Source: En Vero English
May 2, 2020
Official Statement regarding New State Prison Policies in Times of COVID19
As a proud member of Civil Society, En Vero believes that, although governments are crucial to creating systemic change, it is the voices and will of the citizens and families that we need to listen to, in order to implement concrete and positive changes.
En Vero has worked tirelessly with our partners and some governments, including the Mexican government, to highlight the disproportionate amount of cases of people incarcerated under flawed or highly questionable processes. We have also illustrated the traumatic effects et the severe pain false imprisonments have on families, communities, and the victims themselves.
To their credit, some current administrations have been willing to listen, as they sought to verify cases of injustice with En Vero and other serious organisations in an effort to address the situation. It appears this input played a role in the announcement of new Amnesty laws for first time and minor offenders. The major factor of enacting this law is undoubtedly the incredible spread of the deadly Coronavirus, but we were proud to see the law include explicit language that not only acknowledged prisoners who were dubiously incarcerated, but indicated they would eventually be released.
However, while we do praise these efforts, we think these simply do not go far enough. It does not guarantee better conditions for existing prisoners during this pandemic. More importantly, it does not seek to resolve cases where these admittedly flawed processes resulted in the conviction of a major crime. The threshold for release of a prisoner incarcerated under flawed circumstances should not be based on the severity of the alleged crime, but rather on the fairness of the process. In sum: because releasing all falsely incarcerated individuals is simply an act of justice.
Since some governments have shown an openness to listen and act on helping us eradicate wrongful imprisonment, En Vero hopes this is only a first step on the long journey ahead. The next step must be a fast track review of cases where evidence shows severe flaws during the process or proves outright innocence, no matter the level of crime. And this step must be taken now.
Our hearts go out to all of the people whose lives have been cut short due to the Coronavirus outbreaks. What we hear from the communities and families we serve is that a loss of life after a loss of liberty compounds their grief. En Vero urges governments, especially the Colombian and the Mexican ones, not to disregard these pleas or further delay justice in the most uncertain of times.
Thank you.
