🔗 Share this article

A human rights activist, who was, was arrested near her residence in March 2024. Charged with a crime of "illicit association", she was imprisoned without evidence. Three weeks later, her family received a call to retrieve the body of her newborn baby. The cause of death has not been investigated, and her loved ones remains unaware the circumstances or whether she obtained any postnatal care.

A Worldwide Issue

Cases such as this are alarmingly common within correctional systems globally. Women carrying children are often kept in appalling situations and denied medical attention. Some lose their pregnancies, others deliver and give birth unassisted in a detention cell. Sadly, some babies die while incarcerated.

"Nations think it’s a few of women so it’s insignificant, but that is incorrect," says a legal advocate working on female imprisonment.

"Detention is a harmful environment for women, let alone someone who is pregnant," she explains. "There’s so much research that demonstrates how harmful it is. Many prisons were built with men in mind, so women were an secondary consideration."

Violated UN Rules

It has been 15 years since the adoption of international guidelines for the treatment of incarcerated women. This framework state that prison should be a last resort for expectant mothers and that non-custodial sentences should be the first choice. Furthermore, they forbid the use of restraints on women in childbirth.

But, these standards are routinely ignored globally. "This isn’t seen as a global priority for women's rights," says the advocate. "It remains hidden, and there’s a lot of stigma and stereotyping."

Severe Hardships in Overcrowded Prisons

In various regions, conditions for pregnant prisoners are described as "extremely dire". Contact with relatives have been prohibited, and rights groups are denied access. Interviews with ex-inmates reveal assaults, torture, and being deprived of basic supplies. Some are forced into trading sex with guards for nourishment or medical supplies.

"We has recorded pregnancy losses and the loss of several infants … it is certain there are more," reports a rights defender.

Reports also indicate women who were chained to medical beds during labour and gave birth while observed by male prison guards.

Severe Overpopulation and Its Impact

Data lists some nations as having the highest prison occupancy levels in the globe. Women are especially at risk to these situations. "There is seldom enough space to fully lie down," explains a advocate. "There is a chronic lack of access to basic items."

Expectant inmates have been handcuffed to hospital beds before giving birth. Conditions for raising a newborn back in prison are alarming, as evidenced by cases of infants dying from illness and severe malnutrition in custody.

Stories from Around the Globe

In Zambia, a former inmate remembers being in a cell with expectant mothers. Cell doors were locked overnight. When someone started giving birth at night, the women were forced to manage on their own. "We would be pleading. Others were praying. Others were hitting the ground and the gates, screaming: ‘Please come, somebody’s in labour!’"

Such events also happen in more developed countries. For example, a teenager her baby died after giving birth unassisted in a prison cell. Her calls for help went unanswered for hours, and she was had to sever the umbilical cord herself.

Turning Trauma into Change

Some women have chosen to use their experiences to drive reform. In the United States, a woman who miscarried in her prison cell set up an organisation. Her work has successfully pushed for laws that prohibit restraints and isolation for expectant inmates in multiple states.

Another story 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. Doctors performed a C-section. While still groggy, they suggested to perform sterilization. "Why would you want to have more children, if you’re a inmate?" was the response.

"My ordeal was obstetric violence. What I experienced should not have occurred, but this is what women in prison endure," she stated. This trauma later informed provincial policies around giving birth while incarcerated.

Alternatives and Solutions

Some nations have introduced policies for pregnant women in the legal system. Among them are:

• Considering alternatives to detention for accused women who are mothers, expecting, or nursing mothers.
• Implementing home detention as an option to being held before trial, particularly for pregnant women.
• Permitting the postponement of prison terms for women who are pregnant.

Advocates and people with experience argue that, in most cases, expectant mothers ought not to be in prison at all. "We must ask whether women should be criminalised for many issues in the first place," says the expert.

"Community-based solutions that tackle the root causes of women coming into contact with the legal system – for example, destitution, violence and drugs – are really what we should be investing in."