Shackled at birth
Women are being forced to give birth in handcuffs, struggle to feed their new babies while they are shackled, and are made to labour with Corrections officers in the room. Michelle Duff investigates the reality for incarcerated pregnant women.
Slammed as unlawful, unethical and a legacy of colonisation, the practice of keeping prison mums handcuffed through labour and breast-feeding is still commonplace in New Zealand despite an Ombudsman report condemning it in 2004.
The woman’s handcuffs were removed for only a moment. In the final stages of labour, when the contractions were at their peak, she was allowed to have them taken off.
Straight after she had given birth, the prison officer shackled the woman again. She had her first shower with cold steel around her wrists. When a doctor asked that they be removed, the officer turned to them and said: ‘‘I don’t tell you how to do your job, so don’t tell me how to do mine.’’
Her midwife sought special permission for the woman to be unchained from the bed so she could have skin-to-skin contact with her newborn.
A Sunday Star-Times investigation has found that 17 years after an ombudsman’s report was highly critical of the practice – which lawyers say is both illegal and a human rights violation – the handcuffing of pregnant and labouring women prisoners has continued.
‘‘It’s the sort of thing that you would expect in a totalitarian regime, not in a civilised nation,’’ human rights lawyer Tony Ellis said.
‘‘The indignity of it is stunningly awful, it is degrading and humiliating, and it reflects a very unpleasant attitude on the behalf of the detainers.’’
Corrections policy states restraints are never allowed while a woman is in labour.
Yet multiple incidents are detailed in a 2019 report undertaken by the Office of the Children’s Commissioner into the Mothers with Babies Unit (MBU) at Auckland Region Women’s Corrections Facility, obtained by the Star-Times under the Official Information Act.
The report was facilitated by the Ombudsman’s office as part its role to uphold the United Nations Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other
Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (Opcat).
The births all took place off-site.
One woman who was handcuffed during labour and straight afterwards described the handcuffs as ‘‘big, sliding down by the baby’s head,’’ when she tried to breastfeed her newborn. Another broke down as she told inspectors how she asked to be handcuffed round her foot, so she could cuddle her baby. It had been a long labour at the hospital, and she could barely move. She was told it had to be her hand, and was asked which one she wanted.
One woman struggled to change her sanitary pad with handcuffs on. Another was made to shower with chains on and the door ajar. Several were forced to give birth with Corrections officers present and chatting among themselves in the room, including one woman who had four officers present. Another was placed in the back ‘‘cage’’ of a transport van while heavily pregnant, despite protesting
‘‘The practices exposed in these reports are both unlawful and unethical . . . The overwhelming majority of female prisoners have lived histories of trauma, and these practices serve to physically and psychologically re-traumatise women at their most vulnerable.’’
Khylee Quince Auckland University of Technology Dean of Law
about the danger to her and her baby.
The Children’s Commission gave these practices a red ‘‘detrimental’’ classification, the worst possible, saying they actively caused harm and were negligent. It recommended the urgent review and clarification of policies relating to pregnant, labouring and
post-natal prisoners.
But Star-Times inquiries have revealed the practice is still happening, with an inspection into Christchurch Women’s Prison’s MBU last year finding more evidence of pregnant and postnatal women being handcuffed. ‘‘The practice of handcuffing mothers in the late stages of pregnancy and soon after giving birth needs to be urgently addressed,’’ the commission again wrote.
One mother who was handcuffed in hospital over two days after giving birth described difficulty feeding her baby without help from a nurse. She was told this was because there were not enough staff members to monitor her.
Māori women make up almost 65 per cent of women in prison. Around a dozen babies are born to women in the specialised mother and baby units each year.
But entry to these units, which allows women to keep their babies with them for up to two years, is limited. The number of women who gave birth in the prison population overall was not centrally counted.
Corrections says it has to manage the wellbeing of women with ‘‘safety and security’’ risks to the community, and is committed to ensuring positive birth experiences.
‘‘I have no doubt that staff were trying hard to manage each situation to take into account the woman’s particular needs and risks alongside the wellbeing of the child,’’ Corrections National Commissioner Rachel Leota said in a statement.
‘‘However, we accept that we can do more to provide better outcomes for these women and their children.’’ Policies regarding the use of restraints and women during pregnancy and post-natally are currently under review, she says.
But human rights advocates say this has been promised for years, and that the practice needs to stop immediately. Amnesty International and the Sir Peter Williams QC Penal Reform League are among those questioning why Corrections is not being held accountable by those responsible for preventing torture in prisons.
‘‘If the systems that the Government and the minister have set up to have oversight aren’t working, then information like this needs to be made publicly available so we can hold those accountable who have the power to stop it,’’ said Amnesty International executive director Meg de Ronde.
The use of restraints in labour was ‘‘cruel, inhumane and degrading’’ along with any routine restraints used on pregnant women. ‘‘It’s horrific and really doesn’t have any justification in terms of security.’’
College of Midwives chief executive Alison Eddy said the college had met with Corrections and made a submission on its policies in July 2019, and was told this week it was still a ‘‘work in progress’’ because of staff shortages and more urgent work.
In 2020, the European Court of Human Rights found there was no justification for shackling pregnant women or those undertaking gynaecological examinations.
Studies have found giving birth in handcuffs is a ‘‘devastating emotional experience’’, and a serious risk to mother and baby. The American Psychological Association says most women prisoners aren’t violent, and there is little chance of escape while pregnant or giving birth. Being handcuffed does bring a higher risk of falls, misdiagnosis, difficulty bonding with the baby and postnatal mental illness.
