By the A.M. Costa Rica staff

The government, through the Ministry of Justice, said new modules or rooms within the current prisons had reduced the overcrowding rate 8.8%, between November 2019 and January. The rate went from 39.6% to 30.8%.

According to the ministry, this reduction is due to the construction of 2,051 modules, or rooms in the prisons of Alajuela, San José, Limón, Guanacaste, Puntarenas and Heredia.

"The reduction is important if you take into account that between May 2018 and December 2019 the prison population grew by almost 2,000 people: 13%," said the ministry in its statement. "Currently, more than 16,000 people are jailed."

The constructions were made in response to orders issued by judicial authorities and the Ministry of Health ordering conditions that respect the human rights of the prisoners, said the ministry.

According to the ministry, the goal was to build 3,000 new rooms or modules during the four years of the current government.

“The solution is not only to build more spaces that guarantee respect for human rights, which exalts us as a society, but also to give to prisoner education, training and tools that guarantee their reintegration to society,” said Marcia González-Aguiluz, minister of Justice.

According to the ministry,  2,214 new modules are schedule to be built this year.

These modules are part of the new building that will be built in the facility known as La Reforma in Alajuela.

To these modules, 1,248 prisoners of La Reforma will be transferred. New areas for the attention of prisoners with drug addiction problems will be built, said the ministry.

The ministry also expects to build three buildings to locate women, prisoners, in Pococí, Pérez Zeledón and Puntarenas.

More modules also are planned for the prisons of San Carlos, Liberia and Puntarenas.

The ministry officials are now in the analysis the possibility of requesting an $80 million loan from the Central American Bank for Economic Integration to build a new prison in San Ramón in Alajuela with a capacity for 1,100 prisoners. Part of the loans would be used for the construction of more modules in the prisons of Liberia and Limón, according to the ministry.








-------------------------
Should the government increase the budget for the construction of more prisons in Costa Rica? We would like to know your thoughts on this story. Send your comments to news@amcostarica.com

---