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Welfare of Women Prisoners89.9PU

89.9PU Policy Update: Welfare of Women Prisoners (1981)

[RESOLVED:]

The National Council of Women of Canada (NCWC) requests the Government of Canada to:

  1. Take immediate action on recommendation 96 of the Daubney Report:
    a) Convene a Task Force on Federal Female Offenders, led by the Solicitor General, composed of representatives from relevant federal government departments, agencies, the Canadian Elizabeth Fry Societies, and private sector/provincial/territorial correctional authorities, to:
    • Plan for and oversee the closure of the Prison for Women within 5 years.
    • Propose at least one plan addressing community and institutional accommodation and programming for federal female offenders.
    • Develop a work plan for implementing the proposed solutions, to be approved by the Minister.
  2. Take immediate action on recommendation 97 of the Daubney Report:
    • Ensure that the Task Force consults with inmates, women’s groups, private correctional sector agencies, and provincial correctional authorities across the country.
  3. Improve education, rehabilitation, and recreation programs for female prisoners at the Prison for Women, emphasizing:
    a) Educational training to prepare inmates for realistic employment opportunities in the 1990s.
    b) Specialized programs focused on self-esteem, assertiveness, substance abuse education, counseling, and self-help, including sexual and other abuse education and counseling.
  4. Ensure all programs and services for federal female offenders are equal to those provided to federal male prisoners.