Books by Julie DE DARDEL
« Le 10 mai 2001, ils m’ont transféré en avion militaire à la nouvelle prison de Valledupar. On s... more « Le 10 mai 2001, ils m’ont transféré en avion militaire à la nouvelle prison de Valledupar. On savait bien que là-bas c’était le régime yankee. Ils m’ont tout pris, ils m’ont donné un uniforme […] et ils m’ont rasé la tête. Les gardiens étaient très jeunes, ils nous ont traités de façon totalement inhumaine. On n’avait jamais connu ça auparavant […]. Rapidement, les détenus ont lancé un mouvement de protestation, au sujet du droit de visite. La réponse a été brutale. Une répression à feu et à sang, à coups de matraque et de gaz lacrymogène. »
Le témoignage de ce prisonnier reflète le virage opéré au sein du système carcéral colombien suite à une réforme inspirée par le modèle de prison de sécurité maximale américain. Réalisées dans le cadre des accords du « Plan Colombie » – le vaste programme anti-drogue et antiguérilla de Washington dans ce pays – les
transformations du système carcéral colombien sont révélatrices de la manière dont le « tournant punitif » initié aux États-Unis s’exporte au niveau international.
Cet ouvrage repose sur un riche matériel ethnographique, recueilli au cours d’une enquête de terrain en Colombie et aux États-Unis. L’étude est basée sur des observations dans les prisons colombiennes et sur des interviews approfondies avec des prisonniers, des membres de leurs familles, des gardiens, des représentants des autorités carcérales, des activistes des droits humains, ainsi que des architectes et entrepreneurs de l’industrie carcérale américaine. Les nouvelles prisons colombiennes y sont décrites comme un espace de dépossession et de contrôle sans précédent, mais également comme un lieu de résistances multiformes de la part de la communauté des prisonniers.
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Papers by Julie DE DARDEL
Critica Penal Y Poder, Mar 27, 2015
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Crítica Penal y Poder, 2015
This paper addresses the individual and collective agency of the prisoners within the Colombian p... more This paper addresses the individual and collective agency of the prisoners within the Colombian prison system. From the early 2000s onwards, the Colombian authorities with the full support of the Federal Bureau of Prisons of the United States undertook a reform of the prison system, termed New Prison Culture, a policy that was carried out within the framework of Plan Colombia, the seven billion dollar US antinarcotics and counter-insurgency programme for the country. The advent of the New Prison Culture reaffirmed the unprecedented tightening of the screws in relation to criminal law and repressive practices that Colombia started in the middle of the 1990s. In a similar fashion to most policy transfer processes, the local characteristics of the receiver region play a key role in understanding how an outside model is implemented in a new setting. This paper asserts that the US prison model entered into conflict with the embedded practices and representations of the old prison culture...
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Political Geography, 2021
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In the context of the US anti-narcotic program, ‘Plan Colombia’, during the first decade of the 2... more In the context of the US anti-narcotic program, ‘Plan Colombia’, during the first decade of the 21st century, special agents of the US Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) took position in the heart of the Colombian penitentiary administration. Their task was to lead a profound reform of the sector, based on the US ultra-punitive penal regime and its ‘supermax’ housing units. Based on extensive fieldwork with prison architects, inmates and other actors in the penal systems of the US and Colombia, this paper analyzes how the reform was set up on the ground, shedding light on the partially divergent interests and expectations of both governments within the neocolonial context of ‘Plan Colombia’. We show how, on the one hand, the reform partially succeeded in militarizing carceral life and deurbanizing the prison system, spatially isolating inmates from their social and family environment. On the other hand, we show that the reform eventually failed, for institutional and political reasons,...
