarcerated transgender women already having been placed in isolation, told they will be transferred to men’s prisons and advised they will lose gender-affirming medical treatments.
Opportunities
In preparation for the 15th United Nations Crime Congress from 25 to 30 April 2026 in Abu Dhabi, the UNODC Civil Society Unit in collaboration with the Alliance of NGOs on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, is conducting a global survey to gather insights from non-governmental stakeholders. The theme for the event is ‘Accelerating crime prevention, criminal justice and the rule of law: protecting people and planet and achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in the digital age’. The survey is available in Arabic, English, French, Russian, and Spanish.
Register for the Human Rights Lawyers Association’s event on 5 March in London entitled ‘Human rights of pregnant women, mothers and children in the justice system.’
On 5 March, join a virtual event Feminist Perspectives on Carceral Systems with insights from Ecuador and India, organised by the University of Oxford
Join the Collective Punishment Campaign ‘Solidarity Space’ on 8th March in London, UK. The event is a “supportive gathering for those impacted by parental imprisonment, offering connection, healing and a chance to shape change together.” You can find more information here.
Apply for Equal Measures Storytelling with Data Fellowship - deadline 9 March. Let us know if you want to apply to work with Women Beyond Walls.
Transform Justice is looking for trustees. Apply by 10 March 2025
Complete One Small Thing’s survey on Women’s Health in the Justice System in the UK as it seeks views from practitioners on the barriers to incarcerated women accessing health services and what needs to be put in place to effectively meet the health needs of women in prison.
Join the 5th World Congress on Justice With Children from 2 - 4 June. The event can be joined in person in Madrid, locally at Satellite Events, and globally online. The event will provide a platform for discussion focussed on advancing child-centered justice, preventing, and responding to violence affecting children in justice systems. You can register for the event here, or alternatively submit an abstract for a session or workshop by 1 March here.
The Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights (OHCHR) has announced that they are conducting a study on human rights and the social reintegration of persons released from detention. They are calling for input in the study from States and all relevant stakeholders, with the deadline for contributions being 21 March.
Clean Break’s ‘Scenes from Lost Mothers’, sharing the voices of incarcerated pregnant women, has announced two public performances in London, UK on the 25 and 26 March.
Apply to attend the One Young World Annual Summit 2025 in Munich, Germany from 3rd-6th November via One Young World’s Leading Scholarship. The Scholarship is designed to identify and support young leaders from countries that are often under-represented at global forums and decision-making spaces and are committed to delivering positive change.
PhD opportunity in the UK - register your interest for a PhD project looking at ‘Experiences of violence and abuse by women involved in the criminal justice system’.
Media and literature recommendations
According to the sixth edition of the World Female Imprisonment List, the number of female prisoners has grown much faster than that of male prisoners. Since 2000, the number of women and girls in prison has surged by 57%, compared to a 22% increase in the male prison population. There are now over 733,000 women and girls are currently incarcerated worldwide.
Read the key takeaways from Clinks Annual Conference which focused on ‘Connecting for Change’ with the government to support people in the Criminal Justice System and their families. The workshops and discussions conducted included updates on the government’s Women’s Justice Board and “invited members to share views on achieving meaningful change for women in the criminal justice system.” Key priorities noted in this area included early intervention to divert women from the criminal justice system, improved community support as an alternative to prison, and addressing the challenges faced by young women in prison.
Listen to a recent episode of Woman’s Hour which includes a moving interview with a mother who shares her experience of giving birth in a prison and subsequent separation from her baby. Also in this episode, Dr Laura Abbott talks about her Lost Mothers Research project.
Read ‘Time to care: what helps women cope in prison?’, a thematic review by HM Chief Inspector of Prisons. The report addresses concerns for incarcerated women in England and Wales including issues with care provided, inadequate support to maintain relationships with children and families, feelings of safety for women in prison, and the use of restrictive and punitive responses for women in crisis. It also highlights the significant impact these issues can have on incarcerated women, particularly around high rates of self-harm. For further thought, you can also find Women in Prison’s key reflections on the review here.
Read One Small Thing’s blog about Women’s Health in the Justice System. The blog discusses challenges incarcerated women face when accessing healthcare within the justice system, as well as the prevalence of brain injury amongst women that have been in contact with the justice system.
Another powerful read from Women in Prison with their Still I Rise magazine issue marking their 40th anniversary. Written by women in prison for women in prison, this recent issue looks at the idea of what ‘justice’ is and how the incarceration of women fits into perceptions of justice.
A new publication, based on narratives of women in prison in India and Australia, entitled ‘Circularity of violence and institutionalisation: understanding women’s (im)mobility across borders’. The article aims to understand the link between mobility, violence against women and institutionalisation.
Listen to the Transform Justice Podcast discussing the impact of family member imprisonment for partners and children.
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