Ecuador pardons some prisoners after serious prison incidents | Prison News

Ecuador wants to alleviate the overcrowding in its prisons by clashes caused by groups that have killed more than 300 people this year.

The Ecuadorian president has pardoned some prisoners in the country’s prisons in an attempt to alleviate overcrowding. a chain of incidents which has resulted in more than 300 deaths this year.

On Monday night, Guillermo Lasso’s press office said the president had pardoned prisoners involved in traffic offenses that caused no injuries or deaths, as well as those with serious illnesses or terminals.

He did not specify how many people would receive a pardon.

“This decision includes a full pardon for custodial sentences, but it does not extinguish the obligation of comprehensive reparation (to the victims) that all those who receive pardon are responsible for,” the note says.

The most serious prison incident in Ecuador was in September, when 119 people were taken into custody. hil In Penitenciaria del Litoral, a facility in the coastal city of Guayaquil, authorities said there have been clashes between rival groups linked to drug trafficking.

At the beginning of the month, another incident it happened in the same prison, and dozens of prisoners were killed.

They have experts pointed out prison massages across the nation, the lack of rehabilitation programs for prisoners, the shortage of trained staff, and the lack of infrastructure within the facility are some of the major problems affecting violence.

Prisons have over 30 percent overcrowding and poor living conditions for 39,000 inmates in the system.

Head of the prison authority he said in early October, Ecuador planned to grant a pardon to 2,000 prisoners to ease the pressure on the system, giving priority to the release of elderly prisoners and women, as well as those with disabilities and terminal illnesses.

Ecuador is also preparing to return 170 Colombian prisoners to their country after reaching an agreement with the Colombian government over the weekend.

The Lasso government has also pledged to use the armed forces and police to maintain order in prisons.

But critics question whether increasing militarization will solve the problem.

“Getting into violence is not the answer. You can’t focus on militarization and repression, you have to focus on rehabilitation, otherwise it won’t work, “Ramiro Narvaez, a member of the Izquierda Democratica party, told Al Jazeera this month.