UN torture watchdog makes unannounced visits to NZ prisons

Summarised by Centrist

A United Nations delegation has visited a dozen New Zealand prisons over the past two weeks, part of its mandate to prevent torture in countries signed up to the Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture. 

The UN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture (SPT) carried out unannounced inspections at facilities including Auckland Prison, Waikeria, Rimutaka and Invercargill.

Delegation head Aisha Shujune Muhammad said the purpose was not to investigate individual complaints, but to examine safeguards and systems to ensure “torture or ill-treatment may be avoided.” She said detention facilities in any country, regardless of development, carry risks.

Reports from the Chief Ombudsman and the Office of the Inspectorate have flagged the prolonged use of solitary confinement and restrictive regimes at Auckland Prison and Mt Eden. In 2023 the UN’s own Committee Against Torture also raised concerns about staff shortages, overcrowding and the over-representation of Māori in prisons.

Victoria University criminologist Liam Martin said inspections were “essential,” describing prisons as “a black box” with limited access for journalists and researchers. He noted the Ministry of Justice projects the prison population will increase by 36% in the next decade.

Corrections commissioner Leigh Marsh said New Zealand already facilitates unannounced visits from the Ombudsman and others, and pointed to $78 million in new rehabilitation programmes, additional staffing, and hundreds of new beds. “We are committed to ensuring people in prison are treated safely and humanely,” he said.

Read more over at 1News

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