Stay Connected
Atlanta Black Star/Caribbean
CaribbeanNewsWorld

Brazil to Spend Billions to Build New, More Modern Prisons to Reduce Chronic Overcrowding

Posted byBy Lena D | Published on: CommentsComments (0)

SÃO PAULO, BRAZIL — The Brazilian federal government announced on Wednesday, Dec. 28, that it would disburse $368,680,668.00 for the construction of new prisons and the modernization of the Brazilian penal system. The investments, say officials, will help reduce the chronic overcrowding in Brazilian prisons.

“The disbursement of these resources should allow measures and investments to be put in place as soon as possible, not only to modernize but also to humanize the conditions of the prison system in our country,” Alexandre Parola, President Temer’s spokesperson, stated during a press briefing.

According to Parola, this will be the “largest investment ever made in the penitentiary system in Brazil.” According to the spokesperson, $245,494,963.23 of the total amount will be earmarked for the construction of new penitentiaries with the objective of reducing the current overcrowding in prisons.

Officials admit there is currently a deficit of more than 249,000 vacancies in the Brazilian prison system. A study released by the Conselho Nacional do Ministerio Público (Public Prosecutors’ Office) on December 13 with regards to prison conditions in Brazil shows that “overcrowding is aggravated by the excessive number of temporary prisoners.”

About 40 percent of the total number of inmates in Brazilian prisons today are still awaiting trial, while the world’s average is around 25 percent, the office reported. The study shows that, in 2015, there were a little less than 400,000 places in public prisons for inmates, while there were a total of 566,819 men and women incarcerated in Brazilian prisons.

Another $98,628,139.17 is expected to be used in training personnel and the acquisition of new equipment, such as scanners that will replace the physical searches of visitors to the prisons. In recent years, prison rebellions were aided in part by guns, cellular telephones and goods brought in by visitors.

Read more here

 

 

Democracy needs journalism it can trust.

This election season, the stakes are higher than usual — and so is the pressure on newsrooms to soften their coverage, stay quiet, or just disappear. Independent reporting, the kind that answers to readers instead of advertisers or political pressure, matters more in a moment like this, not less.

For over 14 years, Atlanta Black Star has stayed independent and reader-funded. We have no corporate owner and no shareholders telling us what to cover or how to cover it. That independence is also our biggest vulnerability: nothing protects it except readers choosing to fund it directly.

Newspaper ad revenue has fallen more than 80% since 2005, and local newsrooms are closing at a rate of roughly two a week nationwide. When outlets go under in a moment like this, it's rarely the independent, reader-funded ones that get to stick around.

We know a request for support isn't why you came here. But without readers choosing to fund this work directly, the depth of reporting we can do at home and abroad shrinks along with everyone else's. If you're not in a position to give, that doesn't change how much we value you as a reader.

If you are able to, a recurring contribution does more for us than a single one-time gift, because it lets us plan the next investigation instead of just the next invoice. It takes about 30 seconds, no long form, no account. Thank you for continuing to support independent journalism and freedom of the press.

Give once Give monthly Support another way

Related Stories

Back to top