One Judge One Jail

A guide for inspecting and reporting on places of detention in South Africa

South African prisons are fraught with conditions that lead to human rights abuses and high rates of sexual violence, HIV transmission and TB infection. Regular monitoring and reporting acts as a preventative measure against human rights abuses in prisons, including ill treatment and torture. This guide outlines the basic minimum standards of treatment for all persons in prison custody, and provides guiding principles and a tool that will assist judges, magistrates and Members of Parliament in conducting holistic and consistent prison inspections sensitive to the specific population incarcerated (e.g. remand detainees, migrants, sentenced inmates, women or children).