How easy is it to persuade governments in developing countries to build well-designed prisons? This means providing spaces for staying in contact with families, work, education, and playing sport. In my view, design is crucial to creating an environment in which prisoners can live and not become institutionalised. It tells you what to expect and where the limits of behaviour are. Why is the architectural design of prisons so important from a human rights and humane treatment perspective?Īrchitecture sends a silent message to everyone walking into any place. Having recently retired, below she reflects on her work.
Isabel Hight has spent over 35 years advising on prison development and management in East Timor, Liberia, Sudan, Rwanda, Afghanistan and Congo for organisations like the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross. Wearing their distinctive pink uniforms, people suspected of involvement in Rwanda’s 1994 genocide line up before re-entering Kigali’s central prison from a day at work in the fields next to the prison.
