“They Don’t Treat Us Like Human Beings”: Abuse of Imprisoned Women in Japan

By Human Rights Watch

Many women imprisoned under Japan’s criminal justice system suffer serious violations of their human rights. The system overly depends on imprisonment and does not provide sufficient alternatives, such as community service. Mothers of young children are particularly affected. “They Don’t Treat Us Like Human Beings” documents the abusive conditions and policies of women’s prisons in Japan that contravene rules set out in the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules of the Treatment of Prisoners, known as the Nelson Mandela Rules. These include the use of restraints on imprisoned pregnant women, arbitrary use of solitary confinement, inadequate access to health and mental health care, criminalization of simple drug-related violations without effective treatment, and a lack of effective and independent oversight of prisons. Based on interviews with nearly 70 people, including several dozen formerly imprisoned women, the report demonstrates not only the poor human rights situation of women’s prisons in Japan, but also the few opportunities for alternatives to imprisonment. Japan’s government should urgently reform its justice system to ensure that the rights of all imprisoned people are fully respected in line with international human rights standards.  

New York:Human Rights Watch, 2023. 102p.