Decrimalisation of Poverty and Status
Around the world, including within the Commonwealth, individuals experiencing poverty are disproportionately represented in criminal justice systems, as a direct result of laws, policies and practices that criminalise and punish poverty and status.
The Institute of Commonwealth Studies has launched a decriminalisation project aiming to address these issues through events, research and publications as part of the global campaign.
Project Outputs
Commonwealth Law Conference 2025
On 8 April 2025, the Institute of Commonwealth Studies and its partners, the Commonwealth Secretariat, the International Commission of Jurists, and the Global Campaign to Decriminalise Poverty and Status presented the newly launched Practitioners’ Guide on the Decriminalisation of Poverty and Status in the Commonwealth to Commonwealth Lawyers.
The presentation took place at the biennial Commonwealth Law Conference 2025 held in Malta between 6 and 10 April. The Conference was organised by Institute partners, the Commonwealth Lawyers Association and was attended by approximately 500 participants from all over the world.
The panel discussed the history behind the Practitioners’ Guide, the global challenge of decriminalisation in the Caribbean and across the Commonwealth and future plans, including the upcoming tabling for endorsement of the Guide by Commonwealth Law Ministers and its implementation across the Commonwealth. The Institute’s briefing paper on the decriminalisation of poverty and status focussed on Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, was also discussed.
The panel was made up of:
- Chair: Professor Kingsley Abbott, Director of the Institute of Commonwealth Studies
- Panellists: Dr Olivia Lwabukuna, Senior Lecturer, International Human Rights, Institute of Commonwealth Studies
- Dr Cherisse Francis, Senior Lecturer (Law) at St. Mary's University and Fellow at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies
- Nancy Kanyago, Legal Advisor, Rule of Law Section, Commonwealth Secretariat
CHOGM 2024
Photo (L-R): Melusi Simelane, Judge Tuiloma Neroni Slade, Prof Kingsley Abbott, Maud Sarliève, Dr Cherisse Francis, Jeshua Bardoo, Louise Ehlers, Kaeden Watts, Justice Aruna Devi Narain and Daron Tan.
The Institute of Commonwealth Studies sent a delegation of 12 experts from across global civil society and justice sectors to lead and support several events at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), which took place in Apia, Samoa from 21-26 October 2024.
The Institute, alongside partners the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) and the Commonwealth Secretariat, organised a side event at CHOGM entitled: 'Decriminalising Poverty and Status: Breaking chains and building resilient societies across the Commonwealth'
The Institute was also involved in the Commonwealth People’s Forum side event at CHOGM 2024 entitled 'Decriminalise! A human rights-based approach to criminal law in the modern Commonwealth' which facilitated a more civil society-focussed conversation about what a human rights based approach to criminal law in the modern Commonwealth looks like, including with respect to the decriminalisation of freedom of expression.
A human rights-based approach to criminal law: Asia and Caribbean regional consultation
On 9 and 10 September 2024, the Institute of Commonwealth Studies (ICwS) and its partners, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) and the Commonwealth Secretariat (ComSec), held an Asia and Caribbean regional consultation on a human rights-based approach to criminal law with stakeholders in Bangkok, Thailand focussed on the decriminalisation of poverty and status.
Over 30 participants joined the event, including representatives of civil society, UN agencies and current and former members of the judiciary. Nearly 20 countries were represented including from Bangladesh, Colombia, Hong Kong, India, Jamaica, Malaysia, Nepal, Pakistan, Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Thailand, Trinadad and Tobago, and Myanmar. For further details, see our news post here.
A human rights-based approach to criminal law: Africa regional consultation
On 5 and 6 June 2024, the Institute of Commonwealth Studies (ICwS) and its partners, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) and the Commonwealth Secretariat (ComSec), held an Africa regional consultation on a human rights-based approach to criminal law with stakeholders in Nairobi, Kenya.
The consultation took place as part of a joint project to produce a Practitioner’s Guide on a human rights-based approach to criminal law, including on ways to further the decriminalisation of poverty, homelessness and status.
The Guide will be launched at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in October 2024 and will serve as a reference and guide to justice sector actors and others – such legislatures, government officials, policy-makers, national human rights institutions, oversight bodies, victims’ groups, human rights advocates, civil society organizations and academics. The Guide will offer a clear, accessible and operational legal framework and practical legal guidance. For further details, see our news post here.
Commonwealth Law Ministers Meeting 2024
On 7 March 2024, the Institute of Commonwealth Studies (ICwS) presented its joint project on the decriminalisation of poverty and status to the 2024 Commonwealth Law Ministers Meeting in Zanzibar, United Republic of Tanzania.
The project is being implemented together with the Commonwealth Secretariat and the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ).
Co-presenting on the project was Supreme Court Justice of Mauritius and ICJ Commissioner, Justice Aruna Devi Narain who described the global challenge and introduced the ICJ’s publication, The 8 March Principles, on a Human Rights-Based Approach to Criminal Law. For further details, see our news post here.
Practitioner's Guide
The Institute and its partners, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) and the Commonwealth Secretariat, launched a new Practitioner’s Guide on the decriminalisation of poverty and status entitled: 'Practitioners' Guide on the Decriminalisation of Poverty and Status'
New report on the decriminalisation of poverty and status
The Institute also published a new report on the decriminalisation of poverty and status focussed on Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, as part of the global campaign: 'Discrimination and Subjugation: Laws Criminalising and Penalising Poverty and Status in Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka' written by ICwS Associate Research Fellow Daron Tan. The paper was officially launched at a side event at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) Samoa 2024.
