NationStates

Category: Human Rights
Strength: Significant

The World Assembly,

ACKNOWLEDGING that adequate healthcare in prison medical wards is a vital aspect of the facility,

DEFINING, for the purpose of this resolution:

1. Prison as any facility, the purpose of which is to confine accused/convicted criminals as punishment in accordance with local, national, regional, or interregional law,

HEREBY MANDATES that all Prisons in all member states have at minimum, functioning medical ward that:

1. Employs an adequate number of appropriate medical professionals, relative to the prison's occupancy, with at least one qualified physician present in the medical ward at all times,
2. Allows all prisoners immediate access to anesthesics, analgesics, and other such drugs to all prisoners when determined to be medically necessary,
3. Provides a number of beds which will be made available to all inmates who suffer from a medical emergency that requires observation in the medical ward,
4. Utilizes up-to-date, effective medical equipment for the treatment of prisoners;
5. Provides gender-appropriate services as dictated by the inmate population of the prison in question, including appropriate care and treatment for pregnant individuals and their offspring,
6. Arranges for the safe transfer of prisoners to outside facilities for those who require specialized medical care beyond that offered by the Prison medical ward.

REQUIRES the use of appropriate sterilization techniques throughout the prison and medical ward to minimize the spread of infectious disease.

PROHIBITS the following inhumane actions from being performed on prisoners:

1. The administration of medical drugs with the purpose of causing anguish or pain within any Correctional Facility,
2. The administration of medical drugs for the purposes of causing death, with exceptions granted for euthanasia at the inmate's request and for capital punishment,
3. The use of prisoners as test subjects without their informed, written consent.

ALLOWS individual member states to impose additional protocol or standards that do not conflict with this resolution to their current correctional facility medical system.

Co-authored by Mousebumples, and Quelesh

PROHIBITS the physical, mental, or emotional abuse of Correctional Facility residents by any employee of the facility for any purpose.

Abuse includes, but is not limited to:

a) Physical beatings
b) Sensory irritants, such as pungent smells, or blinding light.
c) Verbal deprecation, such as insults, or cajoling with intent to anger the resident(s).
d) Depriving Correctional Facility residents of adequate nourishment, or hydration.
e) Administering pain-inducing drugs or substances with the intent of causing a prisoner anguish.
f) Denying effective medical treatment to any prisoner for any reason.
g) Rape, or any form of forced sexual activity without consent.
h) Suffocation by means drowning, gagging, etc.

HOWEVER, permits the use of force to restrain belligerent prisoners, so long as the prisoner is not seriously injured.

FURTHER PROHIBITS the use of prisoners as workers without adequate compensation, as well as forcing them to engage in activities that may cause them physical or mental harm.

Charlotte Ryberg wrote:
Also: category, strength?

Currently undecided.

- Ms. S. Harper.

Connopolis wrote:Category: Human Rights
Strength: Significant

Noting that the conditions of Correctional Facilities in some nations is abhorring, causing extreme discomfort to prisoners for long periods of time.

DEFINING a Correctional Facility as any government building whose purpose is to house criminals as punishment.

MANDATING that each Correctional Facility have a functioning medical ward that:

a) Employs two full time psychiatrists and two full time physicians; each of which working on separate shifts. The first working during the day, and the second during the night. At least one qualified psychiatrist and one qualified physician must be present in the medical ward at all times.

b) Employs orderlies at a one to five ratio to ensure that prisoners are ensured medical attention at all times. At least one orderly for every five prisoners must be present in the medical ward at all times.

c) Allows immediate access to anesthesia, analgesics, and other such drugs to all prisoners.

d) Provides and adequate number of sleeping quarters; enough to accommodate 35% of the correctional facility's residents.

FURTHER MANDATING that each Correctional Facility have prison cells that:

a) Have a functioning plumbing system so that the cell's residents may use either the toilet or the sink at any given time.

b) Have an adequate number of sleeping quarters for whoever resides in the cell.

c) Have adequate lighting at all times; therefore, no prison cell may be engulfed in darkness at any time.

REQUIRING that each Correctional Facility offer rehabilitation courses for each of its residents to further ensure that they abstain from crime in general. These rehabilitation courses include, but are not limited to
a) Substance abuse
b) Poverty management
c) Anger management
d) Hormonal irregularities
e) Poor parental relations.

PROHIBITS the physical, mental, or emotional abuse of Correctional Facility residents by any employee of the facility for any purpose.