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Journal of Latin American Studies
Within the neocolonial context of ‘Plan Colombia’ in the early 2000s, agents of the US Federal Bu... more Within the neocolonial context of ‘Plan Colombia’ in the early 2000s, agents of the US Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) took up position in the heart of the Colombian penitentiary administration to lead a reform based on the United States’ ultra-punitive penal regime. This paper analyses how the reform was set up on the ground, shedding light on the partially divergent expectations of the two governments. Drawing on recent literature on the mobility of policies and built forms, the paper argues that the introduction of US-inspired prisons in Colombia is a striking case where a mobile policy and a travelling architectural type coincided and complemented each other.
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Political Geography
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Journal of Latin American Studies, 2018
Within the neocolonial context of ‘Plan Colombia’ in the early 2000s, agents of the US Federal Bu... more Within the neocolonial context of ‘Plan Colombia’ in the early 2000s, agents of the US Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) took position in the heart of the Colombian penitentiary administration to lead a reform based on the US ultra-punitive penal regime. This paper analyzes how the reform was set up on the ground, shedding light on the partially divergent expectations of both governments. Drawing on recent literature on the mobility of policies and built forms, the paper argues that the introduction of US-inspired prisons in Colombia is a striking case where a mobile policy and a traveling architectural type coincided and complemented each other.
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Für kaum ein internationales Abkommen haben sich die unterzeichnenden Staaten so einhellig und be... more Für kaum ein internationales Abkommen haben sich die unterzeichnenden Staaten so einhellig und beharrlich eingesetzt wie für die drei aufeinanderfol-genden Abkommen der Vereinten Nationen zur Drogenkontrolle. Der dadurch für über ein halbes Jahrhundert geltende repressive Ansatz wird jedoch in letzter Zeit mehr und mehr in Frage g estellt. Einige Eckpfeiler dieses Systems – insbesondere was dessen Entwicklung über die letzten zwei Jahrzehnte angeht – erlauben es, die aktuellen Kontroversen in der Drogenpolitik besser zu verstehen. Die Einstimmigkeit, mit der das prohibitionistische Modell und der «Krieg gegen Drogen» verfochten wurde, ist seit dem Ende des 20. Jahrhunderts ins Wanken geraten.
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Cet article introductif trace les grandes étapes de la mise en place du système de contrôle inter... more Cet article introductif trace les grandes étapes de la mise en place du système de contrôle international des dro-gues et met en perspective les enjeux actuels (réd.).
Paru dans le numéro spécial "Politique drogues internationale", de la revue Dépendances, octobre 2016
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During the first decade of the 21st century, the Colombian prison system went through a profound ... more During the first decade of the 21st century, the Colombian prison system went through a profound transformation under the influence of a cooperation agreement between Washington and Bogota in penal and penitentiary policies. This thesis analyzes, on the one hand, the circumstances in which the US high security prison model was transferred to Colombia and, on the other hand, the consequences of this 'importation' for the conditions of imprisonment and the lives of prisoners. Drawing on rich empirical material gathered during the course of extensive fieldwork in the US and Colombia, including interviews with prison architects, inmates and other key penal system actors, this research considers the international mobility of the US prison model through both a geopolitical and an ethnographical perspective. This dual approach allows a detailed reconstruction of how the reform was implemented on the ground, focusing particularly on the experience of different categories of actors (public authorities, prison administration officials, wardens, and prisoners), while also explaining the political and economic motivations underlying this transfer. The thesis highlights the major influence of the cultural practices of the criolla prison – the old Colombian prison model – on how the US penitentiary blueprint was molded and adapted to the local context. It demonstrates that the new Colombian prisons represent an unprecedented space, in terms of constraint, deprivation and control on the one hand, and multiform prisoner resistance on the other. Finally, the thesis seeks to fundamentally call into question the effectiveness of the prison as an instrument of justice in the contemporary world.
