Newsflash
April 2020
COVID-19
Prison Services in Europe are under tremendous pressure to limit the impact of Covid-19 and to keep it out of the closed prison environment. They have had to take a wide range of measures in relation to Covid-19, including providing for appropriate protective clothing, suspending visits and work and arranging for compensation. Prison staff as well as prisoners are concerned about their health. Prisoners suffer from the lack of activities and visits, which makes it a challenge to keep staff motivated and prevent incidents. This crisis has shown the pressing need of prison professionals to being able to share and question each other on a variety of issues. EuroPris is facilitating the exchange of information and expertise. In this special issue of our newsletter, we share a snapshot of our activities.
COVID-19 collection of regulations and protocols
On the EuroPris website we created a  dedicated page  on which we gather and share all regulations, protocols and approaches that European Prison Services and related organisations have drafted or taken in order to deal with the Covid-19 virus. The page is updated every day. Currently, 26 jurisdictions have shared their information. If you have information to add to this page, please mail  secretariat@europris.org .
EuroPris Interviews
COVID-19: EuroPris interviews
The impact of Covid-19 on the prison community goes beyond regulations and protocols. The crisis affects people on a deep personal level and changes their daily lives. EuroPris collects human stories, to share in our network. We hope the sharing of experiences will contribute to making people feel connected. Would you like to share your story? Please send an e-mail to  Friederycke Haijer  to arrange for a telephone conversation .
Tim Gurrey: All hands to the pump
To read the interview on COVID-19 with Tim Gurrey, Ambassador for Prison Officers at Her Majesty’s Prison & Probation Service in the United Kingdom, click here .
Kathleen Van De Vijver: This is crisis management
To read the interview with Kathleen Van De Vijver on COVID-19, who is currently working as the spokesperson for the Belgian Prison Service and she also coordinates its international projects and prison labor, click here .
COVID-19: Impact on EuroPris upcoming events
At the EuroPris secretariat we are closely following the developments around COVID-19. Starting point for our events and activities is the official governmental health advice of the country where the event is organized. We will make adjustments and inform participants when necessary. Please consult our website for the latest information about our other events.
CRS - Postponed
The 3 rd  International Correctional Research Symposium, under the title "Motivation and well-being of correctional staff: How they matter and what can we do about it?", was scheduled to take place in Porto on 12-14 May. The Symposium has been re-scheduled to take place on 2-4 March 2021 in Porto

AGM - Postponed
The EuroPris Annual General Meeting and conference was scheduled to take place in Dublin on the 8 th  of June. Although we hope that by June the situation will be more under control, it is highly questionable if international travel will already be safe. The decision to cancel  the June meeting was made in close collaboration with the Council of Europe. We are now looking into re-scheduling the conference, possibly to a date in November.

Summer Course - Postponed
With very much regret, in light of current circumstances regarding the Covid-19 outbreak, we inform you that the partners in the Criminal Justice Platform Europe, in close collaboration with the local organising team from Barcelona have decided to postpone the 4th International Criminal Justice Summer Course in Barcelona (planned on 7-10 July 2020) to July 2021. We will communicate the new dates and other updates later.
Covid-19: Other prison related news
Council of Europe Anti-Torture Committee
The Council of Europe’s Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT) has published a  statement of principles relating to the treatment of persons deprived of their liberty in the context of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic .

World Health Organisation
The World Health Organisation regional office for Europe has published interim guidance on how to deal with the coronavirus disease Covid-19 in prisons and other places of detention, entitled  “Preparedness, prevention and control of COVID-19 in prisons and other places of detention” . The guidance provides useful information to staff and health care providers working in prisons, and to prison authorities.
Inter-Agency Standing Committee
The Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) is an inter-agency forum of UN and non-UN humanitarian partners founded in 1992, to strengthen humanitarian assistance. The IASC has issued and  interim guidance on Covid-19   with a focus on deprived of their liberty. The guidance contains messages aimed at assisting OHCHR and UNCT/HCT in addressing the specific issues of persons deprived of their liberty with the responsible services and ministries (Ministry of Justice/Ministry of Interior/Ministry of Health/Agencies in charge of migration and rehabilitation centres, etc).
Highlights from EuroPris Knowledge Management System
EuroPris receives queries from member countries every week, and in this section we will highlight several KMS reports from the last months. Click on the link to view each KMS report:


Document Library
  1. COVID-19 collection of reports and protocols - View collection here
European Organisation of Prison and Correctional Services (EUROPRIS)
EuroPris
P.O. Box 13635
2501 EP The Hague
Netherlands