Reports
The Massive Incarceration Of Women In Brazil A Cycle Of Violence And Exclusion
- GHRD Team
- 26 May 2022
The growing trend of female incarceration is present all over the world, with 740,000 women currently in prison, a 17 percent increase from 2010. According to the report Global Prison Trends issued by Penal Reform International in 2021, the rise is related to an incarceration policy characterised by laws that criminalise possession of small amounts of drugs and the punishment of women who commit offenses in the contexts of violence, poverty, or discrimination. The report demonstrates that gender inequality causes women to benefit less from acquittals or releases than men, even when they are considered low risk (GIFE, 2021; Penal Reform International & Thailand Institute of Justice, 2021).
Indeed, female incarceration is an urgent problem in Brazil, which, according to the World Female Imprisonment List, is the fourth country in the world with more women in prison, behind only the United States, China, and Russia. Furthermore, the National Survey of Penitentiary Information shows that, among the countries that incarcerate the most women, Brazil had a 455 percent increase in the imprisonment rate between 2000 and 2016, while Russia, for example, had a 2 percent reduction (INFOPEN Women et al., 2018; Institute for Criminal Policy Research et al., 2017).
This article aims to explore the structural reasons behind the massive incarceration of women in Brazil, present the reality of incarcerated women, and the implications of this scenario in the scope of human rights guarantees.
Indeed, female incarceration is an urgent problem in Brazil, which, according to the World Female Imprisonment List, is the fourth country in the world with more women in prison, behind only the United States, China, and Russia. Furthermore, the National Survey of Penitentiary Information shows that, among the countries that incarcerate the most women, Brazil had a 455 percent increase in the imprisonment rate between 2000 and 2016, while Russia, for example, had a 2 percent reduction (INFOPEN Women et al., 2018; Institute for Criminal Policy Research et al., 2017).
This article aims to explore the structural reasons behind the massive incarceration of women in Brazil, present the reality of incarcerated women, and the implications of this scenario in the scope of human rights guarantees.
✨ AI summary
The growing trend of female incarceration is present all over the world, with 740,000 women currently in prison, a 17 percent increase from 2010. According to the report Global Prison Trends issued by Penal Reform International in 2021, the rise is related to an incarceration policy characterised by laws that criminalise possession of small amounts of drugs and the punishment of women who commit offenses in the contexts of violence, poverty, or discrimination. The report demonstrates that gender inequality causes women to benefit less from acquittals or releases than men, even when they are considered low risk (GIFE, 2021; Penal Reform International & Thailand Institute of Justice, 2021).
Indeed, female incarceration is an urgent problem in Brazil, which, according to the World Female Imprisonment List, is the fourth country in the world with more women in prison, behind only the United States, China, and Russia. Furthermore, the National Survey of Penitentiary Information shows that, among the countries that incarcerate the most women, Brazil had a 455 percent increase in the imprisonment rate between 2000 and 2016, while Russia, for example, had a 2 percent reduction (INFOPEN Women et al., 2018; Institute for Criminal Policy Research et al., 2017).
This article aims to explore the structural reasons behind the massive incarceration of women in Brazil, present the reality of incarcerated women, and the implications of this scenario in the scope of human rights guarantees.
Indeed, female incarceration is an urgent problem in Brazil, which, according to the World Female Imprisonment List, is the fourth country in the world with more women in prison, behind only the United States, China, and Russia. Furthermore, the National Survey of Penitentiary Information shows that, among the countries that incarcerate the most women, Brazil had a 455 percent increase in the imprisonment rate between 2000 and 2016, while Russia, for example, had a 2 percent reduction (INFOPEN Women et al., 2018; Institute for Criminal Policy Research et al., 2017).
This article aims to explore the structural reasons behind the massive incarceration of women in Brazil, present the reality of incarcerated women, and the implications of this scenario in the scope of human rights guarantees.
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