Victoria To Review Prison Placement Policy

Victoria’s Corrections Minister Enver Erdogan has asked Corrections Victoria to strengthen protections for female inmates when determining the placement of transgender prisoners — a move that Women’s Rights Network Australia (WRNA) has long called for.

The Australian has reported that Minister Erdogan disclosed his request for a policy update during parliamentary question time:

"I do expect Corrections Victoria to make these decisions very carefully, but as I have said previously, I will not be interfering in that decision-making because Corrections Victoria implement the policies that we do set. I can confirm that I have asked Corrections Victoria to update their policies to ensure that the safety and wellbeing of the wider women’s prison population is a stronger consideration in placements. That also means a stronger consideration of the nature of the past offending. I think that is a relevant consideration, and it should be given greater weight in these decisions. "

Minister Erdogan also said that the policy would be updated, "in a matter of weeks, not months or years."

WRNA’s Call for Action

Last month, WRNA sent a letter to Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan objecting to the placement of yet another biological male in a women’s correctional facility - this time, a man convicted of sexually abusing his five-year-old daughter.

A WRNA spokesperson has welcomed Minister Erdogan's recognition of these risks and urged the Victorian government “to ensure that female prisoners are never again forced to share accommodation with male offenders.”

The Current Policy

Corrections Victoria’s current guidelines, Management of prisoners who are Trans, Gender Diverse or Intersex operate under the 'guiding principle that:

“A person should be imprisoned in the prison of their gender rather than their sex assigned or assumed at birth.”

A Growing National Shift?

Victoria’s review comes after Northern Territory, Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro  announced that biological males will be banned from women’s prisons in the NT.

South Australia's Government is also facing pressure after a former female prisoner reported being sexually assaulted by her male cellmate at Port Augusta Women’s Prison in 2019.

Women’s Rights Network Australia calls on all Australian jurisdictions to keep prisons single sex.

Take Action

If you support the safety of women in custody, contact Victoria’s leaders to share your concerns.

• Corrections Victoria — corrections@justice.vic.gov.au

• Premier Jacinta Allan — jacinta.allan@parliament.vic.gov.au

• Minister Enver Erdogan — minister.erdogan@justice.vic.gov.au