Presentation on Actions for Gender Equality in prison in the Spanish Penitentiary environment by Francesca Melis Pont, Headmistress of Treatment Area of women prison in Alcala de Henares (Madrid)

1. ACTION PROGRAMME
FOR GENDER
EQUALITY IN THE
PENITENTIARY
ENVIRONMENT
ACTION PROGRAMME
FOR GENDER
EQUALITY IN THE
PENITENTIARY
ENVIRONMENT

2. General Objectives
4. Getting a prison environment free of a
gender discrimination ratio
1. Identifying the characteristics of
women inmates
2. Meeting their specific needs
3. Eradicating gender violence

3. International Legal Sources
• Legislation of the Human Rights Committee.
• New European Prison Rules (Rec. 2006)2 of the
Committee of Ministers of Member States.
• General Report of the European Council, based on
the Committee for Torture Prevention and Other
Degrading Treatment.
• European Parliament Resolution, March 13th ,
2008.
• Resolution of the Economic and Social Council of
the United Nations, E/CN,15/2009L3.

4. • Law 39/99, 5th of November, promoting the
reconciliation between work and family life of
working people.
• Organic Law 1/04, 28th of December: Integral
Protection Measures against Gender Violence.
• Organic Law 3/2007, 22nd of March, for Men
and Women’s Effective Equality.
Spanish Legal Sources

5. Outstanding Studies
• MIP Investigation Project: “Women, Integration
and Prison” (2005). Analysis of the processes of
socio-labour integration of women in prison in
Europe.
• “International Study on Women Prison System.
Evaluation, needs assessment and best practices”.
Dünkel, F.; Kestermann, C. and Solondek, J.
(2005). University of Greifswald.
• SURT Group: “Violence against Women. Analysis
among the female prison population” (2005)

6. Outstanding Studies
• Andalusian Ombudsman’s Report, about
“women prisoners in Andalusia” (2006)
• Studies and Research from the approach
of Critical Criminology.
•Good prison practices

7. A) Caused by their lower numerical presence:
•Distance and geographical dispersion.
•Worst conditions on architecture, livability and
accomodation.
•Lack of internal classification’s criteria.
•Difficulty of access to certain areas and services.
Differential characteristics of women inmates in
Spain. Sources of discrimination.

8. B) Caused by their criminal profiles:
• Less criminally sophisticated.
• Longer sentences.
• Increased application of initial classifications and
progressions to an Open Life Regime (positive
discrimination).

9. C) Caused by their lower level of conflict:
• Masculine management of the centers, inflexibility.
Excessive control and prohibitions.
• Better social climate. Order and cleanliness.
• In relation to the roles that are assigned to them:
– Training and Education based on gender roles.
– Domestic-type work, worst paid or rejected in male’s
departments.
• Coexistence and solidarity.
• Ignorance towards their needs and demands. Lack of
specific programs based on their gender difference.

10. 1. ORGANIZATION ACTIONS1. ORGANIZATION ACTIONS
2. PERMANENT OBSERVATORY TO
ERADICATE GENDER DISCRIMINATION
CAUSES
2. PERMANENT OBSERVATORY TO
ERADICATE GENDER DISCRIMINATION
CAUSES
3. INTEGRAL ATTENTION TO THE NEEDS OF
IMPRISONED AND RELEASED WOMEN
3. INTEGRAL ATTENTION TO THE NEEDS OF
IMPRISONED AND RELEASED WOMEN
4. PLANS TO FACILITATE THE ERADICATION OF
GENDER VIOLENCE AND TO DECREASE ITS
CONSEQUENCES
4. PLANS TO FACILITATE THE ERADICATION OF
GENDER VIOLENCE AND TO DECREASE ITS
CONSEQUENCES
122 ACTIONS

11. 1. ORGANIZATION ACTIONS
•Institutional involvement of social agents on Action Plans for
Equality.
•Introducing gender perspective in prison policies.
•Adapting staff policies to Equality Plans and Family Reconciliation
Laws.
•Incorporating Gender Policies to staff management and to their
training programs.
•Promoting legal changes on gender equality that reduce family
costs, and the greater suffering of women during their imprisonment.

12. 2. CREATING AN EQUALITY ACTIONS PLAN OBSERVATORY
•Monitoring the fulfilment, development and execution of the Actions Plan
for Equality.
•Encouraging studies and working groups.
•Acting as a consultant and inspection organ, taking into account what is
considered relevant in terms of gender equality.
•Developing and implementing management analysis methods to assess
periodically women´s imprisonment conditions in comparison to men´s.
•Incorporating the analysis of gender impact on reports and on general
decisions.
•General Plan to adapt the architecture structures to women’s needs.
•Adapting the penitentiary regime to women’s characteristics.

