🔗 Share this article

A human rights activist, at 35 weeks pregnant, was detained near her residence in March 2024. Accused with a broad allegation, she was held lacking proof. Weeks afterward, her family received a call to collect the remains of her newborn baby. The cause of death remains unexamined, and the family has no idea the circumstances or whether she was given any postnatal care.

An International Problem

Cases such as this are alarmingly common in detention centers internationally. 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. Sadly, some babies perish in custody.

"Nations think it’s a few of women so it’s not an issue, but that is incorrect," states a legal advocate dedicated to female imprisonment.

"Detention is a terrible setting for women, especially not for someone who is expecting," she explains. "Extensive evidence that shows how damaging it is. Numerous prisons were constructed with male inmates in mind, so women were an afterthought."

Ignored International Guidelines

It has been 15 years since the creation of international guidelines for the handling of female prisoners. These guidelines clearly say that incarceration should be a final option for expectant mothers and that non-custodial sentences should always be considered. They also prohibit the use of restraints on women during labour.

Yet, these standards are routinely ignored around the world. "This is not considered a worldwide priority for women's rights," argues the expert. "It’s not visible, and there’s a lot of shame and stereotyping."

Dire Situations in Overcrowded Systems

In certain nations, situations for expectant inmates are described as "extremely dire". Contact with relatives have been banned, and rights groups are denied access. Interviews with formerly incarcerated women detail beatings, abuse, and being deprived of basic supplies. Reports indicate some resort to trading sex with guards for food or medicine.

"Our organisation has documented pregnancy losses and the loss of four babies … it is certain there are more," says a rights defender.

Accounts also tell of women who were chained to hospital beds while in labor and delivered while watched by male officers.

Severe Overpopulation and Its Effects

Data shows some nations as having the highest overcrowding levels in the globe. Women are particularly vulnerable to these conditions. "There is seldom enough space to lie down properly," explains a advocate. "There exists a persistent lack of access to basic items."

Expectant inmates have been handcuffed to hospital beds prior to delivery. The environment for caring for an infant upon return in prison are alarming, as evidenced by cases of infants succumbing from illness and malnourishment in custody.

Stories from Different Continents

In Zambia, a former inmate recalls being in a cell with expectant mothers. Doors were secured overnight. If a woman started giving birth at night, the women were left to fend for themselves. "We begged. Others were praying. Others were hitting the ground and the gates, yelling: ‘Please come, somebody’s in labour!’"

These tragedies also happen in more developed countries. In one case, a young woman her baby died after giving birth alone in a cell. Her calls for help were ignored for an extended period, and she was forced to sever the umbilical cord on her own.

From Experience to Advocacy

Some women have decided to use their traumatic ordeals to instigate change. In the United States, a woman who miscarried in her prison cell set up an organisation. She has successfully advocated for laws that ban shackling and solitary confinement for pregnant inmates in numerous jurisdictions.

A separate account comes from South America. A woman learned of her pregnancy shortly after being sentenced. During her delivery, guards chained her legs to the hospital bed. Doctors performed a C-section. While still groggy, they suggested to sterilize her. "Why would you wish to have more children, if you’re a prisoner?" they asked.

"My ordeal was obstetric violence. What I experienced should never have happened, but this is what women in prison endure," she says. Her experiences later shaped provincial policies around childbirth in detention.

Alternatives and Solutions

Other countries have introduced measures regarding expectant mothers in the legal system. Among them are:

• Evaluating alternatives to detention for defendants who are mothers, expecting, or nursing mothers.
• Implementing house arrest as an option to being held before trial, especially for expectant mothers.
• Allowing for the deferral of sentences for women who are pregnant.

Experts and those who have been incarcerated argue that, in most cases, expectant mothers should not be in prison at all. "We must ask whether women should be prosecuted for many issues in the beginning," says the advocate.

"Alternatives in the community that address the root causes of women entering the justice system – for example, destitution, abuse and drugs – are really what we should be focusing on."