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The “groundbreaking” inclusion of female incarceration in a global agreement on justice for women and girls adopted at the UN this week has been hailed by campaigners as an opportunity to bring about change for hundreds of thousands of women in prison around the world.
The agreed conclusions of the 70th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW70), being held this week and next at the UN headquarters in New York, explicitly mention “women in detention and in imprisonment”. They set out to address their plight while taking into account the links between discriminatory laws, violence against women and girls and increased risk of incarceration.
The decision to include women in prison in the document comes as numbers of women in detention are rising, and after years of advocacy from formerly incarcerated women and civil society organisations, as well as dedicated Guardian coverage of the issue.
The commission’s conclusions contain analysis and outline recommendations and policies to governments, civil society and other institutions. They are negotiated by UN member states during CSW. This year’s focus was on ensuring justice systems work for everyone equally, including eliminating discriminatory laws, addressing structural barriers and increasing efforts to prevent violence against women.
“It is really the first time in 70 years of this commission that the topic of women in prison is being taken seriously,” said Patsilí Toledo, a member of the UN convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women committee and a lecturer in gender and criminal justice. “It’s groundbreaking … and sends a very strong sign that all countries are behind this, with just one exception (the US voted against the conclusions).”
Mary Robinson, former president of Ireland and previously the UN high commissioner for human rights, said: “This recognition at CSW is an important step forward. For too long, women who have experienced criminalisation have been largely invisible in global conversations about gender equality. Visibility is important – but it must now be matched by action.”
Experts have warned of a crisis as the number of women in prison globally approaches one million. More than 740,000 women and girls are estimated to be held in detention, representing about 7% of the world’s prison population. Since 2000, female imprisonment has increased by 60% – nearly three times the rate for men. About 19,000 children live in prison with their mothers.
In 2023, an open letter coordinated by Women Beyond Walls, a global collaborative organisation dedicated to combating the incarceration of women and girls, called on leading feminist forums to stop overlooking women affected by the criminal justice system.
In February, a group of UN human rights experts warned member states that “access to justice, safety and dignity for women deprived of their liberty remains gravely inadequate”.
In November, the Guardian launched a dedicated series looking at the human rights abuses women in prison face around the world.
Sabrina Mahtani, a lawyer and founder of Women Beyond Walls, credited Guardian coverage, in part, with the focus on incarcerated women at CSW. She said: “This moment builds on years of advocacy by formerly incarcerated women and civil society organisations. Guardian coverage [in the past] and more recently through the Women in prison series has really helped bring visibility to that call. Recognition like this signals that women deprived of liberty are finally being acknowledged as part of the global women’s rights agenda.”
Robinson said this recognition must lead to change “by addressing the root causes that drive women into prison, including poverty, discrimination and violence, and investing in community-based solutions that support women and their families rather than pushing them into the criminal justice system”.
