Asunción, Agencia IP.- The Government, through the Ministry of Justice, is implementing actions to locate the families of the deceased and former inmates who were victims of the fires that occurred between 1996 and 2001 at the former Panchito López Juvenile Correctional Facility, according to a ruling by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.
During these tragic events, 12 adolescents lost their lives, and many were injured. This initiative aims to comply with a ruling from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, which orders the state to provide medical, psychological, and vocational assistance to those affected and their families.
To this end, the Ministry of Justice has already established communication channels, including an online request form and an email address. Additionally, it can also be visited the office of the Directorate General of Human Rights, located at Brasil 1022 c/ Tte. Fariña, from 7:00 AM to 3:00 PM.
In an interview with the program Tribuna broadcasted by Paraguay TV, the Director of Human Rights, Rafael Escobar, explained that in addition to enabling a form on the Ministry’s website, a WhatsApp group was also created to facilitate communication with the identified victims. «This channel is available to respond to their needs and offer solutions,» he commented.
For her part, the Director of International Human Rights Affairs, Luján Ruiz Díaz, stated that it is extremely important for the Ministry of Justice to locate these individuals so that the state can rectify the human rights violations they suffered. «It is very important to provide the medical, psychological, and vocational assistance that the IACHR has ordered in its ruling,» she affirmed.
Escobar added that, although they have a database, many of those affected are now around 40 years old, and some have even changed their addresses. «From the Ministry of Justice, we are working on finding these people to, together with other institutions, provide them with the necessary assistance,» he emphasized.
In turn, the Director General of the National Service for the Attention of Adolescent Offenders (Senaai), Mabel Colmán, reported that there are currently eight educational centers for the detention of adolescents in Paraguay, distributed in two modalities: closed and semi-open.
«The first center was established in Itauguá, and then the others were created. Currently, there are seven centers for males and one for females, three of them in the central department and the rest in the interior of the country,» she detailed.
Colmán also highlighted that the Ministry of Justice is constantly working to improve the care in these centers. «We do not have overcrowding in any of them. In total, there are only 146 adolescents throughout the country, of whom six are female,» she explained.
Furthermore, she mentioned that in recent years there has been a focus on improving treatments to reduce recidivism. «Currently, only 22 percent of adolescents re-offend, either by committing new crimes or by not complying with the measures imposed by the courts. This is a much lower figure compared to previous years,» she assured.
Escobar concluded that among the most significant advancements since the Panchito López case ruling is the ongoing training of educators in the educational centers, who are fundamental in the rehabilitation of adolescents.
«We have a Superior Penitentiary Institute that trains the staff to prevent tragedies like those of the past from recurring,» he concluded.