The Association of Volunteers for the Reintegration of Prisoners in Haiti (AVRED) deplores the fact that what was once the Center for the Re-education of Minors in Conflict with the Law (CERMICOL), conceived as a space for the supervision, education, and reintegration of minors, has been transformed, under the pressure of security and prison crises, into a tripartite detention center where minors, women, and men, displaced from prisons destroyed by gang violence and increased insecurity, are now housed together.

AVRED, which focused on two categories of detainees (minors and women), observes that the vast majority of those deprived of their liberty at CERMICOL have never been tried. They are imprisoned, sometimes for years, without any conviction, in violation of the fundamental principle of the presumption of innocence. Of 88 underage boys, none have been convicted; of 14 underage girls, only one has been convicted; of 127 women detained, only 17 have been convicted...

The transformation of CERMICOL into a prison complex has exacerbated already precarious conditions : the infrastructure is not designed to accommodate such a diverse population of detainees; the lack of access to drinking water and adequate sanitation fosters the spread of disease; hygiene is insufficient, particularly for women, with limited access to menstrual hygiene products; and there is a lack of or insufficient regular medical care, in a context of heightened needs.

The food provided to detainees and underage girls is largely inadequate, both in quantity and quality. Malnutrition weakens their bodies, especially those of growing girls and women who are often already vulnerable.

CERMICOL lacks both the architecture and the resources necessary to guarantee strict and secure separation between the different categories of detainees. The cohabitation of these three categories of detainees in the same environment poses serious problems.

This situation violates international standards, particularly those relating to the protection of children deprived of their liberty. It highlights a profound crisis in the prison and judicial system, where the most vulnerable—minors and women—pay the heaviest price.

AVRED Recommendations :

• Expedite case processing to drastically reduce pretrial detention;

• Establish special correctional hearings for minors and women;

• Promote alternatives to detention, particularly for minors and those convicted of minor offenses;

• Ensure strict separation between minors and adult women;

• Immediately improve sanitary and hygiene conditions;

• Guarantee regular access to medical care and hygiene products;

• Rehabilitate or rebuild suitable infrastructure for each category of detainee;

• Increase the budgets allocated to the prison administration;

• Integrate a human rights-based approach into prison management;

• Intensify humanitarian interventions (health, nutrition, hygiene);

• Strengthen legal assistance for detainees;

• Advocate for structural reform of the judicial and penitentiary system.

HL/ HaitiLibre