Reminder: "Solitary confinement: necessity, convenience or inhumanity?"

19th July 2013

This is a reminder that the IPRT 2013 Annual Lecture, delivered by Dr. Sharon Shalev on the topic of: "Solitary confinement: necessity, convenience or inhumanity?" will take place on Tues 23rd July at 6pm in the King's Inns, Henrietta Street, Dublin 1. (Those driving should enter from Constitution Hill.)

Please note that due to strong interest, limited places remain. Book now for this free event to avoid disappointment!

IPRT has invited Dr Shalev to Dublin in order to draw attention to serious rights issues and concerns surrounding the detention of prisoners in Ireland on restricted regimes, including 23-hour lock up, for significant periods of time.

Both the UN and the Council of Europe have recommended that 15 days should be the maximum length of time that any prisoner is held on 22-24 lock-up, as after this time the negative effects of prolonged isolation can become irreversible.

In his Annual Report 2012, the Inspector of Prisons stated that around 25% of the prison population is on protection at any time, and that those on 23-hour lock up "effectively have little or no contact with teachers, addiction services, the gym, religious observation, the library or with the many voluntary external bodies who do excellent work with those prisoners who have access to them."

There are more than 150 prisoners on 23-hour lock up in Irish prisons on any given day.

Recent relevant news and articles include:

• The Horrible Psychology of Solitary Confinement (Wired, 10 July 2013)
• Gay prisoner loses bid over solitary lock-up (The Irish Times, 17 July 2013)
• Gay prisoner in lock-up isolation loses release bid (Irish Independent, 17 July 2013)
• When Prisoners Protest (The New York Times, 16 July 2013)
• California prison hunger strike is call for justice (The Guardian, 16 July 2013)

Judge Gerard Hogan of the Irish High Court will chair the event, and leading social justice campaigner Fr. Peter McVerry will respond to the lecture, reflecting on his experience in seeing the effects of prolonged isolation on prisoners within Irish prisons.

IPRT is very grateful to KOD Lyons for their sponsorship of the 2013 Annual Lecture.

• Date/Time: Tues 23rd July 2013, 6pm
• Location: King's Inns, Henrietta Street, Dublin 1

A wine reception will follow the event, kindly sponsored by the Bar Council. To register for this free event, contact 01-8741400 or email info@iprt.ie or sign up online.