Peru’s prison conditions – a state of emergency
Peru’s prison conditions – a state of emergency
Posted 19 Aug 2013, 1:08pm
By Patrick Corrigan
Whether ultimately found innocent or guilty, Dungannon woman Michaella McCollum Connolly and Scot, Melissa Reid, face the prospect of a lengthy stay in Peru’s overcrowded and under-resourced prison system.
In fact there are twice as many prisoners as there are prison places. Last year there was a total prison population of 57,095 but only space for 28,257 prisoners. Many prisoners find themselves sleeping on the floor for lack of jail beds.
One of the reasons for the rising prison population has been the growing number of foreign nationals arrested in Peru – primarily for cocaine trafficking out of the country. Peru, alongside neighbouring Colombia and Bolivia, has become one of the main countries of origin for the illegal drug in recent years. Potential profits from the illicit trade are high, but so are the penalties for those caught and found guilty: 6 to 12 years in prison for possession with intention to traffic; 8 to 15 years for drug production or trafficking.
So chronic have the problems of overcrowding, poor conditions and corruption become in Peru’s jails, that last year the government declared a state of emergency in the country’s penal system.
More:
http://www2.amnesty.org.uk/blogs/belfast-and-beyond/peru%E2%80%99s-prison-conditions-%E2%80%93-state-emergency