Which international framework calls for limits on solitary confinement?

Which international framework calls for limits on solitary confinement?

• A. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
• B. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
• C. The UN Mandela Rules.
• D. The Geneva Conventions.

Answer: (C)

Limits on solitary confinement are addressed directly by a UN framework that sets humane treatment standards and specific duration caps for confinement in isolation. The UN Mandela Rules—the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, updated in 2015—specifically limit the use of solitary confinement, require it to be used only as a last resort, and cap the duration of isolation, with safeguards, regular reviews, and access to medical care, legal assistance, and family contact. Other international instruments establish broad rights or protections in wartime but do not provide the explicit, implementable limits on isolation that the Mandela Rules do, making them the framework that calls for limits on solitary confinement.

Limits on solitary confinement are addressed directly by a UN framework that sets humane treatment standards and specific duration caps for confinement in isolation. The UN Mandela Rules—the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, updated in 2015—specifically limit the use of solitary confinement, require it to be used only as a last resort, and cap the duration of isolation, with safeguards, regular reviews, and access to medical care, legal assistance, and family contact. Other international instruments establish broad rights or protections in wartime but do not provide the explicit, implementable limits on isolation that the Mandela Rules do, making them the framework that calls for limits on solitary confinement.