By Lauren Crothers
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia
As Cambodia prepares to release a group of women and their children from prison to mark International Women’s Day, a leading rights group called on Monday for the government to cut the number of children behind bars.
Welcoming the decision to set free 15 women incarcerated with their children, as well as one pregnant prisoner, the president of Licadho, Pung Chhiv Kek, called on the government to tackle the “underlying problems that will continue to negatively affect imprisoned women and their families in the future.”
In a statement, the group called for guidelines on imprisoning children alongside their mothers. In Cambodia, children up to the age of three are kept in prison with their mothers.
Prior to 2011, children could stay in prison up to the age of six.
Reports by Licadho have found children in prison exposed to violence and abuse, as well as a lack of fresh air.
Another issue highlighted is the frequency Cambodian judges mete out pre-trial detention orders rather than granting bail.
“Decisions to order pre-trial detention should be the exception, not the rule, and should always take family circumstances into consideration,” Licadho said in its statement. “Custodial sentences should also only be considered when the offence is serious and should take into account the best interests of the child.”
According to Licadho, the majority of women in prison with their children were convicted of relatively minor offenses. Figures compiled in 2013 show that 61 out of 67 mothers in prison were there for drug-related crimes.
The most recent figures show there are 39 children incarcerated with a parent in 18 of the prisons monitored by Licadho. The children were aged between two months and four years, despite the upper age being over the legal limit for imprisoned children.
Officials at the General Department of Prisons could not be reached on Monday.
