REPORT ON THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE AND

UNCLAS ASUNCION 000568

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR CA/OCS/WHA - S. CRAWFORD WHA/BSC -
SMURRAY, DRL

DS FOR DS/DSS/ITA, DS/IP/WHA
POSTS FOR CONSULAR

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ASEC CASC CMGT PA
SUBJECT: REPORT ON THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE AND
CORRECTIONAL SYSTEM IN PARAGUAY


1. Summary: Vice-Consul interviewed four
individuals working in Paraguay's correctional
system to obtain information on prisons and the
criminal justice system. There are 13 correctional
facilities in Paraguay housing approximately 5,000
inmates. Jails are overcrowded and inmates live in
squalid, dangerous conditions. 383 of these inmates
are foreign nationals although none are American
citizens. Procedures for notifying Embassies when
foreign nationals are arrested are in place although
their effectiveness outside of the capital city is
unknown. End Summary.

INTRODUCTION


2. This report contains information obtained from
interviews conducted during March, April and May of
2006 with four individuals working in the
correctional system in Paraguay. The individuals
interviewed are as follows:

Michael Lynch, member of Hermanos Cristianos
missionary group, Irish national who has been in
Paraguay for 20 years working as a consultant in the
correctional system
Teofilo Baez, director of Tacumbu, Paraguay's
largest correctional facility
Mercedes Isidro Ruiz Diaz, director of the
youth correctional facility
Trifilo Zaracho, Director of Penal Institutions
(Director de Instituciones Penales)

FACILITIES IN PARAGUAY


3. There are 13 jail facilities in Paraguay that
house approximately 5,000 inmates. In Asuncion and
Ciudad del Este there are separate jails for men and
and
women. In Encarnacion, Concepcion, San Pedro,
Misiones, Villarica, Pedro Juan Caballero, Coronel
Oveido and Emboscada one facility houses both men
and women. Emboscada is the maximum security
facility. There is one additional facility for male
juveniles in Itaua. Tacumbu, the jail for males in
Asuncion, is by far the largest facility and houses
approximately 3,200 inmates, The facility in Ciudad
del Este is the second-largest and houses 700
inmates. El Buen Pastor, the women's jail in
Asuncion, houses approximately 200 female offenders.

DIRECTORATE OF PENAL INSTITUTIONS (DIRECCION DE
INSTITUCIONES PENALES)


4. The Directorate of Penal Institutions is
responsible for oversight of all of the facilities.
The Directorate is a division of the Vice-Ministery
of Justice (Vice-Ministerio de Justicia),which is
in turn a part of the Ministery of Justice and Labor
(Ministerio de Justicia y Trabajo). The position of
Director of Penal Institutions is a political
appointment. Currently, Mr. Teofilo Zaracho, a
retired policeman, is the appointee. Mr. Zaracho
has participated in several training programs at the
FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia. These trips were
sponsored by the Embassy RSO office.


5. Mr. Zaracho stated that the Directorate faces
two primary problems. The first is overcrowding.
Tacumbu, which was originally designed for 1,000
inmates, now houses 3,200. The jail in Ciudad del
Este was designed for 300 but now houses 700. The
second is lack of compliance with the International
Declaration of Prisoner's Rights. This declaration
mandates that pre-trial detainees be kept separate
from inmates who have already been tried and
sentenced. As pre-trial detainees have not been
convicted of any crime and in most countries are
innocent until proven guilty, their custody needs
and rights are somewhat different from individuals

who have been convicted of crimes. In the United
States, this distinction constitutes the difference
between prisons (where sentenced inmates are housed)
and jails or detention facilities (where inmates are
kept in pre-trial confinement or where inmates
sentenced to less than one year are housed). In
Paraguay, arrestees awaiting the outcome of their
legal processes are housed in the same facilities as
those who have already been found guilty and are
serving their sentences. In Tacumbu there are only
784 sentenced inmates out of a total of 3,168. The
remaining 2,384 are detainees awaiting the outcomes
of their legal proceedings. (From this it can be
inferred that the majority of those who are formally
tried are not eventually sentenced to prison time.)


6. Mr. Zaracho informed me that the Directorate is
trying to resolve both of these issues with the
construction of a new facility behind Tacumbu that
will house approximately 280 sentenced inmates.
There will be a work program associated with this
new wing in which inmates can learn skills and also
save money so that they are not released without any
financial resources. The Directorate is also
constructing a new facility in San Pedro. Both of
these construction projects have been funded and are
currently underway.

CONDITIONS IN FACILITES


7. The overcrowding mentioned by Mr. Zaracho is
responsible for some of the wretched conditions
described by Michael Lynch, the Irish missionary.
He states that the conditions are horrendous,
particulary at Tacumbu. Inmates sleep in the halls
on the floor with no mattreses. The guards do not
protect the inmates from each other and there is no
protective segregation of more vulnerable inmates.
The only way that an inmate can obtain some level of
security is by paying the guards. According to
Lynch, there are regularly violent confrontations
and murders in Tacumbu that are never reported in
the press.


