Brasília, 7/12/2004 (Agência Brasil) - Projects for social reintegration and assistance for former prison inmates will be worked out in greater detail from now on, says Leila Paiva, who is the new coordinator of the government program for that sector (Coordenadoria Geral de Reintegração Social e Apoio ao Egresso do Departamento Penitenciário Nacional) (Depen), which is housed in the Ministry of Justice. "We intend to work closely with ex-convicts, as well as their families, while being objective about results and impacts," declared Paiva, explaining that the goal was to get former prison inmates reintegrated into the labor market and their families, as well as providing them with legal assistance.
In the second half of this year, Depen is scheduled to release a detailed survey of the situation in Brazilian prisons at the state level. The survey asks 520 questions. "It will give us more data on prisons and inmates. We cannot formulate policy with our eyes closed," says Paiva, adding that it is important for the effort to be a partnership of the Judiciary, civil society, government lawyers and NGOs. "We especially need the Judiciary to apply and monitor noncustodial sentencing. We need that very much," she said.
As for civil society, its participation is seen as fundamental. "Judges alone cannot carry the load. We need people to make the system more efficient," said Paiva. She adds that it is also important for a national pact that will bring all the players together in drawing up strategies to deal with the problem and find solutions. "We intend to work with methods that are thought out, unified and tried. We need projects that have worked, that are efficient, and that can be used in various states," she declared.
Depen data shows that there is a deficit of 60,714 places in Brazilian prisons, where, at the moment, some 308,000 inmates are incarcerated. Each one of those inmates costs US$326 (R$1,000) per month. Only 10% of those found guilty get noncustodial sentencing in Brazil. Studies by the Ministry of Justice show that 20% of those convicted could get non-custodial sentencing. "[more noncustodial sentencing] would ease the pressure, keep people out of the prison system when it is not necessary, and we can still have the serving their sentences," says Paiva.
Minister of Justice, Marcio Thomaz Bastos, has repeatedly urged the use of noncustodial sentencing. Most recently, at hearings last month in Congress, Bastos pointed out that in England fully 80% of criminal cases result in noncustodial sentencing, while in Brazil it is less than 10%. "We simply have people in prison who should not be there. In prison they are corrupted, degraded and recruited by criminal gangs," said the minister.
Repórter:Luciana Vasconcelos
(Translator: Allen Bennett)
