🔗 Share this article

A rights defender, who was, was arrested near her home in March 2024. Accused with a crime of "illicit association", she was held without evidence. Weeks afterward, her family received a call to collect the body of her newborn baby. The reason of death was not looked into, and the family does not know the circumstances or whether she was given any postnatal care.

A Global Issue

These tragic stories are far from uncommon in prisons globally. Women carrying children are often held in appalling situations and deprived of medical attention. Some lose their pregnancies, others begin childbirth and give birth alone in a prison cell. Devastatingly, infants perish while incarcerated.

"Governments think it’s a minority of women so it’s not a problem, but that is incorrect," notes a legal advocate working on female imprisonment.

"Incarceration is a harmful environment for women, not to mention someone who is expecting," she adds. "There’s so much evidence that shows how damaging it is. Many prisons were built with male inmates in mind, so women were an secondary consideration."

Violated UN Rules

It has been 15 years since the creation of international guidelines for the handling of female prisoners. This framework state that prison should be a final option for expectant mothers and that non-custodial sentences should be the first choice. They also prohibit the use of restraints on women during labour.

However, these rules are routinely ignored globally. "This isn’t seen as a global gender-equality priority," argues the expert. "It’s not visible, and there’s a lot of shame and stereotyping."

Critical Conditions in Packed Prisons

In certain nations, conditions for pregnant prisoners are reported to be "really critical". Contact with relatives have been prohibited, and civil society are barred from entry. Interviews with ex-inmates detail beatings, abuse, and being deprived of basic supplies. Reports indicate some are forced into trading sex with guards for food or medical supplies.

"We has documented pregnancy losses and the death of four babies … there will be more," says a local lawyer.

Accounts also tell of women who were chained to medical beds while in labor and gave birth while observed by male officers.

Overcrowding and Its Effects

Data lists some countries as having the most severe overcrowding levels in the world. Women are especially at risk to these situations. "There is seldom enough space to fully lie down," says a advocate. "There exists a persistent lack of access to essentials."

Expectant inmates have been handcuffed to beds before giving birth. The environment for caring for an infant upon return in prison are alarming, as shown by reports of babies succumbing from illness and malnourishment in custody.

Accounts from Around the Globe

In Zambia, a past prisoner recalls being in a detention block with expectant mothers. Cell doors were locked overnight. If a woman went into labour at night, the women were left to manage on their own. "We begged. Others were asking for divine help. Others were banging on the ground and the gates, yelling: ‘Please come, somebody’s in labour!’"

Such events occur in more developed nations. In one case, a young woman lost her daughter after giving birth alone in a prison cell. Her calls for help were ignored for hours, and she was forced to sever the umbilical cord on her own.

Turning Trauma into Change

Some women have decided to use their traumatic ordeals to drive reform. In the United States, a woman who miscarried in her prison cell founded an organisation. Her work has successfully advocated for laws that prohibit restraints and isolation for pregnant inmates in numerous jurisdictions.

A separate account comes from South America. A woman discovered she was pregnant after being given a prison term. When it came time to give birth, guards chained her legs to the bed. Hospital staff performed a C-section. While still groggy, they suggested to sterilize her. "Why would you wish to have more children, if you’re a inmate?" they asked.

"What I experienced was medical abuse during childbirth. What I experienced should never have happened, but this is what women in prison endure," she says. Her experiences later informed provincial policies around giving birth while incarcerated.

Potential Reforms

Some nations have implemented measures regarding expectant mothers in the justice system. These include:

• Considering alternatives to detention for defendants who are mothers, expecting, or breastfeeding.
• Implementing home detention as an alternative to being held on remand, particularly for pregnant women.
• Permitting the deferral of prison terms for pregnant women.

Advocates and those who have been incarcerated contend that, in most cases, pregnant women should not be in prison at all. "We must ask whether women should be criminalised for many issues in the beginning," says the expert.

"Community-based solutions that tackle the underlying reasons of women entering the legal system – for example, destitution, violence and drugs – are truly what we should be investing in."