8. Lynch did say that the conditions at the
facility for juveniles are substantially better.
There are currently 150 male juveniles housed at the
Educational Center (Centro Educacional) in Itagua,
located approximately 45 minutes from Asuncion. The
director of this institution is proud of his
facility and described a rehabilitation program and
conditions that are in strict compliance with the
Hague Convention on Children's Rights. The
discrepancy in the treatment of juvenile offenders
and adult offenders is likely due to cultural
factors in Paraguay, which define juvenile offenders
as salvageable, while tending to view adult
offenders as beyond hope. The maximum sentence for
minors in Paraguay is 8 years. If the minor turns
18 while serving his sentence and has behaved well,
he serves the remainder of his time at the youth
facility. If he has been problematic, he is
transferred to Tacumbu. Supervision and oversight
of the juvenile correctional system is handled by a
Directorate within the Vice-Ministry of Justice
dedicated exclusively to juveniles.

FROM ARREST TO CONFINEMENT


9. When an individual is arrested, s/he is taken to
the police station closest to the location where
s/he was arrested. The police station has 6 hours
to notify the prosecutor of the arrest. The
prosecutor then has another 18 hours during which to
decide whether to prosecute the arrestee. If s/he
decides to prosecute the case, there is a formal
indictment within 24 hours in front of a judge who
either affirms or denies the prosecutor's decision.
If the individual is not a flight risk and the crime

was not severe, s/he can be sent home to await
his/her trial. If the judge decides that the
arrestee should remain in custody, s/he is sent to
the facility closest to the arrest site. The police
department decides placement at this stage. The
arrestee can remain at the police station for a
maximum of 11 days prior to placement in a formal
detention facility. According to Mr. Lynch, those
able to pay the police officers generally stay at
the police station for longer than those without
funds, who are quickly transferred. Mr. Lynch
stated that the conditions at the police stations
are just as miserable as those at the institutions,
however, while at the police station, the arrestee
does not have to contend with other prisoners.

FROM CONFINEMENT TO TRIAL TO SENTENCING


10. After an individual is indicted, the prosecutor
is given six months during which to complete the
investigation and develop the evidence for trial.
Extensions can be granted but are not common. If
the defendant is convicted, the judge imposes a
sentence and determines where s/he should be
confined. This usually coincides with the facility
in which s/he is currently being held, although
exceptions can be made for security reasons or on
humanitarian grounds. The maximum sentence in
Paraguay is 25 years, however a recently passed law
in response to a rash of kidnappings stipulates that
kidnappers can be sentenced to another 10 years in
addition to the standard maximum of 25. After
serving 50% of their sentence, the inmate can
request a pardon. Whether they are granted this
pardon usually depends on the gravity of the crime.
If s/he is not pardoned, s/he is eligible for parole
after serving 75% of his/her sentence. Whether
parole is granted is determined primarily by the
person's conduct within the institution. However,
in order to qualify for either a pardon or parole,
the inmate must have strong links to and roots in
Paraguay as s/he must remain in the country through
the expiration of their sentence. This requirement
would make it difficult for American citizen inmates
to obtain relief unless they had been permanent
residents of Paraguay prior to their arrest.

NOTIFICATION OF EMBASSIES


11. The primary responsibility for notifying an
Embassy when a foreign national is arrested lies
with the police stations. As this does not always
happen, the detention facilities are responsible for
confirming that notification has taken place. Mr.
Zaracho and Mr. Baez both indicated that as there
are a relatively large number of foreign nationals
in the correctional system in Paraguay, primarily
Brazilians, Argentines and Bolivians, this
notification system is relatively well-developed and
functions efficiently.


12. There are currently 383 foreign nationals in
custody in Paraguay, 156 of whom are held at
Tacumbu. Ciudad del Este, Pedro Juan Caballero and
el Buen Pastor also house significant numbers of
foreign nationals. To Post's knowledge, none of the
foreign nationals are American citizens. At Tacumbu
there is an intake process during which the arrestee
is assessed and a brief medical exam is given. At
this point, the staff member conducting the
assessment asks if he is a citizen of any country
other than Paraguay. If he is and indicates that
his Embassy has not yet been contacted, the
Directorate of Penal Institutions is notified who
then notifies the appropriate Embassy. It appears
that this procedure may not be as well-established
in facilities in other parts of the country.


13. Comment: Although Paraguay's correctional

system is woefully underfunded and conditions for
inmates are deplorable, government authorities do
appear to be attempting to address some of its
shortcomings. Post has noticed that, even in
Asuncion, notification does not always occur in a
timely manner. Outreach to police stations in the
capital city and to the detention facilities outside
of Asuncion may be helpful in ameliorating this
situation. Administrative staff appear to be
favorably disposed to the U.S. and would likely
assist in any such efforts.

JOHNSON