That in seven of the nine Catalan prisons yesterday the assembly consensus of the officials was maintained not to recover normality in the prisons shows to what extent the murder on Thursday of the cook Nuria López at the hands of a prisoner revealed a crisis that has been dragging on for a long time. time.
The workers accuse the Ministry of Justice, in the hands of ERC since 2016, of failing to protect them and abandoning them in the face of certain profiles of conflictive inmates with the approval of protocols that prohibit restraints and that deny them the old claim of being considered agents of the authority.
Iulian Odriste, 48 years old and sentenced to 11 years for murdering another woman, had been working in the kitchen of Mas Enric for more than four years, hired by the Center for Reintegration Initiatives (CIRE), a public company of the Generalitat.
No, although in December Nuria López’s murderer was charged with punching another inmate. The inmate was kept away for two weeks, but returned to the kitchen. Another worker at the facility complained about her return, but not Nuria.
They are hired by the CIRE and at a salary infinitely lower than that of a professional. Odriste received 200 euros a month for working precisely in the kitchen, one of the best-paid jobs in the prison.
On Thursday afternoon Nuria López was murdered and the need to protest spontaneously began to multiply in the officials’ communication groups. The first action was carried out on Friday at the doors of the Department of Justice in Barcelona. Until now the decisions have been assembly-based.
The main prison unions are on the side of the majority sentiment of the staff, but in a secondary role. Until Saturday, they participated as spokespersons in the media. Yesterday, the workers elected new non-union spokespersons from among the officials who will hold a press conference today.
Despite spending several days without normality in their methodical lives behind bars, the general behavior of the inmates is being exemplary. The most complex day was Saturday when the inmates eagerly await communication with their families. Both outside and inside the centers, the reaction of understanding from family members and inmates was general. But officials know that the situation cannot be delayed.
Several factors have weighed on the assembly’s decision to sign a truce in which the prisoners can recover a certain normality. The fear of opening files has weighed on the one hand, but also the responsibility of a group of professionals who live day and night with a prison population that has not and should not be the most harmed by the protests.