Kenyan Conference on Human Rights and Criminal Justice Reform

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OVERVIEW

Pan Africa CURE, a “continental chapter of International CURE”, will be hosting the 9th International Citizens United for Rehabilitation of Errants (CURE) Conference on Human Rights and Criminal Justice Reform from May 1st to May 5th in Nairobi, Kenya where 28 countries will be represented.

Highlighting imprisonment issues affecting Kenyan correctional facilities, the conference will be exploring how criminal justice system reform can align with the 17 United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals, a key feature of the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The main purpose of the conference will be to learn, share and support grassroots efforts of other countries, with a panel discussion focused on “rehabilitation through communications, arts and sports”.

The agenda for the interactive conference is structured to have multiple panels for participants to discuss their experiences and unpack the conference’s theme, and opportunities for open mic where participants can discuss any criminal justice issue. Justice Action will chair a panel on May 2nd to discuss “Empowerment of the Incarcerated”. Additionally, there is a prison tour on May 4th for participants to gain first-hand insight into Kenyan prisons and engage in conversations with prison inmates and staff. Here is the formal agenda. If you are interested in participating in the conference, you can email coordinator@panafricacure.org for contact.

ABOUT CURE

Founded in 1972 by Charles and Pauline Sullivan in Texas in the United States of America (USA), the CURE describes itself as “a grassroots organisation dedicated to the reduction of crime through the reform of the criminal justice system, especially prison reform”.

Their work on the frontline focuses on advocating for incarcerated populations, asserting prisons to only be used for those who should be incarcerated and pushing for prisoners’ access to opportunities and resources that will facilitate rehabilitation. Moreover, their efforts are also concerned with prison alternatives as a way to “reduce prison and jail costs, hold people accountable for their crimes, and without compromising public safety, to help former offenders successfully reintegrate into the community”.

Since 2001, CURE has also organised international conferences on human rights and criminal justice reform to advance research efforts and facilitate communications between nations by learning and sharing globally. These international conferences have been located in numerous countries with different themes to set the aims of each conference. They had their first conference in New York City, USA in 2001, and the conferences that followed were in Washington D.C., USA in 2006; Geneva, Switzerland twice (the second was in 2009); Abuja, Nigeria in 2011; Bangkok, Thailand in 2014; San Jose, Costa Rica in 2017; and Rwanda in 2018.

For more details about past conferences and CURE’s history, you can check out the CURE AND PRISON REFORM article, which is accessible on National CURE’s homepage.

You can visit their websites at internationalcure.org and curenational.org for further information about CURE and their work.