This competence is also reflected in several initiatives for the promotion and protection of human rights, above all those that, due to age, health condition or other limitations (children, the elderly, migrants or persons deprived of their liberty), are in a situation of particular vulnerability. 3.2. Project «Ombudsman, prisons and the 21st century: reports on some of the visits» The questions related to the prison system have always integrated the function that is constitutional and legally attributed to this State body. If the mission of promoting and defending human rights is per si as noble as it is complex, it assumes the intricate design of filigree when it concerns the rights of the people who are in a situation of greater vulnerability, such as those that are deprived or limited in their freedom. For this reason, the Ombudsman determined that in the course of 2016 he would visit the Portuguese prisons, in order to know and understand, now and in the voice of those who are in seclusion, the problems that are part of our prison system. These problems concern not only prisoners and their rights, but also cover the concerns and discontentment of prison guards, officials and all persons who represent and constitute the penitentiary universe. In this sense, the reference year for this report was marked by the completion of the project «Ombudsman, prisons and the twenty-first century: reports of some of the visits», in which the Ombudsman visited the following penitentiary establishments: Lisbon ( January 19), Prison of Tires (February 4), Prison of Vale de Judeus (February 23), Prison of Coimbra (April 18), Prison of Ponta Delgada (May 4), Monsanto Prison ( June 27), Prison Establishment of Funchal ( June 19), Leiria Prison for Young People (September 16), Évora Prison Establishment (November 17) and Military Prison Establishment). From these visits, a set of reports was drawn up which, drafted in a diary, made known to the community the main observations and concerns that the Ombudsman stressed in each of the visits, thus fostering joint reflection on the prison system and the problems that plague it. It should also be noted that the reality found in these visits - coupled, in part, with some communications and complaints received by or in the interest of prisoners - prompted the opening of two Ombudsman procedures, one on the quantity and quality of food provided in portuguese prisons and another on the conditions for the realization of the right of access for prisoners to security, above all with regard to visits and contact of children. The project Ombudsman, the prisons and the 21st century: reports on some of the visits will continue its development throughout the year 2017. | 79