{"id":5734,"date":"2016-09-30T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2016-09-30T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/new.conectas.org.inf.br\/wp\/noticias\/prisoners-wounded-in-another-occupation-at-pedrinhas-prison\/"},"modified":"2021-03-30T13:42:36","modified_gmt":"2021-03-30T13:42:36","slug":"prisoners-wounded-in-another-occupation-at-pedrinhas-prison","status":"publish","type":"noticia","link":"https:\/\/conectas.org\/en\/noticias\/prisoners-wounded-in-another-occupation-at-pedrinhas-prison\/","title":"Prisoners wounded in another occupation at Pedrinhas prison","content":"

The stage of one of the worst crises in the Brazilian prison system<\/a> in 2013, the Pedrinhas prison complex in the state of Maranh\u00e3o is once again the epicenter of a new wave of violence. Following a prison riot on Saturday, September 24, and attacks on buses this Tuesday, Thursday and Friday in the streets of the capital S\u00e3o Lu\u00eds and other cities in the state, the government announced that 700 security agents have occupied the units of the prison complex. According to reports by relatives of prisoners, dozens of inmates have been wounded \u2013 at least one after a lethal weapon was fired.<\/p>\n

The upsurge in violence coincided with an inspection of the complex by three organizations responsible for a complaint that is pending in the Inter-American Court of Human Rights of the OAS<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In 2014, in response to Brazil\u2019s disregard for the precautionary measures issued in 2013 by the IACHR (Inter-American Commission on Human Rights), the Court issued provisional measures<\/a> requiring the Brazilian State to respect the physical integrity of the inmates and personnel at the complex.<\/p>\n

On September 27 and 28, representatives from SMDH (Maranh\u00e3o Society of Human Rights), Conectas and Justi\u00e7a Global visited the S\u00e3o Lu\u00eds Rehabilitation Facilities 1, 2, 3 and 6 and COCT (Observation, Classification and Triage Center) and encountered non-compliance with these international requirements.<\/p>\n

On Friday afternoon, the organizations submitted an urgent petition<\/a> notifying the Court about the escalation of violence and denouncing the use of physical and psychological torture as a means of controlling the prison population, in addition to the overcrowding and lack of medical treatment. The document described \u201ca veritable chaos, which mirrors the situation outside the walls of the complex\u201d.<\/p>\n

According to the organizations, the appalling treatment of prisoners and their relatives was the cause of Saturday\u2019s riot and the wave of violence that has spread through the capital over the past few days. They said the government\u2019s decision to occupy the complex has only made the situation worse.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs we can see, the Maranh\u00e3o state government has not grasped the scale and severity of the situation, nor, more importantly, its essential role in the defense of the life and safety of not just thousands of detainees and their families, but also of the security agents, since it has further escalated tensions,\u201d reads the document.<\/p>\n

The organizations asked the Court to urgently request explanations from the Brazilian government and to recommend that the state authorities take \u201cdecisive action to preserve the life of the detainees, their families and the public security agents\u201d.<\/p>\n

Similar documents were sent to the Ministry of Justice\u2019s Human Rights Office, the CNPCP (National Criminal and Prison Policy Council) and the PFDC (Federal Attorney General\u2019s Office for the Rights of the Citizen).<\/p>\n

Click here<\/a> to read the full document sent to the Inter-American Court.<\/p>\n

Background<\/strong><\/p>\n

A series of riots that erupted in November and December of 2013 in Pedrinhas, which resulted in the deaths of 22 prisoners, led the SMDH (Maranh\u00e3o Society of Human Rights) and the OAB-MA (State Bar of Maranh\u00e3o) to engage the IACHR (Inter-American Commission on Human Rights of the OAS), the region\u2019s most important human rights monitoring and promotion body. Conectas and Justi\u00e7a Global were admitted as co-petitioners in the case some months later.<\/p>\n

On December 16, 2013, the Commission issued a precautionary measure requiring Brazil to take immediate action to prevent new violations at the prison complex or risk facing international condemnation. According to the precautionary measure, Brazil needed to:<\/p>\n