Monday, February 14, 2011

Ikealime Greencurtains

thousand children in prison in Haiti Haiti is in Rome

Left alone after the earthquake, are imprisoned with adults

OF LUCIA Capuzzo
The Future
Sunday, February 13, 2011

Suze, Auguste, Joseph. I nomi sono diversi, le storie drammaticamente simili. Rimasti soli dopo il terremoto del 12 gennaio 2010, hanno cominciato a rubacchiare e a vagabondare: è la legge della strada, l’unica che vale, spesso, nelle vie di Port-au-Prince dissestate dal sisma. Un giorno, la polizia li ha “beccati” e arrestati. Anche se sono solo dei bambini o al massimo adolescenti. I più piccoli hanno appena dieci anni.

Ora, attendono il processo – alcuni da un mese altri da un anno –, dietro le sbarre. In celle di 12 metri quadrati – costruite per quattro, ma abitate da decine di persone – fianco a fianco a individui che hanno almeno il doppio dei loro anni. I “piccoli prisoners in Haiti are the forgotten victims of the earthquake. Only a few NGOs that work with them, the authorities are unaware of them. By law, minors can not be imprisoned together with common prisoners: they must be brought to correctional institutions for this purpose. The latter, however, were destroyed. The agents, therefore, do not know what else to do with too many guys around the city disbanded. When in doubt, take them in adult prisons. Where to stay long. In the capital, the only two buildings left standing - albeit damaged - they are the penitentiary and the National Civil Petionville. Part of it was swept away by the shock. Now, the good and well arranged, the jail is operational. And crowded: there are 4 thousand prisoners - the capacity and the staff are for 800 -, divided into six dormitories.

At least 200 are minors. In total, "a thousand kids is imprisoned in the eleven prisons departments of many Haitians," the complaint to the Future lawyer Evel Fanfan, President of Action pour une des Unités Motivées Haiti de Droit (Aumohd). The association defends indigent prisoners free of charge, since the country there is no legal aid office. "Just to agree to hear a case, an expert on private calls at least $ 60. To advance the dossier, there want much, "said Fanfan. Three-quarters of Haitians who earn 60 per month. It was precisely the Aumohd to blow up the scandal of child prisoners: in September, during a visit to the National Penitentiary, Fanfan had noticed the presence of 54 boys who had asked for help. The lawyer has managed to bring 25 of them in a nursing home, and to leave the other 29. Too many are still in jail. The phenomenon also existed before the earthquake. Afterwards, however, has become chronic. Why have risen little vagabonds. The police often stop them even when they do not commit any crime, other than to "begging". Not surprisingly, most of the children is behind bars in attesa di giudizio.

Già nel 2009, secondo fonti Onu, tra l’80 e il 90 per cento dei detenuti era in carcere preventivo. In condizioni che le stesse Nazione Unite – lo scorso aprile – hanno definito «inumane e degradanti». Nel caso dei minori, il rischio di abusi e violenze, poi, è ancora più alto. L’epidemia di colera ha peggiorato ulteriormente la situazione: il sovraffollamento e le strazianti condizioni igieniche fanno dilagare l’epidemia. Nessuno, però, sa quante siano i detenuti colpiti. «Non ci sono registri affidabili. Spesso, i poliziotti non scrivono nelle liste ufficiali i nomi degli arrestati. Perché sono minori o perché is not that they are comfortable, "adds Fanfan. Deaths in prison, moreover, are not communicated to family members. "I kin have to visit once, twice, ten times. The meeting is specifically denied - underlines -. Thus, the claim that their relative is dead. "

0 comments:

Post a Comment