Finland to have only one open prison for women by year’s end, raising safety concerns

Finland will soon have just one open prison for women after Kestilä prison in northern Finland is converted into a men’s facility, a move experts warn could compromise safety and rehabilitation. The decision has drawn criticism from equality officials, who demand a new assessment of women’s imprisonment conditions.

The Criminal Sanctions Agency (Rise) will consolidate all female inmates into a single open prison in Hämeenlinna by the end of the year, reducing the current two facilities to one. The remaining prison will have around 80 places, up from the current 57, following the closure of Kestilä prison in Siikalatva, which will switch to housing male inmates.

Kaisa Tammi, who led a 2020 government-commissioned review of women’s imprisonment for Rise, warned that centralising female inmates risks undermining both their safety and that of prison staff. Women in prison often have complex trauma histories, she noted, making crowded communal living particularly challenging.

“If conflicts arise among inmates, staff workloads multiply, and they may feel the situation is completely out of control,” Tammi told national broadcaster Yle. Her original report had recommended maintaining at least two separate open prisons for women, with single-occupancy cells where possible, to better support rehabilitation and account for inmates’ regional ties.

The Ministry of Justice defended the decision, citing a shortage of places for male prisoners and low occupancy at Kestilä, where only 54% of spaces are currently filled—far below the 99% average across Finland’s open prisons. “The increase in male inmates has been sharper, so their need for places is more urgent,” a ministry spokesperson said in an email to Yle.

Equality Ombudsman Mia Spolander condemned the move as discriminatory, noting Finland’s constitution and prison laws prohibit gender-based disparities without justification. With women making up just 300 of Finland’s roughly 3,800 inmates, she argued that systemic changes disproportionately affect them. Spolander called for a new national review of women’s imprisonment, stating that conditions have shifted significantly since the last assessment in 2020.

The shift follows years of overcrowding in Finnish prisons, including reports of inmates housed in improvised spaces like sauna changing rooms. While authorities pledged to maintain gender-specific rehabilitation programs, critics fear the consolidation will further marginalise female inmates’ needs.