Going to jail in Costa Rica in 2013 may not be so bad if you can believe the works of Justice Minister, Fernando Ferraro, who promises an improvement in the prison infrastructure and the overcrowding problem.
The increase in crime in the country has resulted in an increase of prisoners that has oversaturated an already overburdened prison system
According to a study by the Estado de la Nación (State of the Union) the increase of inmates in the country’s prison system between 2010 and 2010 was by 6000 people.
No doubt that the country is experiencing a crisis in overpopulation despite the construction of more than spaces for 1.000 inmates. Worse yet, if no immediate action is taken, the situation will not improve.
Ferraro told the press this week that using funds from the Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo (BID) there is to start simultaneous construction of nine modules in the coming weeks, that will house some 2.700 inmates.
The minister added that the overpopulation situation and lack of financial resources impedes improving rehabiliation conditions for the inmates.
Working with other institutions, Ferraro said the Justice Ministry plans to work on preventing inmates from repeating their crime patterns so as not to be back behind bars.
