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With several months late, the population deprived of liberty begins to be vaccinated against COVID-19 in the 22 prisons that are active throughout the country, an urgent situation due to the levels of overcrowding in which the majority live.
Since the start of the pandemic, a total of 504 Covid-19 infections have been identified in detention centers, of which there are 25 active cases. Those recovered amount to 439 and the deceased to 40.
Within the administrative and operational staff of the Penitentiary System (SP), 205 people have been infected and six have died, according to figures from the institution.
Luis Rodolfo Escobar, director of the SP, affirms that, among the 25,002 deprived of liberty counted until last Monday, 5 thousand people have a first dose, of which 3 thousand are immunized with the complete scheme. The centers where the first immunizations have been applied are: Canada Penal Farm, Quiché, Zacapa, Chimaltenango, Quetzaltenango and Cobán women’s prison, he confirmed.
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This week they will prepare a broader coverage in the Fraijanes sector that includes four centers, and which will begin with the first 5,000 doses distributed to the Female Orientation Center (COF) and the Pavón Penal Rehabilitation Model Farm. So far it is not confirmed what type of vaccine will be administered.
“We have made the corresponding requests, we have worked together with the Ministry of Public Health and Social Assistance (MSPAS) and we are with the door open to work together, but it is up to them as the governing body to manage the pandemic,” reported Escobar.
OFFICE AGAINST TORTURE SIGNS SLOW OF THE PROCESS
For her part, Dr. Cecilia Barrios, rapporteur for the National Office for the Prevention of Torture in the Western region, reports that from her position she had the initiative to manage immunization with private individuals in that area of the country, in conjunction with the Dr. Juan Nájera, director of the Quetzaltenango health area. “Due to the risks and the slowness of the process,” he says.
This Monday, approximately 355 people were immunized with a second dose of the Quetzaltenango Men Preventive.
“The prison population of the West is preparing for a first dose of AstraZeneca. Last week ended with a group of private individuals in the Totonicapán and Quiché jails. Of this group, a total of 83 private individuals in Totonicapán – men and women – 70 people were vaccinated. In the Quiché prison, out of a total of 89 inmates, only two refused.
Next week, it will be the Cantel group, which I estimate is about 3,000 people, including those who belong to the San Marcos preventive center, who will continue with the vaccination plan, ”he explains.
HEALTH: PENITENTIARY SYSTEM CAN COORDINATE
The Supervision, Monitoring and Evaluation Unit of the Ministry of Public Health and Social Assistance (MSPAS) reports that, in some departments, such as Escuintla, the prison population has been vaccinated, but this is a coordination that corresponds to each Directorate of Area, since it is required to previously ensure that the activity can be carried out without any risk for the health teams in charge of vaccination.
“In places where it has not been carried out, the Penitentiary System can coordinate it locally so that it is carried out as soon as possible,” they reported.
PRISONED POPULATION WITH POOR ACCESS TO HEALTH
The rapporteur Barrios comments that it is a vulnerable population, many of them have been infected due to the guards, which caused a contagion in the Quiché prison last year.
“Vaccination is far behind, although from the beginning the request was made for the private sector to be on the front line. In the centers, not all the time they are provided with the essential supplies such as gel alcohol or masks. In addition, the entry of these liquids by relatives is prohibited, due to security measures ”, he adds.
COLLECTIVE ARTISANS: VACCINATION IS VITAL DUE TO OVERCOMING
For Andrea Barrios, director of the Colectivo Artesana, vaccination in detention centers is very important, considering the level of overcrowding, higher than 300% in most buildings.
In addition, there are risks that make them more vulnerable such as the high influx of people from administrative and operational personnel, or visits to hearings. He recalled that private companies have limitations in access to health and medicine, which does not limit the right to the vaccine. At the same time, awareness days are urgent, because now not everyone wants to be vaccinated, he said.
The slowness of this process is due to the fact that it seems that those deprived of liberty are off the radar of this problem. Second, there is no permanent link or fluid coordination between the institutions. On the one hand, the SP is a centralized entity where the directors of each center do not have a representative function and there are no departmental delegates. On the other hand, the vaccination plan is carried out locally in coordination with the respective health areas of each municipality, Barrios said.
CHALLENGES
Despite the conditions, there is also a reluctance to be immunized against Covid-19. A high percentage do not want to be vaccinated, for different reasons. “I estimate up to 25% according to a survey, especially in the interior of the country,” he says.
Therefore, the director of the SP explains that it works with the Rehabilitation department, through medical services and psychology, to raise awareness with the prison population and explain that there is no bad faith on the part of the entity, since in any case the governing body of this plan is the MSPAS.
THREE SOLUTIONS
Given the overcrowding that exists in prisons, the director of the SP assures that part of his work focuses on three actions to free the amount of population in the 22 centers, since the one in Guastatoya, El Progreso is still disabled.
On the one hand, the construction plan for a prison with the capacity to house more than 3,000 people continues, second, decentralization with inter-institutional agreements such as mayors, with the aim of opening smaller prisons, as was done in Malacatán, San Marcos.
Finally, work is being done to reduce the number of files in arrears. From 1,500 cases have been reduced to 60, which are pending delivery so that inmates can begin the process of redemption of sentence.
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