Twelve inmates die in Uruguay prison fire
MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay
A short-circuiting heater is believed to have caused the fire,
which spread quickly to mattresses and wooden bed frames. Eight
other inmates were hospitalized with serious burns. The prison
built for 60 houses 120 inmates -- overcrowding typical in Uruguay's
28 prisons, Alvaro Garce, the parliamentary prison commissioner,
told The Associated Press earlier this week.
President Jose Mujica -- a former leftist guerrilla who twice
escaped from prison during Uruguay's dictatorship -- called for
increased security and better conditions for inmates in a radio
address on Tuesday.
"Clearly, the growth of the prison population in recent years
has caused overcrowding that goes against human rights," he said.
"How can we speak of rehabilitation if we have all kinds of
inmates housed together and the better part of our prisons have
become places where people are piled up?"
The president also wants to increase the army's role. Soldiers
already guard prison perimeters, but Mujica wants 600 troops to
inspect people and packages at the doors. "It is unbelievable what
goes in and out," he said, referring to the drugs, weapons and
cell phones found in prisons.
Mujica's proposal has the support of the Defense Ministry and
Garce, who said "I think the presence of soldiers will provide
immediate results."
UN Special Rapporteur Manfred Nowak raised concerns about
Uruguay's prison crowding and human rights violations in a highly
critical report in March.