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In the context of the US anti-narcotic program, ‘Plan Colombia’, during the first decade of the 2... more In the context of the US anti-narcotic program, ‘Plan Colombia’, during the first decade of the 21st century, special agents of the US Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) took position in the heart of the Colombian penitentiary administration. Their task was to lead a profound reform of the sector, based on the US ultra-punitive penal regime and its ‘supermax’ housing units. Based on extensive fieldwork with prison architects, inmates and other actors in the penal systems of the US and Colombia, this paper analyzes how the reform was set up on the ground, shedding light on the partially divergent interests and expectations of both governments within the neocolonial context of ‘Plan Colombia’. We show how, on the one hand, the reform partially succeeded in militarizing carceral life and deurbanizing the prison system, spatially isolating inmates from their social and family environment. On the other hand, we show that the reform eventually failed, for institutional and political reasons, to meet its declared goal of modernizing Colombian prisons. From a more theoretical perspective and drawing on recent literature on the mobility of policies and built forms, the paper argues that the introduction of supermax prisons in Colombia is a striking case where a mobile policy and a traveling architectural type coincided and complemented each other, and suggests that in order to advance our understanding of how space is produced in a global arena, interconnections between circuits of policy and architectural mobilities should be more systematically considered.
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in Moran D., Gill N. & Conlon, D. (eds) 2013. Carceral Spaces: Mobility and Agency in Imprisonmen... more in Moran D., Gill N. & Conlon, D. (eds) 2013. Carceral Spaces: Mobility and Agency in Imprisonment and Migrant Detention. Ashgate Press: Farnham and Burlington. pp. 183-198
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Conference Presentations by Julie DE DARDEL
Paper presented at the Association of American Geographers Annual Meeting, Chicago, April 21 2015... more Paper presented at the Association of American Geographers Annual Meeting, Chicago, April 21 2015.
During the past five years, the political debate on the failure of the “war on drug” and on a possible shift in drug policies from criminal punishment toward a legalization and a public health approach has emerged as a central issue of global governance. While these ideas are not new, it is only in the last few years that a massive transformation in global drug policies started to appear as a credible scenario in the medium term. In this paper, I will argue that this historic turning point can be explained by two determining factors in the current context: (1) an untenable situation in terms of financial costs and the inefficiency of the status quo, and (2) the emergence of an organized and highly influential network of representatives of an intellectual, political, scientific and business elite that has rallied around the cause of drug decriminalization/legalization. I will focus on this advocacy network “from above” – a rather atypical case of “social movement” - within which eminent personalities deliberately use their cultural, social and economic capital to legitimize and promote progressive (and even radical) drug policies among decision makers and public opinion on a global scale. In the conclusion, I will discuss the methodological challenge of including in policy mobility literature not only existing policies (or policies “in the making”), but also “potential policies”, i.e. circulating political ideas that are likely to shape in a near future the implementation of pioneering local experiments and lead to transformations in global governance.
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World day of social work Conference "Promoting dignity and respect for all people". HETS Geneva -... more World day of social work Conference "Promoting dignity and respect for all people". HETS Geneva - UNAIDS, 17 March 2015
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Power Point Presentation. Conférence at the Gender Seminar Series, Graduate Institute of Internat... more Power Point Presentation. Conférence at the Gender Seminar Series, Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Geneva, 30.10.2014
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Power Point Presentation. Association of American Geographers Annual Meeting, Los Angeles, April ... more Power Point Presentation. Association of American Geographers Annual Meeting, Los Angeles, April 10 2013
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Books by Julie DE DARDEL
Le témoignage de ce prisonnier reflète le virage opéré au sein du système carcéral colombien suite à une réforme inspirée par le modèle de prison de sécurité maximale américain. Réalisées dans le cadre des accords du « Plan Colombie » – le vaste programme anti-drogue et antiguérilla de Washington dans ce pays – les
transformations du système carcéral colombien sont révélatrices de la manière dont le « tournant punitif » initié aux États-Unis s’exporte au niveau international.
Cet ouvrage repose sur un riche matériel ethnographique, recueilli au cours d’une enquête de terrain en Colombie et aux États-Unis. L’étude est basée sur des observations dans les prisons colombiennes et sur des interviews approfondies avec des prisonniers, des membres de leurs familles, des gardiens, des représentants des autorités carcérales, des activistes des droits humains, ainsi que des architectes et entrepreneurs de l’industrie carcérale américaine. Les nouvelles prisons colombiennes y sont décrites comme un espace de dépossession et de contrôle sans précédent, mais également comme un lieu de résistances multiformes de la part de la communauté des prisonniers.
