Menstrual Hygiene and Dignity, Ensuring Health and Well-being for Women Prisoners
The right to manage menstrual hygiene with dignity is a fundamental human right for women and girls worldwide. However, for incarcerated women, maintaining menstrual hygiene remains a significant challenge. Despite the UN Bangkok Rules (Rule 5), which mandate that prison authorities provide facilities and materials to meet women’s gender-specific needs, the lack of adequate infrastructure and access to sanitary products continues to affect women prisoners across Pakistan.
To address this gap, the Committee for the Welfare of Prisoners (CWP), in collaboration with Santex (Butterfly Pakistan), has taken proactive steps to promote menstrual health awareness and access to hygiene products within women’s prisons. Since 2021, CWP has organized annual menstrual hygiene awareness sessions in Women’s Prisons across Karachi, Hyderabad, Sukkur, and Larkana, educating inmates on safe and hygienic practices.
In addition to these educational efforts, CWP has facilitated the distribution of over 1,500 sanitary napkins across the Women’s Prisons in Karachi, Hyderabad, and Sukkur, ensuring women have consistent access to essential hygiene supplies every two months.
Through these sustained interventions, CWP continues to advance dignity, health, and gender equity for women behind bars, transforming prisons into spaces that recognize and respond to the unique needs of women prisoners with compassion and care.
