GENDER,WOMEN

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GENDER,WOMENS RIGHTS AND PRISON HEALTH CONDITIONS

• A PAPER PRESENTED AT THE AFRICAN REGIONAL
  WORKSHOP ON PRISON HEALTH AND MANAGEMENT OF
  SPECIAL NEEDS OFFENDERS IN DAKAR, SENEGAL FROM
  10TH TO 13TH JUNE 2013
• LLOYD H CHILUNDIKA
• AG. DEPUTY COMMISSIONER-CORRECTIONS
• ZAMBIA PRISON

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WOMEN IN ZAMBIAN PRISONS

• Zambia has an average inmate population of 16,700
  held in 56 facilities across the country
• The population of women offenders averages 500 of
  whom about half are on remand
• There is also an average of 50 circumstantial
  children in prison on account of their mothers
  offence
• Gender issues are closely related to wider
  womens rights and health issues and can hardly
  be discussed in isolation

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PRISON CONDITIONS IN GENERAL

• Zambia faces challenges with prison conditions
  and manifest, inter alia, the following
• Inadequate and often in need of rehabilitation
  physical structures,
• water, sanitation and general hygiene challenges
• Overcrowding (available space is ideally suited
  for 5,000)
• Poor diet
• limited social amenities e.g. education and
  recreation
• A high HIV/AIDS prevalence in prison of 27
  (compared with 16 average for the general
  populace)
• prevalence of communicable diseases such as
  Tuberculosis (TB) and challenges with prison
  health services

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Issues for Women Offenders in Prison

• There are only two facilities which were
  deliberately purpose built to accommodate women
  offenders. The rest are improvised structures,
  e.g. Lusaka Central was designed as a stores
• This presents challenges with classification
  regarding the general population, pregnant women,
  breastfeeding mothers and mothers with children
  in prison (6.8 of women are pregnant, Simooya,
  HIV/AIDS Sero-Prevalence Survey)
• Circumstantial children present peculiar issues
• Lack of a dietary (nutrition) scale for children
  in prison (in the Prisons Act) particularly
  adverse on infants who do not breastfeed on
  account of their mothers HIV status

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Issues for Women Offenders in Prison (contd)

• Lack of support with clothing
• Lack of early education programmes
• Lack of recreation
• Lack of conducive accommodation separate from the
  adult population
• Limited rehabilitation programmes (on account of
  women prison facilities limitations and gender
  stereotyping) in comparison with those offered to
  male inmates that provide the best opportunity
  for employment after prison e.g. carpentry, metal
  fabrication, bricklaying etc
• Low access to non-custodial options due to
  general low income and awareness status (low
  access to justice)

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PRISON HEALTH ISSUES

• Personal hygiene needs specific to women
  (compounded by poor funding to the Prisons
  Service)
• Gender specific health care (low access to women
  health personnel) equivalent to those in the
  community
• Prevention of Mother to child transmission of HIV
  (PMCT)
• Ante-natal care services
• Post-natal care services
• Preventive health care services (access to
  education and information about measures and
  conditions

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CONCLUSION

• Womens rights are human rights
• Womens health needs are community health needs
• A society that adequately meets the general needs
  of women is a healthier and happier
• END OF PRESENTATION