Sex, Sexual Violence and Coercion in Men's Prisons

Many correctional administrations have displayed extreme reluctance to acknowledge that sex takes place inside their prisons. In many countries sex in prison is a punishable crime. In some, this is intertwined with an outlawing of homosexual activity in general. Yet sex and sexual violence are generally understood to be common practice behind prison walls. Available material on South African men's prisons confirms that sexual activity certainly takes place but there is little clarity on its nature and extent.1 While sex is not directly outlawed in South African prisons, and the Department of Correctional Services has gone as far as to provide in policy for prisoners to have access to condoms, the subject still represents something of an 'uncomfortable truth' around which there is little real understanding or engagement.