Human Rights and Prisons - Rethinking Crime and Punishment
Human Rights and Prisons - Rethinking Crime and Punishment
Human Rights and Prisons - Rethinking Crime and Punishment
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The clear reference to the role of the corrections system in providing<br />
rehabilitation <strong>and</strong> reintegration;<br />
The expansion of complaints provisions <strong>and</strong> their elevation to primary<br />
legislation;<br />
Improvements to the disciplinary offence regime;<br />
More regular review of decisions to segregate prisoners for security or<br />
protection reasons.<br />
The Corrections Act also ended contractual arrangements that allowed for the<br />
private management of prisons. This issue has since been revisited, with<br />
recent legislation that once again enables prison management to be<br />
contracted to private parties. The Corrections (Contract Management of<br />
<strong>Prisons</strong>) Amendment Act 2009 includes requirements that contractors comply<br />
with relevant international obligations <strong>and</strong> st<strong>and</strong>ards <strong>and</strong> report regularly to<br />
the Chief Executive of the Department of Corrections on a range of matters<br />
including staff training, prison programmes, prisoner complaints, disciplinary<br />
actions, <strong>and</strong> incidents involving violence or self-inflicted injuries.<br />
Other recent amendments have included the Corrections Amendment Act<br />
2009 which, among other things, prohibits the use of „electronic<br />
communication devices‟ by prisoners <strong>and</strong> provides for the detection <strong>and</strong><br />
interception of radio-communications; <strong>and</strong> exp<strong>and</strong>s search powers. The<br />
Corrections (Use of Court Cells) Amendment Act 2009 enables court cells to<br />
be used to temporarily house prisoners during accommodation shortages.<br />
The <strong>Crime</strong>s of Torture Act 1989 was amended to meet the requirements of<br />
the Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture, ratified by New<br />
Zeal<strong>and</strong> in 2007. A new Part 2 of the Act was inserted to provide for visits by<br />
the Subcommittee <strong>and</strong> for the designation of National Preventive Mechanisms<br />
<strong>and</strong> a Central National Preventive Mechanism.<br />
Amendments have also been made to bail, sentencing <strong>and</strong> parole legislation.<br />
Significant among these was the introduction of new community sentences<br />
under the Sentencing Amendment Act 2007, which saw a slowing in the<br />
growth of the prison population, but placed pressures on Community<br />
Probation Services. The Parole Amendment Act 2007 also introduced a<br />
number of changes including: establishing residential restrictions that may be<br />
imposed on all offenders subject to parole or release; the monitoring of<br />
offender‟s compliance with release conditions; powers to issue summons for<br />
information <strong>and</strong> evidence; the implementation of confidentiality orders; <strong>and</strong>,<br />
the ability of the Commissioner of Police to make a recall application.<br />
The Sentencing <strong>and</strong> Parole Reform Act 2010 establishes a new, three-stage<br />
regime for repeat violent offending in relation to specified qualifying offences.<br />
On a first conviction for a qualifying offence, the court issues a first warning.<br />
Offenders convicted of a second qualifying offence receive a final warning <strong>and</strong><br />
must serve the sentence without parole. Offenders convicted of a third<br />
qualifying offence must receive the maximum sentence <strong>and</strong>, unless it would<br />
be manifestly unjust, serve the sentence without parole.<br />
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