CAT/OP/PER/1 establish the position of judge for sentence enforcement and prison oversight, a step already proposed by the Ombudsman’s Office and some sectors of the judiciary. D. The problem of corruption 121. Corruption, a problem recognized by the National Prison Institute, permeates the entire prison system and involves all actors, including prison staff (in certain establishments even high-ranking officials), persons deprived of their liberty and outsiders. Corruption defines a system of relations in which every aspect of the daily life of persons deprived of their liberty is subject to a financial transaction. This includes, for example, the right to receive food from outside to supplement an inadequate diet; access to certain blocks or cells in the prison; doing paid work; communication with the outside, especially with family members, through visits or by telephone; administration of prison benefit claims; access to medical treatment; and paying to avoid transfers and solitary confinement in punishment cells, for example. 122. In the prisons visited by the Subcommittee, everything has a price. An exception to this was found in one of the women’s prisons visited, where persons deprived of their liberty stated that they were only asked for money in the form of a fee in order to be paid for their work. A similar situation was observed in the female wing of Ancón II prison. At this prison the management appears to be making efforts to eliminate corruption and limit practices conducive to corruption, such as the persons deprived of their liberty having money in their possession. However, the persons deprived of their liberty being held in the foreigners’ wing of this prison said that they had been forced to make illegal payments to prison staff. 123. Testimony about corrupt practices was also received in establishments other than prisons. For example, in the Lima courthouse cells some persons deprived of their liberty said that in exchange for money one could be sent to a prison near one’s family and home. In some police stations persons deprived of their liberty complained that the police had stolen their money and belongings, and the Subcommittee witnessed one such incident. 124. The Subcommittee believes that corruption is related to the occurrence of torture and ill-treatment — that these are independent but mutually reinforcing issues. People are brought into the system of corruption under duress and then become corrupt so as not to suffer abuse (e.g., to avoid transfer or punishment). Corruption discriminates against those who do not join the system, making them vulnerable to ill-treatment. Corruption ensures silence, blocks complaints and guarantees impunity. In a system of corruption as closed and all-encompassing as the one observed by the Subcommittee there is no choice but to join and no way to get out. Prison workers’ low pay exacerbates the problem. 125. The Subcommittee is concerned at allegations it received to the effect that the judicial system’s attitude to the problem of corruption is one of indifference, ignorance or lack of interest. This is reflected in the lack of in-depth checks, particularly by the Public Prosecution Service, which, as guarantor of the rights of persons deprived of their liberty, is the competent authority in combating this problem. 126. The scale and entrenched nature of the problem of corruption require a very high level of political commitment and a proactive and comprehensive approach in order to achieve meaningful reform. The Subcommittee notes with interest the proposals by the National Prison Institute to fight corruption, and trusts that they can be implemented. In this connection, the Subcommittee wishes to reaffirm that (a) there will be no real solution without a thorough overhaul of prison and police staffing, including senior staff; and that (b) while it is possible that many officials could be reabsorbed into a new system imbued with a new ethic, many situations will require an impartial administrative investigation and possibly dismissal of the staff concerned. 127. The Subcommittee recommends: (a) The adoption and implementation by the Government of a firm and transparent zero-tolerance policy towards corruption that also addresses the structural conditions that lead to it; 18 GE.17-13638