From the 25th to the 29th of May, APT closed a productive and inspiring week in Praia, Cape Verde, working alongside the National Preventive Mechanism (NPM) and the National Commission on Human Rights and Citizenship to bring greater visibility to the conditions of women deprived of liberty and strengthen independent oversight of places of deprivation of liberty.
Through a roundtable on the Global Report on Women in Prison, APT and national partners created space for dialogue, reflection, and action on how to better protect the rights of women in custody. APT representatives also engaged with justice sector actors, the Ombudsman, and civil society organizations to explore concrete ways to reinforce the NPM’s mandate and resources. Discussions focused on advancing the implementation of NPM recommendations, promoting the Méndez Principles on effective interviewing, and strengthening safeguards to protect women in places of deprivation of liberty in the country.
Capacity-building was central to the mission. Together with its partners, APT supported NPM members in strengthening their knowledge and skills to monitor places of deprivation of liberty through a gender-sensitive lens - an essential step to ensure that oversight mechanisms fully capture the lived realities of women in detention. This commitment was put into practice during a monitoring visit to the Cadeia Central da Praia, where the NPM assessed conditions of detention for women firsthand.
APT extends its sincere gratitude to the NPM of Cape Verde and the National Commission on Human Rights and Citizenship for their strong collaboration throughout the week. We reaffirm our commitment to promoting human rights in Cape Verde and strengthening oversight as an essential tool for preventing torture.
