Measuring respect of fundamentl rights : interest and challenges - the example of the Prison Life Index[Mesurer le respect des droits fondamentaux : intérêt et défis – l’exemple du Prison Life Index]

Composite indices are quantification tools based on the evaluation of the observed or projected performance or outcome of a system. They allow the aggregation of various information in order to produce synthetic and easily accessible information. There are today many composite indices addressing political and social dimensions such as democracy or press freedom. This article presents a new tool, the Prison Life Index, which will allow the evaluation of the national prison policies with regards to international standards. This tool is developed by Prison Insider, an information platform on prison conditions, with the aim of producing reliable and centralized information and drawing attention to the respect of the fundamental rights of prisoners in the various prisons of the world. In order to meet these objectives, methodological choices were made. The model was built collaboratively with regards to international standards on conditions of detentions. The transition from model to measurement is achieved through expert assessments seeking to overcome the limitations presented by the relatively scarce and limited quantitative data available. This paper also questions the singularities and limitations of composite human rights indices that are particular quantification tools.