her child for two weeks, after which the DSWD took the child. Breastfeeding
areas are likewise not available in the facilities visited. Constrained for
spaces, most detention facilities allocate space for visiting areas rather than
for breastfeeding. Such is the case in the newly constructed Makati City
female dormitory; however, its warden has expressed interest in finding
ways to provide a breastfeeding area for the women inmates.
In light of the responses from the FGDs, it must be emphasized that both
the Bangkok and Mandela Rules stipulate access to health services even
during detention. The Mandela Rules stress that the provision of health
care is a state responsibility and that prisoners should enjoy the same
standards of health care available in the community, free of charge and
without discrimination (Rule 24). Both Rules accord special attention to the
medical needs of pregnant women, indicate the provision of pre-natal and
post-natal care and treatment, and advocate for birth outside prison. They
both provide that allowing children to stay with the parent in prison shall be
based on the best interest of the child concerned (Rule 28).
Gender-Based Interests of WDL
Detention places women in a vulnerable position, to the detriment of their
interests and well-being. In particular, imprisonment gravely exposes
women to various forms of violence and weakens their family ties, as they
struggle to seek justice. This section covers issues that are of strategic
interest to women. Addressing these issues also brings attention to
the core inequalities that women deprived of liberty experience such
as those pertaining to violence, women’s traditional gender roles, and
access to justice, including control over their court cases. These themes
also correspond to specific standards in both the Mandela and Bangkok
Rules, with the latter specifically referring to the burden of women in their
traditional role as carer and the need to address this burden even as the
woman is deprived of liberty and separated from her family.
Security and Freedom from Violence
Freedom from violence is a right, and such right is not diminished while
in detention. Infliction of physical or psychological pain or suffering and/
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