La Jornada: José Antonio Román
After pointing out that the country uses detention in prisons excessively [including "preventative detention" for non-violent crimes, were persons charged with crimes are held for trial instead of being released on bail], the president of the National Commission of Human Rights (CNDH), Luis Raúl González Pérez, called for rethinking the country's prison system under a parameter of human rights .
In presenting the National Diagnosis of Penetentiary Supervision for 2015, which reviewed state, federal and military prisons, the ombudsman said that the facts and information show that the prison system is not well organized nor does it operate on the basis of respect for human rights.
History repeats itself in the five recent annual reports* prepared by the CNDH. They repeat a long list of shortcomings and weaknesses of the national prison system: overcrowding and overpopulation; self-governance [by prisoners]; poor separation of those held for trial and those convicted; areas of privilege for certain prisoners; insufficient social reintegration programs; lack of means to prevent murders, brawls, escapes and riots; huge gaps in the provision of medical supplies, and inadequate services and supplies
In addition, the diagnosis indicates that, despite the actions and financial resources of the system, state prisons, where the majority of the 247,000 inmates of the country are held, obtained an average score of 6.21 [out of 10] just two tenths more than they attained a year earlier. However, this score is below the 6.41 and 6.28 they obtained in 2011 and 2012 respectively.
The report stresses that the escape of Joaquin El Chapo Guzman and the 49 prisoners killed in the confrontation in Topo Chico prison [in Nuevo Leon] demonstrate the vulnerabilities and failures of the prison system, and it asked that the government not wait for more events of these kinds to happen before addressing the serious problems in the prison system.
According to the diagnosis, in 2015, 2,110 violent incidents occurred: 1,142 in state prisons and 968 in federal ones. Of these, 1,382 thousand were fights; 250 "disorders", 54 murders, 55 abuse, 23 suicides and six riots.
The state of Guanajuato received the best rating, with 8.02 points, followed by Aguascalientes, Baja California, Chihuahua and Tlaxcala. Those who got the worst grades were state prisons in Nayarit, 4.11; Quintana Roo, 4.43, and Guerrero, 4.99. Federal prisons obtained an overall average of 7.36 and military prisons 7.93.
Ruth Villanueva, the CNDH's third visitor, said in diagnosing the level of prision functioning, aspects that were assessed were those that ensure the physical and moral safety of prisoners, dignified conditions for their stay, conditions of governability, social reintegration programs and groups with special needs. Spanish original
*See previous CNDH assessments of prisons:
Chaos in the Most Overcrowded State Prisons, Commission's National Assessment Report for 2014.
State and Federal Prisons Lack Trained Staff, Provide Poor Conditions for Inmates, National Assessment of Penitentiary Supervision 2013
Inmates Controlled Activities in 65 Prisons - Human Rights Commission Assessment 2012