An Aboriginal prisoner in Queensland was restrained with shackles on a hospital bed as she went into labour last weekend, according to the advocacy group Sisters Inside. Its chief executive, Debbie Kilroy, told Guardian Australia that the woman gave birth to a premature baby by caesarean section and had been restrained on and off throughout her time in hospital.
Kilroy said hospital staff had contacted the group after failing to persuade prison officers to remove the restraints. Queensland Corrective Services said the incident would be reviewed internally and that restraints should be used on pregnant prisoners only as a last resort to protect public safety. The case came days before Labor and the Coalition blocked a bill that would have banned the shackling of incarcerated women during childbirth.
Source: The Guardian Australia
