The Wire

Human Rights Watch today released a report detailing widespread neglect and physical and sexual abuse of prisoners with disabilities. In Australian prisons almost half of the inmates suffer from a disability, and a large proportion of those are Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander.  The report noted that both prison staff and other inmates treated disabled inmates badly, and that prisons had no facilities to deal with disability. It recommends an investigation into the inappropriate use of  solitary confinement and an urgent overhaul of corrections staff training.