Corrections’ Prison Operations Manual states restraints are not to be used on labouring women in any circumstances. Pregnant women must be ‘‘managed in a sensitive manner that takes into account their particular needs and risks while optimising the wellbeing of the child.’’
It does allow restraints on pregnant women: ‘‘Staff are not to be present during intimate examinations relating to birth (including obstetric, gynaecological, antenatal and postnatal) and additional risk can be minimised with long chain mechanical restraints.’’
Children’s Commissioner inspectors found prison officers had varying interpretations of when prisoners were ‘‘pregnant’’ or ‘‘giving birth’’.
Corrections did its own review and found no breaches of its manual.
Auckland University of Technology Dean of Law Khylee Quince said she disagreed, and it was a breach of the manual, as well as the Bill of Rights Act, the Crimes Against Torture Act, and the Treaty of Waitangi.
‘‘The practices exposed in these reports are both unlawful and unethical, and are distressing to read. The overwhelming majority of female prisoners have lived histories of trauma, and these practices serve to physically and psychologically re-traumatise women at their most vulnerable.
‘‘In addition, Māori women are imprisoned at hugely disproportionate rates, so it stands to reason that many of the women giving birth in our prisons will be wāhine Māori.’’
Ngā Maia Māori Midwives Aotearoa chief executive Jean te Huia said the practice was an insult to their mana. ‘‘I feel an awful, awful heaviness in my heart that we as Māori are subjected to this,’’ she said.
‘‘This kind of unjust behaviour is a legacy of colonisation, and it has been ongoing against Māori birthing women and their whānau for a long time.’’
She questioned why her organisation was not approached by Corrections to work on any maternity policy alongside the College of Midwives. ‘‘As Mā ori, we need to be making these decisions.’’
Lady Heeni Phillips-Williams, a criminal barrister and the copresident of the Sir Peter Williams QC Penal Reform League, said the report highlighted issues with a lack of trained and empathetic staff.
She recalls the Ombudsman report condemning the practice in 2004. ‘‘That was then, and this abhorrent practice is still going on. Does it have to be taken to the High Court to clarify the law?
‘‘It sounds like these policies are designed by men.’’
Overall, the Opcat reports found babies in the units were safe, and living in environments where they could be supported by their mothers.
But treatment had deteriorated since 2016, especially related to the use of restraints. Corrections staff were overriding advice from doctors and midwives.
It found some mothers and babies who had not been allowed out of their rooms for two weeks, and alarming staff behaviour.
One mother described a Corrections officer demanding she sit up and feed her baby, when the officer found her breastfeeding lying down. The officer said: ‘‘Sit up and do that properly and don’t be so lazy, that is f...ing disgusting.’’
The Christchurch report found pregnant prisoners in the main units needed to be treated more humanely. One mother suffered bruising after being handcuffed for five hours while attending an appointment off-site. Another was handcuffed during an ultrasound scan. Women also spoke of being hungry while pregnant and not getting enough food, while one was given Panadol for hunger pains.
Another mother had her baby removed after giving birth and had to return to prison alone. She was placed in isolation, a decision the prison said it made based on her mental health.
The Opcat reports are not public. The Star-Times tried to obtain them from the Children’s Commissioner in January 2019 under the Official Information Act, a request that was declined.
New Assistant Māori Commissioner for Children Glenis Philip-Barbara, who has been in the job six months, said she was ‘‘horrified’’ by the report.
‘‘I couldn’t imagine what it would be like to be handcuffed while heavily pregnant or in labour and being robbed of those moments after having a baby, the most powerful moments of a woman’s life,’’ she said. ‘‘This is totally unacceptable, and we’ve told Corrections this.
‘‘Disturbingly, we found women who were afraid to speak out about this degrading treatment for fear of being punished or losing their babies.’’
Philip-Barbara said she advocated community-based mum and baby centres outside of prison walls, but this was a long way off.
‘‘I struggle with the fact that this is a reality of our country right now, and all we can ask is for Corrections to urgently adopt Hōkai Rangi. A strategy focused on wellbeing would not see this happening.’’
She is reviewing why the reports are not publicly released, including the initial decline of the Star-Times’ request for the reports. ‘‘We believe that they should be made available publicly in the interests of transparency.’’
Ombudsman Peter Boshier said he had not had the concerns in the reports raised with him. He said he saw them only after questions were asked by the Star-Times.
He was ‘‘very disappointed’’ to find the practice may be recurring, and was considering next steps.
Leota said the department was committed to ensuring positive birth experiences for women that maintain the wellbeing of them and their baby, ‘‘while also balancing the need to consider any risk to safety or security’’.
Women are escorted to hospital by female staff only, and staff are not present in the delivery room ‘‘unless there are security concerns or concerns regarding the women’s behaviour’’ or the woman or a staff member had requested they stay, Leota said.
‘‘As we have acknowledged recently, our policies for managing women in prison are fundamentally based on how we manage men in prison.’’
Corrections had introduced a new kaupapa Māori support service, initiated ongoing training for staff in the MBU, and begun developing individual care plans for pregnant and postnatal women as part of changes made as a result of the reviews, Leota’s statement said.
Corrections Minister Kelvin Davis was not available for an interview.
‘‘I feel an awful, awful heaviness in my heart that we as Māori are subjected to this. This kind of unjust behaviour is a legacy of colonisation, and it has been ongoing against Māori birthing women and their whānau for a long time.’’
Jean te Huia Ngā Maia Māori Midwives Aotearoa chief executive