13. 3.1. ATTENTION TO PERSONAL NEEDS
-Personal history with many social discrimination factors.
-Imprisonment increases the factors of exclusion.
-Educational, training and labour deficits.
-Lower self-esteem.
-Psychological dependence on the male figure. Very frequently
subject to abuses and ill-treatment.
-Lack of competition.
-Early exposure to criminal models.
-Break-up of maturing and social process.

14. 3.2. ATTENTION
TO FAMILIAR
NEEDS
Guilt, distress and uncertainty
towards family responsibilities.
Fear of the possibility of
irreversible consequences on their
family networks.
More painful imprisonment:
personal problems invading their
existence.
Deterioration of family ties due to
distance.
Single-parent families.
High number of gypsy and foreign
women.

15. “Intervention Programme for Women Victims of Gender
Violence”
“Intervention Programme for Women Victims of Gender
Violence”
4. PLANS TO FACILITATE THE ERADICATION OF GENDER
VIOLENCE AND TO DECREASE ITS CONSEQUENCES
Being a Woman
1. Reducing imprisoned females vulnerability, generally,
towards suffering situations of violence and/ or dependence.
2. Specific programs for women who have suffered gender
violence:
3. Intervention programs for persons who have been
sentenced for crimes related to domestic violence (usually
men).

16. General actions to promote an open environment for women inmates.
Mechanisms of positive discrimination.
General actions to promote an open environment for women inmates.
Mechanisms of positive discrimination.
Proposals for legal changes to deepen in gender equality and
reduce the family cost and the greater suffering of women in prison.
2. Modification of the Penal Code: decreasing penalties for crimes
against public health.
3. Improvement of legal mechanisms to replace the sentences by
expulsions.
1. Encouraging the debate to decrease the penalties for drug
dealing, when it is carried out for economic survival reasons and
by persons who assume a secondary role in the criminal
organization.

17. General actions to promote an open environment for women inmates.
Mechanisms of positive discrimination.
General actions to promote an open environment for women inmates.
Mechanisms of positive discrimination.
Life Regime % Male % Female
Closed 2 2
Ordinary 81.1 68.7
Open 16.9 29.3
Life Regime % Male % Female
Closed 2 1.60
Ordinary 80.94 66.4
Open 17.06 32
Proposals for legal changes to deepen in gender equality, to reduce
the family cost and the greater suffering of women in prison.
Promoting Open Life Regimes
February 2008 August 2010
August 2010 (Total population of Spanish General State Administration):
5.219 Female (8.02%) 59.879 Male (91.98%)
4. Promoting different legal changes in order to attenuate,
suspend or replace prison sentences: pregnant women,
women in charge of not-emancipated children and elderly
and/ or dependent persons.

18. Adapting architectural structures and residencial equipments to
women
Adapting architectural structures and residencial equipments to
women
• Versatility
• Interconnection
• Specific
equipments
Plan to adapt architectural structures to women: the places
where they will reside or where they will be destined must
facilitate internal classification’s criteria.
Two departments: maximum capacity 64 women
Two departments: maximum capacity 84 women
Total: capacity for 296 women

19. Organization modifications to promote changes for a better internal
classification.
Organization modifications to promote changes for a better internal
classification.
Respect Departments in Women Departments
Stimulating in centers and women’s departments the setting up of
specific programs (drug-free, respect, etc.) and the attention towards
different profiles of population.

20. Mediation Project between Women Inmates in Penitentiary Institutions and
their Families.
Mediation Project between Women Inmates in Penitentiary Institutions and
their Families.
Actions to stregthen and/ or to restore their family
environment.

21. Implementation of the new Mothers External Units and review of
ongoing projects
Implementation of the new Mothers External Units and review of
ongoing projects
Emphasis on the development of motherhood in prison
Palma of Mallorca
Sevilla
Madrid
Alicante
Tenerife
León

22. “Gender Indicators in the Penitentiary System” related to the
Gender Indicator System of the Ministry of Equality.
“Gender Indicators in the Penitentiary System” related to the
Gender Indicator System of the Ministry of Equality.
Objective Models to evaluate the quality’s standards of
imprisoned women lives in Spain.
Indicator System of
Discrimination in Prisons.
Gender Indicator State System

23. www.institucionpenitenciaria.es
(Fondo documental)
For more information you can visit this
website:
THANK YOU FOR
YOUR ATTENTION