Honduras
Prison Massacre – Honduras militarizes penitentiary system
An ambulance is parked at the entrance to the women’s prison in Tamara, on the outskirts of Tegucigalpa. photo
© Elmer Martinez/AP/dpa
46 people die in bloody gun battles in a women’s prison. The government is now taking action.
As a consequence of the massacre in a prison in Honduras with 46 dead, the military police will take over control of the penal system in the future. From July 1st, the military will manage the 21 prisons in the Central American country for a year, the Presidential Office announced on Thursday night (local time). During this time, at least 2,000 new prison guards are to be recruited and trained.
The government of left-wing President Xiomara Castro also announced that it would use the armed forces for public security tasks. In addition, the state of emergency is to be expanded and extended. Since December last year, constitutional rights such as freedom of movement and assembly and the inviolability of the home have been restricted in 123 communities.
Massacre according to police direct attack
The massacre in the Támara women’s prison on Tuesday was, according to the police, a targeted attack by a group of prisoners on members of a rival gang. Members of the youth gang Pandilla 18 (also called Barrio 18) are believed to have attacked members of the rival gang Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), imprisoned them and started a fire, police spokesman Miguel Martínez said. 23 of the women died in the fire, the others were killed with firearms and blunt weapons.
After the bloody crime, Security Minister Ramón Antonio Sabillón Pineda had to vacate his post. Also dismissed were the members of a special commission appointed in April to deal with the prison crisis. Violent acts have occurred in several prisons in Honduras in recent weeks.