OHCHR has received annual permission from the General Department of Prisons (GDP) of the Ministry of Interior (MoI) to conduct both summary and comprehensive visits to all 29 prisons and correctional centres across the country. OHCHR has developed its own monitoring tools. After each visit, OHCHR shows its findings and recommendations to both local prison management and the GDP’s and MoI’s leaders. The reporting and the independent and objective assessment are confidential and are welcomed by those leaders. As the result, there is a real improvement on general prison condition and the treatment of prisoners, especially the proper treatment of prisoners (including special focus on female and juvenile prisoners) with the sense of humanity and dignity, access to health services, safe water and sanitation, rehabilitation opportunities and emergency humanitarian needs. This model has been replicated by other organizations as well, and both the prison management and those organisations also acknowledge the existence of the real improvement.
OHCHR also joins with the Sub-committee on Prevention of Torture (SPT) and the former National Preventive Mechanism Cambodia (the Government’s inter-ministerial committee) in conducting unannounced visits to other places of deprivation of liberty such as military prison and police stations and so on. The last visits paid by SPT were organized in 2013.
To continue increasing the synergy and the replication of such important work, OHCHR’s PRSP has facilitated other local NGOs to get access to prisons.