ABSTRACT
Those are the extremes of prison inspection. At the highest level, the independent monitoring of places of custody is mandated under international law, as an essential safeguard for the human rights and proper treatment of those the state holds in custody. It can point up or seek to prevent abuse, or signal the need for fundamental systemic change. But prisons are total institutions,* and at a much more mundane level, inspection can serve to ameliorate some of the dehumanising effects of imprisonment on lives whose every movement and choice is controlled: access to clean and decent clothing, showers, phones - and even greenery.
