Mujeres extranjeras en prisiones españolas : el caso andaluz

The Spanish penal system has undergone deep changes since the 1980’s. Important aspects of this process have been both the notable increase in the female prison population —Spain now has the highest number of female prisoners in Europe— and the presence of foreigners, highlighting the progressive increase in women immigrants from a variety of countries. This paper shows the sociological profile of imprisoned women for Spain in general, and Andalusia in particular; establishes their criminal profile, and analyses prison life from a perspective which recognises the specificity of gender and nationality. We have centred our field work on the prisons of Huelva, Algeciras (Cadiz) and Alhaurin de la Torre (Malaga). We carried out in-depth interviews with professionals and foreign female inmates. With this in mind, we highlight the relevance of the field work carried out, held inside the prisons, in women’s units.