We’ve previously published a series on the failure of the Department of Corrections to provide basic necessities like hygienic bedding, and over the past several years the work of our advocates has uncovered that this negligence extends to underwear, socks, shoes and thermals. This is a wide-ranging problem, affecting all prisons. We’ve been supporting prisoners individually with these needs, but as the situation worsens it has become apparent that work needs to be done to ensure that all prisoners receive appropriate clothing as a necessary part of Corrections custody.

Under the Corrections Regulations 2005, clause 68: Clothing;

(5) Clothing or footwear that is provided by the prison must be—suitable for the activities or work likely to be undertaken by the prisoner who is wearing that clothing or footwear; andadequate for safety, warmth, comfort, and health.

The items we are fulfilling requests for–shoes, socks, underwear, and thermals–all demonstrate in and of themselves that the basic needs of safety, warmth, comfort and health are not being met. We are told that often instead of shoes, prisoners are only provided with jandals, not suitable for the basic purpose of protecting people’s feet and especially inadequate in Winter. We received a desperate request for underwear from a woman who only had a single pair. Because of this, she had been unable to have laundry done, and was forced to continue wearing them until we were able to send spares to the prison. Many prisoners are not provided enough underwear to always have a clean pair to wear, and we’ve notably heard this from women’s prisons. We’ve received many requests for hygiene items, especially soap and shampoo, as these are not being provided. This is neither healthy nor comfortable. 

In general, the requests we’ve been receiving are because: necessary items are not being provided at all, the number of items provided isn’t sufficient for hygienic purposes or because the quality of these items doesn’t meet people’s basic needs.

The requests for thermals highlight another violation of the Corrections Regulations, namely, under Schedule 2, Part A: Mandatory items and features of new cells and new self-care units, new in this case meaning built this century, and Part B: Mandatory items and features of existing cells and existing self-care units, included is:

Heating appropriate to climatic conditions and suitable for the number of occupants and the daily regime

If these cells were at an appropriate temperature, these items wouldn’t be as necessary for the prisoners we supply them to. 

In all cases, the requests are extremely modest. At the beginning of our advocacy, we were focused on particularly unjust situations, fighting for an improvement to the situation of particularly harmed prisoners. In the course of this, we received requests for support with items like replacement frames for glasses. Then, the requests came in for extremely basic things that prisoners should already have. To immediately improve the situation, we’ve been trying to meet each individual request we’ve received. In the past year, these requests have become the vast majority of our advocacy work. Our support has become necessary to the normal functioning of prisons, to the point where prison staff are even writing to us requesting these items on behalf of the prisoners they’re required by law to be responsible custodians of. 

Everyone in prison should be receiving their legal entitlements to clothing!

We will not allow this situation to continue. Corrections need to start doing their jobs. People Against Prisons Aotearoa will no longer be responsible for patching holes left by a Department of Corrections is failing to meet its legal obligations and government that fails to address this. We need to work together with people inside to make sure that prison managers take this responsibility seriously, so that every prisoner will have appropriate material for their continued existence.

Please sign and share our petition calling for the implementation of standards that would ensure prisoners receive the things that are already recognised as necessities: https://our.actionstation.org.nz/petitions/get-people-in-prison-the-basic-supplies-they-are-legally-entitled-to