🔗 Share this article

A rights defender, who was, was arrested near her residence in March 2024. Charged with a crime of "illicit association", she was jailed lacking proof. Three weeks later, her relatives were contacted to collect the remains of her infant child. The cause of death was not looked into, and her loved ones has no idea what happened or whether she was given any postnatal care.

An International Crisis

Cases such as this are not rare in detention centers around the world. Women carrying children are often kept in deplorable conditions and not given necessary care. Some miscarry, others deliver and have their babies unassisted in a detention cell. Sadly, infants perish behind bars.

"Nations assume it’s a few of women so it’s not an issue, but that’s not true," says a lawyer dedicated to women's incarceration.

"Detention is not a good setting for women, let alone someone who is expecting," she continues. "Extensive studies that shows how harmful it is. Most facilities were built with male inmates in mind, so women were an afterthought."

Flouted Global Standards

Over 15 years since the creation of specific standards for the treatment of female prisoners. These guidelines specify that incarceration should be a last resort for pregnant women and that non-custodial sentences should always be considered. They also forbid the use of restraints on women while giving birth.

Yet, these standards are consistently flouted globally. "This isn’t seen as a worldwide gender-equality priority," says the expert. "It is overlooked, and there’s a lot of stigma and prejudice."

Severe Hardships in Packed Systems

In certain nations, situations for pregnant prisoners are described as "really critical". Contact with relatives have been banned, and civil society are denied access. Interviews with ex-inmates describe beatings, abuse, and being deprived of basic supplies. Reports indicate some resort to exchanging favors with guards for food or medicine.

"We has documented pregnancy losses and the loss of several infants … there will be more," reports a rights defender.

It is also reported women who were chained to hospital beds during labour and delivered while observed by male officers.

Severe Overpopulation and Its Effects

Statistics shows some countries as having the most severe overcrowding levels in the world. Women are especially at risk to these conditions. "There is rarely enough space to fully lie down," explains a human rights outreach director. "There exists a persistent lack of access to essentials."

Pregnant prisoners have been handcuffed to hospital beds prior to delivery. Conditions for raising a newborn back in prison are worrying, as evidenced by reports of infants succumbing from pneumonia and malnourishment in custody.

Stories from Around the Globe

In Zambia, a former inmate remembers being in a detention block with expectant mothers. Doors were locked overnight. When someone went into labour at night, the women were forced to fend for themselves. "We would be pleading. Others were praying. Others were hitting the floor and the doors, screaming: ‘Please come, somebody’s in labour!’"

These tragedies occur in wealthier countries. In one case, a teenager her baby died after delivering unassisted in a cell. Her calls for help went unanswered for an extended period, and she was had to bite through the umbilical cord on her own.

Turning Trauma into Change

Some women have chosen to use their traumatic ordeals to instigate change. In the US, a woman who miscarried in her cell founded an organisation. Her work has successfully advocated for laws that ban shackling and isolation for expectant inmates in multiple states.

Another story comes from Argentina. A woman learned of her pregnancy shortly after being given a prison term. When it came time to give birth, officers shackled her legs to the hospital bed. Hospital staff performed a caesarean section. As she recovered, they offered to sterilize her. "Why would you wish to have more children, if you’re a inmate?" was the response.

"My ordeal was medical abuse during childbirth. What I experienced should never have happened, but this is what women in prison endure," she stated. This trauma later shaped official guidelines around giving birth while incarcerated.

Alternatives and Solutions

Other countries have introduced measures regarding expectant mothers in the justice system. These include:

• Evaluating non-custodial options for accused women who are mothers, expecting, or nursing mothers.
• Introducing house arrest as an option to being held on remand, especially for pregnant women.
• Allowing for the deferral of prison terms for women who are pregnant.

Experts and people with experience argue that, often, expectant mothers ought not to be in prison at all. "I question whether women should be prosecuted for many issues in the beginning," argues the advocate.

"Alternatives in the community that address the root causes of women coming into contact with the justice system – for example, poverty, abuse and drugs – are truly what we should be focusing on."