national

Making room for prisoners

The Ministerio de Gobierno y Justicia opened the public bidding process yesterday for the construction of new cell blocks at penitentiaries in the provinces of Chiriquí y Colón.

Prison authorities report that the construction of both cell blocks, each of which will have the capacity to hold 300 prisoners, will cost around 1.7 million per structure.

Prison officials hope the construction of these two new buildings will reduce overcrowding in the existing penal institutions.

There are currently 1,020 inmates in the Chiriquí penitentiary and 1,362 in Colón, according to official figures.

The architectural plans currently in the possession of the Dirección de Proveeduría, show that the new structures will have an administrative area, visiting rooms, legal consultation spaces, a kitchen, laundry room, as well as an area for conjugal visits and medical attention.

Last month, the Ministerio de Gobierno y Justicia gave the order to proceed with the construction of a medium-security cell block in the La Joya prison in eastern Panama province. That is being financed by Taiwan at a cost of $1.4 million.