On 28 March 2025, Dutch newspaper Trouw published a front page article on systemic failures in medical care for detained women. That same day, Bureau Clara Wichmann presented a report to the Dutch State Secretary for Justice and Security describing how over 50 detained women had not been given adequate medical care, sometimes resulting in severe damage to their health, even death. Detainee testimonies reveal that medical complaints are often dismissed, access to specialised care is insufficient, and the process of dispensing medication is prone to errors. Additionally, gender-sensitive care is lacking, and the absence of continuity in medical treatment poses severe health risks. The issue was also discussed in many other media outlets, including on Radio 1 (NOS Met het Oog op Morgen – [NOS Met het Oog op Morgen - Beluister Met het Oog op Morgen 27-03-2025 | Podcasts | NPO Radio 1], minute 11.40).

BCW's advocacy to address these systemic failures is part of a broader effort – in collaboration with Loonstein Advocaten and De Brauw - to improve the situation for female detainees in the Netherlands. Our collaboration started in 2023 after Loonstein Advocaten, which represents several individual detainees, had received numerous reports from female detainees revealing sexual abuse, abuse of power and failures to provide adequate medical care. In June 2023, our pro bono team sent a liability notice to the Dutch State holding it accountable for enabling the conditions in which these abuses could occur. Since then, as a result of meetings with the government, in particular the Custodial institutions Agency (Dienst Justitiële Inrichtingen), many improvements have been implemented, but we will continue working on the case until a fully satisfactory outcome has been achieved.