MIJ Minister sees deplorable state of Venezuela's prisons first hand

www.vheadline.com Posted: Tuesday, March 04, 2003 By: Patrick J. O'Donoghue

With hunger strikes in La Planta, Los Teques, El Rodeo, Yare prisons and the General Penitentiary, the spotlight has been turned once again on the state of Venezuela’s prisons after a period of "benign neglect."

During a visit to El Paraiso detention center, Interior & Justice (MIJ) Minister General (ret.) Lucas Rincon Romero heard inmates complain about the delay in processing their cases … “the majority of prisoners here have the same problem and some have been here as long as 2,3 and 4 years without being sentenced.”

The Minister has promised to discuss the matter with judges to find out the reason for the delays and attempt some emergency work to deal with outstanding cases.

Answering charges that prisoners aren’t getting adequate food rations, Rincon Romero admits that suppliers haven’t been paid on time and has asked prisoners on hunger strike to be patient.