Central America and the Caribbean
Who benefits from prison?
Analysis
Africa
Central America and the Caribbean
Europe
Justice
Overcrowding
Prison Insider hosted a workshop at this year’s edition of Concertina on the human and social cost of prison in Haiti, Tunisia, Morocco, and France. Learn more about the key points of this discussion.
Central America and the Caribbean
Mental health
Jamaica
Applications by the Legal Aid Council for the Supreme Court to release six incarcerated people with mental disorders, who were unfit to plead, were refused because the Judge Leighton Pusey found that there were no appropriate accommodations for them.
Central America and the Caribbean
Health
Material conditions
Torture
Violence
Social ties
Nicaragua
“It was an ordeal I thought would never end,” says Jose Enrique Sanchez, one of the 135 political prisoners exiled on September 5th to Guatemala by the dictatorship of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo. “We lived in precarious conditions,” “we endured psychological torture,” “threats to our familie…
Central America and the Caribbean
Access to legal rights
Mexico
Prisoners awaiting trial or sentencing began voting Monday in Mexico’s presidential election from inside jails - a first for the Latin American nation.
Central America and the Caribbean
Justice
Mental health
Facilities
Antigua & Barbuda
Following a court order mandating that Public Safety Minister Sir Steadroy Benjamin find a suitable place to detain murder-accused schizophrenic Ziggy Beazer, Cabinet yesterday announced that a refurbished facility in Crabbs would serve as this temporary space.
Central America and the Caribbean
Facilities
Violence
Haiti
Haiti’s national penitentiary is on fire after a blaze broke out in the building on Thursday morning, according to Reuters. A video posted to social media reportedly showed black smoke coming out of the facility.
Central America and the Caribbean
Protest
Violence
Haiti
Haiti has declared a three-day state of emergency and a night-time curfew after armed gangs stormed the country’s two biggest jails, allowing more than 3 000 prisoners to escape.
Central America and the Caribbean
Material conditions
Facilities
El Salvador
Since the Cecot (Centre for the Confinement of Terrorism) opened on 31 January 2023, the BBC had repeatedly requested access to the mega-prison. It was finally granted two days after President Nayib Bukele claimed victory in the presidential election held on 4 February.
Antigua and Barbuda: prospects dwindle for new prison facility as retrofitting remains priority
News
Central America and the Caribbean
Material conditions
Antigua & Barbuda
National Security Minister Sir Steadroy Benjamin revealed that the government currently lacks the necessary funds to undertake the construction of a new prison facility.The ongoing retrofitting efforts aim to address concerns related to overcrowding and outdated infrastructure that have adversely i…
Central America and the Caribbean
Justice
Overcrowding
El Salvador
El Salvador has imprisoned 1.6% of its 6.3 million citizens. That gives it an incarceration rate triple that of the US and more than double that of Cuba.
Panama: fighting for my life
Testimonial
Central America and the Caribbean
Women
Health
Material conditions
Social ties
Panama
Yonta J. was incarcerated in a Panamanian prison for three years, from March 2015 to January 2018. She faced hardships that still impact her life today. This is the story of her daily life in prison.
Central America and the Caribbean
Overcrowding
Torture
El Salvador
New rules passed by El Salvador’s congress Wednesday will allow courts to try accused gang members in mass trials, in an effort to expedite tens of thousands of cases for those detained under the country’s crackdown on street gangs.
Central America and the Caribbean
Torture
Honduras
Authorities in Honduras forced inmates to sit half-naked in tight rows while they searched for contraband in a sweep of prisons Monday, similar to the harsh tactics of neighbouring El Salvador.
The military police — who have taken charge of the nation’s prisons — fanned out across several prisons,…
Central America and the Caribbean
Women
Violence
Honduras
The inmates were found shot or burned to death in the latest spasm of violence in the country’s troubled prison system.
Central America and the Caribbean
Material conditions
Haiti
Human rights group, RNDDH, is concerned that police reliance on makeshift prisons amid insecurity and a crippled judicial system, makes for “inhumane, degrading conditions in overcrowded cells”.
The group reported after visiting six police stations in Haiti’s Ouest Department. They recommend urging…
France: on camera
Interview
Central America and the Caribbean
Activities
Rehabilitation
France
Basse-Terre prison in Guadeloupe provides prisoner rehabilitation programmes. Film director Mark Alexandre Montout visited the prison to film a cookery competition. Interview.
Central America and the Caribbean
Justice
Nicaragua
The authoritarian government of Daniel Ortega handed over 222 prisoners as a way to signal a desire to restart relations with the United States, according to officials.
Central America and the Caribbean
Facilities
El Salvador
Conditions inside a huge new mega-prison designed to house 40,000 alleged gang members will be particularly severe.
Venezuela : quand les caïds font des prisons de luxueuses dictatures du crime
News
Central America and the Caribbean
Material conditions
Violence
Venezuela
This article is not available in English. This article is available in the following versions: French
Argentina: debaten habeas corpus en audiencia tras denuncia de irregularidades en la cárcel de Mujeres
News
Central America and the Caribbean
Women
Overcrowding
Argentina
This article is not available in English. This article is available in the following versions: Spanish
Ecuador: seis presos heridos deja un motín en cárcel
News
Central America and the Caribbean
Violence
Ecuador
This article is not available in English. This article is available in the following versions: Spanish
Cuba : las dramáticas condiciones de detención en las que está José Daniel Ferrer
News
Central America and the Caribbean
Material conditions
Cuba
This article is not available in English. This article is available in the following versions: Spanish
Équateur : onze blessés lors de nouveaux "affrontements" dans une prison
News
Central America and the Caribbean
Violence
Ecuador
This article is not available in English. This article is available in the following versions: French