Sénégal : l'emprisonnement des femmes, de l'époque coloniale à nos jours

Abstract

Women experienced a major aggravation of their status as punished criminals when the prison System was established in colonial Senegal. Carceral policies neglected women as a left-over category. Whereas women detainees bore the same hardships as men - dilapidated jails, lack of clothing and basic hygiène - their triple marginality as women, prisoners, and natives meant that they experienced specific difficulties. Only late in the colonial period were incarcerated women separated from men and assigned female guards. Before that time they suffered from promiscuity and sexual abuses both from maie detainees and guards. Contrary to men' s labor, their hard work in prison - such as housekeeping, cooking, cleaning - was usually not retributed. Only recently has the difficult heritage of Senegal' s colonial jails begun to change for incarcerated women.