Alarming numbers: 43 inmates have taken their own lives in Italian prisons since the beginning of 2024, 16 of whom were awaiting trial.
An unacceptable fact that has pushed politicians and trade unions to raise the alarm and ask the government for immediate intervention.
Among the main causes of the tragedies are the lack of adequate measures for the psychological support of prisoners, the excessive use of pre-trial detention, and the structural deficiencies of penitentiary institutions.
Amnesty and pardon among the proposals
Among the proposed solutions are pardons, amnesties, the decriminalization of certain crimes, and greater use of alternatives to prison.
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The unions of the penitentiary police force denounce the working conditions of the agents, often forced to deal with situations of great tension with insufficient means, and ask for an increase in staff and resources.
The opposition attacks the government for its inertia in the face of the prison emergency, calling it "irresponsibly absent." The Minister of Justice, Carlo Nordio, is asked to withdraw the Security bill, seen as a step in the opposite direction to the necessary one.
Among the stories of the prisoners suicide, that of a 74-year-old man in Teramo, ill for some time and waiting for an alternative measure that never arrived. "He was killed by the Italian state", reports his lawyer.
The situation in Italian prisons is unsustainable and requires concrete action from the government. The measures announced so far do not appear sufficient to stem this loss of human lives. A change of direction is needed, aimed at improving the living conditions of inmates, protecting human rights, and promoting social rehabilitation.
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