Papers by Julie DE DARDEL
Paru dans le numéro spécial "Politique drogues internationale", de la revue Dépendances, octobre 2016
Conference Presentations by Julie DE DARDEL
During the past five years, the political debate on the failure of the “war on drug” and on a possible shift in drug policies from criminal punishment toward a legalization and a public health approach has emerged as a central issue of global governance. While these ideas are not new, it is only in the last few years that a massive transformation in global drug policies started to appear as a credible scenario in the medium term. In this paper, I will argue that this historic turning point can be explained by two determining factors in the current context: (1) an untenable situation in terms of financial costs and the inefficiency of the status quo, and (2) the emergence of an organized and highly influential network of representatives of an intellectual, political, scientific and business elite that has rallied around the cause of drug decriminalization/legalization. I will focus on this advocacy network “from above” – a rather atypical case of “social movement” - within which eminent personalities deliberately use their cultural, social and economic capital to legitimize and promote progressive (and even radical) drug policies among decision makers and public opinion on a global scale. In the conclusion, I will discuss the methodological challenge of including in policy mobility literature not only existing policies (or policies “in the making”), but also “potential policies”, i.e. circulating political ideas that are likely to shape in a near future the implementation of pioneering local experiments and lead to transformations in global governance.
Le témoignage de ce prisonnier reflète le virage opéré au sein du système carcéral colombien suite à une réforme inspirée par le modèle de prison de sécurité maximale américain. Réalisées dans le cadre des accords du « Plan Colombie » – le vaste programme anti-drogue et antiguérilla de Washington dans ce pays – les
transformations du système carcéral colombien sont révélatrices de la manière dont le « tournant punitif » initié aux États-Unis s’exporte au niveau international.
Cet ouvrage repose sur un riche matériel ethnographique, recueilli au cours d’une enquête de terrain en Colombie et aux États-Unis. L’étude est basée sur des observations dans les prisons colombiennes et sur des interviews approfondies avec des prisonniers, des membres de leurs familles, des gardiens, des représentants des autorités carcérales, des activistes des droits humains, ainsi que des architectes et entrepreneurs de l’industrie carcérale américaine. Les nouvelles prisons colombiennes y sont décrites comme un espace de dépossession et de contrôle sans précédent, mais également comme un lieu de résistances multiformes de la part de la communauté des prisonniers.
Paru dans le numéro spécial "Politique drogues internationale", de la revue Dépendances, octobre 2016
During the past five years, the political debate on the failure of the “war on drug” and on a possible shift in drug policies from criminal punishment toward a legalization and a public health approach has emerged as a central issue of global governance. While these ideas are not new, it is only in the last few years that a massive transformation in global drug policies started to appear as a credible scenario in the medium term. In this paper, I will argue that this historic turning point can be explained by two determining factors in the current context: (1) an untenable situation in terms of financial costs and the inefficiency of the status quo, and (2) the emergence of an organized and highly influential network of representatives of an intellectual, political, scientific and business elite that has rallied around the cause of drug decriminalization/legalization. I will focus on this advocacy network “from above” – a rather atypical case of “social movement” - within which eminent personalities deliberately use their cultural, social and economic capital to legitimize and promote progressive (and even radical) drug policies among decision makers and public opinion on a global scale. In the conclusion, I will discuss the methodological challenge of including in policy mobility literature not only existing policies (or policies “in the making”), but also “potential policies”, i.e. circulating political ideas that are likely to shape in a near future the implementation of pioneering local experiments and lead to transformations in global governance.
"La chercheuse genevoise Julie de Dardel étudie la métamorphose du système carcéral colombien sous l’influence américaine. Une transformation qui a des incidences négatives sur les détenus. "
(co-fondatrice et membre du Comité directif)