Abuse includes, but is not limited to:

a) Physical beatings
b) Sensory irritants, such as pungent smells, or blinding light.
c) Verbal deprecation, such as insults, or cajoling with intent to anger the resident(s).
d) Depriving Correctional Facility residents of adequate nourishment, or hydration.
e) Administering pain-inducing drugs or substances with the intent of causing a prisoner anguish.
f) Denying effective medical treatment to any prisoner for any reason.
g) Rape, or any form of forced sexual activity without consent.
h) Suffocation by means drowning, gagging, etc.

HOWEVER, permits the use of force to restrain belligerent prisoners, so long as the prisoner is not seriously injured.


FURTHER PROHIBITS the use of prisoners as workers without adequate compensation, as well as forcing them to engage in activities that may cause them physical or mental harm.

Your constructive criticism is much appreciated.

Charlotte Ryberg wrote:Also, Ms. Harper has discovered that this may have covered the draft.

Connopolis wrote:

Charlotte Ryberg wrote:Also, Ms. Harper has discovered that this may have covered the draft.

This makes the majority of this draft null and void, with the exception of appropriate medical care to prisoners.

Connopolis wrote:So would adequate medical care for all prisoners be enough to carry this proposal? The clauses regarding the comfort of prisoners has to be taken out.

Nuvalia wrote:We feel that topics of this matter should be left to the state to decide. Prison Systems are very expensive and for nations would prefer to spend their money on more essential services will continue to allow their prisons to become dilapidated. However fear of being hauled to such a place as prevented an untold amount of crimes according to a national survey. Unless the WA is willing to grant incentive to nations who comply with these statues, or prison subsidizing should be given or else I don't see this proposal being of any real value to society.

Albert the Fourth wrote:I'm against. The treatment of prisoners should be left to the state. For example, perhaps they decide to make prisoners work to offset the high costs of funding decent prison facilities, or perhaps prisoners undergo capital punishment for cultural reasons?

Morlago wrote:We believe that the WA should entrust individual nations to decide this matters for themselves. While this is not completely nonsensical micromanaging, there is no need to demand for an international set of standards for correctional facilities. Also, as pointed out, For the Detained and the Convicted seems to cover most of this. OPPOSED.

Connopolis wrote:

Morlago wrote:We believe that the WA should entrust individual nations to decide this matters for themselves. While this is not completely nonsensical micromanaging, there is no need to demand for an international set of standards for correctional facilities. Also, as pointed out, For the Detained and the Convicted seems to cover most of this. OPPOSED.

But if most of my proposal has already been covered in active WA proposals, how is this not an international issue? Plus that still leaves the case of adequate medical protection for prisoners.

Morlago wrote:
Sorry, I think my wording was horrible. What I meant is that since it has been covered, there is no need for a set of standards again, especially since this will be illegal for duplication.

As for medical protection, I suppose it is an issue we can legislate.

Separatist Peoples wrote:Given that Prevention of Torture covers the bulk of it, the remainder of the proposal doesn't seem to be significan enough to bother with legislation. Also, I have a nagging feeling that this is covered somewhere. I'll go check, see what I find.

Edit: Verdict is: Hot damn, we don't have anything on this!

Well then. In all honesty, I'd like to see this remain unlegislated. We like to keep our prisons as unpleasant as possible, to deter crime. Having said that, we are, to the best of my knowledge, in full compliance with the clauses listed, but we would rather be the ones with the final say over how we treat individuals who have given up their rights, not the WA. While it doesn't seem to be micromnaging, per se, I still don't want to support it. Gotta stick with a solid ABSTAIN for the moment. We'll see how the debate goes.

Connopolis wrote:
I completely agree; prisons that are comfortable might not combat crime effectively, but, this only covers healthcare, and you don't want a jaywalker, who's been sentenced to prison for a month, to die of some trivial illness all because he crossed the right during a red light.

Separatist Peoples wrote:

Connopolis wrote:
I completely agree; prisons that are comfortable might not combat crime effectively, but, this only covers healthcare, and you don't want a jaywalker, who's been sentenced to prison for a month, to die of some trivial illness all because he crossed the right during a red light.

Except QiHS states that everybody gets some form of healthcare when needed, not just normal citizens. Prisoners are people, too...unfortunately...

Morlago wrote:

Separatist Peoples wrote:
Except QiHS states that everybody gets some form of healthcare when needed, not just normal citizens. Prisoners are people, too...unfortunately...

Ah true. That would probably put this proposal into the REDUNDANT box.