Prison walls often serve to keep criminals and criminals from going out. The challenge now is the opposite: to prevent a virus from entering a place where social distancing does not exist. Almost all the countries walk in this fight, but it is especially difficult in Latin America and the Caribbean, the region of the world that has some of the most crowded prisons - in some countries they exceed 300% of their capacity -, with worse measures of hygiene and with less technological means.
MORE INFORMATION
- More prisoners or more justice
- Overpopulation of prisons in Latin America reaches critical levels
- Why is it so important to prevent the coronavirus from entering prisons
The region is home to more than one and a half million people deprived of liberty, its prison rate is double that of the world. The most striking case is that of Brazil, which accumulates 750,000 inmates, the same amount as the rest of the countries combined. "The pandemic is an ideal opportunity to apply a human rights perspective on the situation in prisons in the region, usually with overcrowding," says Enrique Gil Botero, secretary general of the Conference of Justice Ministers.
The tension has already begun to be felt in the penalties of the region. Colombia suffered several riots at the beginning of the month that caused 23 deaths, one of them in La Modelo, which houses 5,000 prisoners. Bolivia lived another one last week after the death of an inmate. And Argentina put down another in late March in Coronda prison. "It is necessary to educate and explain everything that this pandemic implies both to prison staff and to prisoners and those around them or we will see more situations of panic and violence," says Eduardo Gotuzzo, researcher at the Institute of Tropical Medicine of the Cayetano University of Peru. "You have to understand which of these uprisings really respond to a state of nervousness on the part of the prisoners and which have been orchestrated by organized crime taking advantage of the situation," says Rodrigo Serrano-Berthet, specialist in Citizen Security and Justice at Banco Inter-American Development (IDB).
This organization was precisely the convenor of a virtual meeting held a few days ago in which experts in the field and members of Latin American and Caribbean governments from 25 countries exchanged experiences. Countries like Chile have prepared a pardon that includes 1,300 especially vulnerable prisoners: with previous pathologies, the elderly and mothers with young children. They also approved a law to restrict the activity of the courts to essential minimums, something that Colombia has also applied. This country, with 120,000 deprived of liberty, also prepares the house arrest of some 10,000 prisoners who are not dangerous for at least six months. "This measure is not applicable in the case of serious crimes such as homicides, rapes, kidnappings or terrorism," emphasizes Gil Botero.
The objective is not only to reduce overcrowding to avoid infections, but also to free up space in the centers to dedicate it to medical services or to remove suspicious cases. A concrete example of how these actions are already being implemented is that of Santa Catarina, in southern Brazil. After changing the regime of 200 prisoners to house arrest, it has been possible to set up isolation places for inmates who present symptoms or to separate the population at risk.
The key to this release of space could be in the preventives, which in the region account for 47% of inmates, according to data from the World Prison Brief. In Paraguay, Haiti, Bolivia and Uruguay, this percentage rises to 70%. Pedro Das Neves, founder of the specialized firm Innovative Prison Systems, recommends generalizing the use of anklets to apply probation. "But there are other prisoners who do not require as much control, and with whom an application would be enough to check if they are complying with the regime," he points out.
A study shows alarming realities such as that 20% of prisoners do not have sufficient access to drinking water or that only 37% have soap
"With overcrowding, other alternatives must be considered, such as taking different shifts to go out into the yard and not accumulating all at the same time," says Eduardo Gotuzzo, researcher and adviser to the Peruvian government in this health crisis. This specialist recommends designing activities for inmates that include more sport without physical contact or increase activities within the prison. In Chile, some centers have transformed the workshops into production centers for supplies necessary to face the pandemic, such as masks. In Ecuador they even make coffins.
Family separation
The prohibition of visits by family members, lawyers, social workers, priests and pedagogues is one of the most difficult steps, due to the tensions that they can cause among the inmates. These exchanges not only represent moral support, but in many cases serve to provide them with basic elements for their day-to-day life. An IDB study in 14 countries shows alarming realities such as that 20% of prisoners do not have sufficient access to drinking water or that only 37% have soap. Two essential elements to prevent the spread of communicable diseases. In that same study, 58% of inmates reported not sleeping in a bed. To mitigate uncertainty among family members about the status of inmates, governments are also providing information channels. Brazil has created a website so that any citizen can follow the latest data on the coronavirus in their prisons.
Brazil has created a website so that any citizen can follow the latest data on the coronavirus in their prisons
Most countries have designed a video conferencing plan to supply physical contact, although not in all cases there are means or connections. Many look at the example of Spain. José Luis Hernández, deputy director general of new technologies at the Spanish Ministry of Justice, explains that in the first two weeks of the State of Alarm, the ministry carried out 5,226 hours of videoconference. A good part of which consisted in the communication of judicial resolutions to the prisoners. "There are many free tools for prisoners to have medical assistance or communications with their lawyers, family and consular staff. Skype, Google Duo, Microsoft Teams ...", points out Hernández. "These mechanisms can also be used for some oral hearings, something that would prevent the transfer of the inmates," he adds.
Where to find the means to create a network of video calls in express time? Aitor Cubo, IDB Digital Government specialist gives some clue: "You can take advantage of all the electronic material that was about to be discarded by public organizations or other entities that want to donate it. The transfer of equipment would avoid the tortuous bureaucratic process of acquiring the same by the usual routes ". Despite this, the available means do not always allow the implantation of video calls. In these cases, experts recommend looking for alternatives. "Perhaps an extra 15 minutes on the phone or two calls instead of one weekly, will help to alleviate the absence of contact," says Pedro Das Neves.
In the strictly sanitary field, specialists demand training and resources. Juan Rudy Núñez is president of the American College of Correctional Physicians: "What do we do if we find a positive case? Who do we have to report to? Do we have a substitute in case we get sick?" Rudy urges the application of protocols that include, for example, that if an official is assigned to the medical area, he should not enter rotations and remain in that position, to avoid risks.
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