13 dead in Venezuela prison disturbance
At least 13 prisoners have died of drug overdoses
after inmates at an overcrowded prison in Venezuela stormed an infirmary
during protests demanding better living conditions, officials reported.
Activists said Thursday the death toll could be far higher, reports AP.
The disturbances at the David Viloria penitentiary began Monday when a group of inmates went on a hunger strike to force out the jail's new warden, according to the Prisons Ministry.
National Guardsmen were called in to restore calm and dozens of prisoners were transferred. The government said 145 inmates were being treated for intoxication. But the situation remained tense Thursday and prisoner rights activists cast doubt on the government's version, calling for an investigation to determine why inmates would have voluntarily taken highly toxic medicines.
"I don't think anyone is so stupid to ingest drugs just as a form of protest," Humberto Prado, coordinator of the Venezuelan Observatory of Prisons, told The Associated Press.
Prado said the death toll may be as high as 25, according to reports from inmates' relatives and activists on the ground at hospitals and the morgue in the western city of Barquisimeto, where the prison is located.
The government said the situation is under control and all prisoners' rights are being respected.
Venezuela's prison population has doubled since 2008 as a result of rampant crime and stiffer mandatory sentences. Overall, the country's 32 correction facilities are the fifth most-crowded in the world, housing almost three times their intended capacity, according to the London-based International Centre for Prison Studies.
The David Viloria prison is named for a guard who was one of 58 people killed at the facility last year during the second-deadliest prison riot in Venezuela's history. Prado said the facility, previously called La Uribana, was built to hold no more than 850 inmates but was believed to be holding around 3,700 before the latest disturbances.
Prado's group says that so far this year 150 inmates have died and another 110 injured in the country's lockups.
"Prison life is real tough in the world, but unfortunately in Venezuela it can be a death sentence," he said.
The disturbances at the David Viloria penitentiary began Monday when a group of inmates went on a hunger strike to force out the jail's new warden, according to the Prisons Ministry.
National Guardsmen were called in to restore calm and dozens of prisoners were transferred. The government said 145 inmates were being treated for intoxication. But the situation remained tense Thursday and prisoner rights activists cast doubt on the government's version, calling for an investigation to determine why inmates would have voluntarily taken highly toxic medicines.
"I don't think anyone is so stupid to ingest drugs just as a form of protest," Humberto Prado, coordinator of the Venezuelan Observatory of Prisons, told The Associated Press.
Prado said the death toll may be as high as 25, according to reports from inmates' relatives and activists on the ground at hospitals and the morgue in the western city of Barquisimeto, where the prison is located.
The government said the situation is under control and all prisoners' rights are being respected.
Venezuela's prison population has doubled since 2008 as a result of rampant crime and stiffer mandatory sentences. Overall, the country's 32 correction facilities are the fifth most-crowded in the world, housing almost three times their intended capacity, according to the London-based International Centre for Prison Studies.
The David Viloria prison is named for a guard who was one of 58 people killed at the facility last year during the second-deadliest prison riot in Venezuela's history. Prado said the facility, previously called La Uribana, was built to hold no more than 850 inmates but was believed to be holding around 3,700 before the latest disturbances.
Prado's group says that so far this year 150 inmates have died and another 110 injured in the country's lockups.
"Prison life is real tough in the world, but unfortunately in Venezuela it can be a death sentence," he said.
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