Nelson Mandela International Day

The treatment of prisoners matters . It matters because it impacts all of us – but above all it matters because prisoners are human beings . On Nelson Mandela International Day , join the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime to call for the universal practical application of the Nelson Mandela Rules – because prisoners matter. Take part in the campaign!

The Nelson Mandela Rules: Five facts. 1955 - First United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime & the Treatment of Offenders. The Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (PDF ), originally adopted by the First UN Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders in 1955, constitute the universally acknowledged minimum standards for the management of prison facilities and the treatment of prisoners, and have been of tremendous value and influence in the development of prison laws, policies and practices in Member States all over the world. 2011 - Open-ended Intergovernmental Expert Group. In recognition of the advances in international law and correctional science since 1955, however, the General Assembly decided, in 2011, to establish an open-ended intergovernmental Expert Group to review and possibly revise the rules. Relevant UN bodies, other international and regional organisations, as well as civil society were invited to contribute to ...