Bermuda’s prisons were put under the spotlight by a visiting team of international experts
Bermuda has wrapped up an international peer review of its correctional facilities – part of an independent check on conditions and rehabilitation.
At the request of Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Senator the Hon. Kim Wilkerson, Governor Andrew Murdoch invited a Detention Standards Review team to the island.
The delegation included senior corrections leaders from the UK – among them experience from HMP Belmarsh – along with the Cayman Islands and Turks and Caicos, led by Robert Harper from the UK Ministry of Justice.
Over ten days, from October 6th to 15th, the panel met with the Governor and Minister, toured Westgate and the Co-Ed Facility, and interviewed inmates, officers, leadership, the Treatment of Offenders Board, the Parole Board, and outside rehab partners.
They were granted unfettered access and assessed Bermuda’s prisons, using the UN’s Nelson Mandela Rules – the global baseline for the treatment of prisoners, with a strong focus on rehabilitation and reintegration.
Minister Wilkerson says government welcomes the team’s findings and is committed to urgent improvements, noting the UK has offered support to help implement recommendations.
