Prisoners at Verona's Montorio Prisonwent on hunger strike Tuesday citing a wave of suicides that has claimed the lives of five inmates there since November, part of a wider spate that has seen 15 prisoners take their own lives in Italian jails this year.
"This is a form of non-violent protest against the dramatic conditions the Verona institute is enduring including overcrowding, the almost total lack of work activities, and the escalation in suicides and suicide attempts," said the local rights group Bars of Sugar.
Premier Giorgia Meloni said Monday the suicide spate must be countered with more prison places and more staff hirings, rejecting opposition suggestions to ease overcrowding by boosting alternatives to prison detention and decriminalizing many crimes including minor drug offenses.
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