The European Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) has announced a landmark thematic review of all women’s prisons across Europe. Established in 1989 under the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture, the CPT’s mandate is to monitor the treatment of people deprived of their liberty, from prisons and police custody to psychiatric institutions and immigration detention.
This new review, set in motion in 2025, shines a critical light on the unique vulnerabilities faced by women behind bars. Though women make up a minority of the prison population, their experiences are marked by disproportionate challenges: inadequate healthcare, lack of gender-sensitive facilities, exposure to violence, and systemic neglect of their specific needs.
The CPT’s objectives are clear:
- To evaluate compliance with human rights standards, ensuring women are not subjected to torture, inhuman, or degrading treatment.
- To identify systemic failings in healthcare, safety, and rehabilitation, with urgent attention to maternal health, mental health, and cancer care.
- To recommend reforms that compel member states to adopt gender-responsive policies, improve prison conditions, and strengthen accountability.
This inspection is not just bureaucratic oversight, it is a call to action. By documenting the lived realities of women in custody, the CPT aims to expose abuses, demand transparency, and drive legislative change. For women whose voices are silenced by incarceration, this review offers a rare chance to reclaim dignity, equality, and justice.