Mothers in Cameroonian Prisons
Pregnancy, Childbearing and Caring for Young Children
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 2137779 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Helen Namondo Linonge-Fontebo (0000-0003-3604-8236, University of South Africa, corresponding author), Marlize Rabe (0000-0002-0019-5368, University of South Africa, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2015 |
| Volume | 74 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 290-309 |
| Publication date | 2015-09-02 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | African Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0002-0184 • E-ISSN: 1469-2872 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/00020184.2015.1068000 |
| OpenAlex | W2289375010 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 8 |
| References cited | 16 |
According to the Cameroonian Penal Code, pregnant women, nursing mothers and children may not be admitted to prison and, by implication, there are no facilities to cater for these vulnerable categories of prisoners. Yet pregnant women are arrested occasionally and they deliver children in prison and some women are sentenced as nursing mothers. There is an implicit belief and practice that women are the primary caretakers of children – hence their imprisonment impacts on children both inside and outside of prison. This article first discusses the discrepancies between policy and practice regarding female inmates and their children in the Cameroonian penitentiary system. It then goes on to show how pregnancies, deliveries and being a mother are dealt with by female prisoners, given the constraints under which they are living. The research is based on observations and interviews at six out of 73 prisons in Cameroon. The data for this article is based on qualitative analysis of the narratives of 13 female inmates, who have experienced motherhood in prison, interviews with five prison staff members and two NGO representatives working in close collaboration with these inmates. The study was approached with standpoint feminist theory as a point of departure
Criminology · Developmental psychology · Imprisonment · Narrative · Prison · Psychiatry · Qualitative research · Sociology · African Sexualities and LGBTQ+ Issues · Criminal Justice and Corrections Analysis · Feminism, Gender, and Sexuality Studies · Gender Studies · Medicine · Nursing · Psychology
Human condition of children living with incarcerated mothers in Türkiye
Lived Experiences of Incarcerated Mothers
Adolescent Psychological Well-Being
Exploring the Ties of Incarcerated Fathers with Their Families and Communities in the Western Cape—The Perspectives of Care Professionals
A rapid review of the evidence on models of service delivery for correctional centre-based mothers and children’s units
‘Mankind owes to the child the best that it has to give’
Forgotten voices
The Experience of Incarcerated Mothers Living in a Correctional Institution with their Children in Ethiopia
Social Research Methods
Women, criminality and multifocal empowerment responses
Criminology and Criminal Justice
Qualitative Researching
The Female Offender
Women in the criminal justice system
Patriarchy, Crime, and Justice
The Language Situation in Cameroon
Health needs of prisoners in England and Wales
Imprisoned Mothers in South African Prisons with Children Outside of the Institution
The merits and demerits of the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child
Years of Feminist Empiricism and Standpoint Theory
Feminist Standpoint as Postmodern Strategy
Improving Pregnancy Outcome during Imprisonment
Women Prisoners and Women Penal Officials 1840–1921
The practice of social research
| Citations per year | 1.14 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2019 - 2026 (8) |
| Highly cited | No |