Child celebrates birthday in prison

The birthday of a two year old girl was celebrated in Kópavogur prison recently. The little girl has lived in the prison with her mother since birth. According to Guðmundur Gíslason, director of the Reykjavik Prison Authorities, children are, in occasional cases, allowed to stay with their mothers until they are two-and-a half years old if child protection authorities allow it. It is considered that a child living in a homely prison such as the one in Kópavogur does not affect a child that young. The little girl attends a playschool every day. Gíslason said that the birthday party was a very happy event, with both fellow prisoners and prison guards participating. " We tried to make the child as happy as we could, under the circumstances, although there were not many children present." The girl's mother, who is from Sierra Leone, was pregnant when she was arrested, and gave birth to her baby whilst serving her prison sentence. She will have served her sentence shortly and her daughter will stay with her until that time.