II This recommendation results of the visit that I made to the Prison Facility of Horta, during which I had the opportunity to hold private conversations with thirteen persons deprived of their liberty who expressed this desire (of a total population of twenty-three people), as well with the responsible for surveillance. In fact, last May 28th, I, as National Preventive Mechanism(20), personally the Prison Facility of Horta, a support’s establishment located in Faial, Autonomous Region of the Azores. I was accompanied by a member of the Steering Committee. According to the NPM’s preventive function(21) and the specific nature of the visited establishment, it was my purpose to analyse how it is given the support to the inmates, especially by the direction and by the technical services. As I mentioned, I had the opportunity to dialogue with the chief of the prison guards, I visited the installations and I heard, in private conversations, the thirteen prisoners who wanted to talk to me. At the organizational level, but not only in this one, I verified that the daily routine of this prison facility – which is a small detention place – is linked to the dynamic that is determined by the main establishment, the Prison of Angra do Heroísmo, where the direction and the technical services are installed. I noted, from the outset, that there is a certain feeling of detachment between the inmates as well as between the guards. This idea does not result from the physical absence of director, which has marked regular presence in the prison of Horta. In 2014, he made five visits for periods of five working days, and also in the current year, he made a visit, being expected another one soon. In each visit, according to what was told, the director personally contact with all the inmates. On the contrary, the intervention of Education Services, based inprison of Angra do Heroísmo, has not the indication of any visit made in the last two years. In short, and specifically about the visit’s object – the direction’s presence and the technical support in the prison of Horta –, it was clear that the intervention of Education Services’ technicians was non-existent. (20)  In Portugal, the quality of National Preventive Mechanism has been attributed to the Ombudsman, through the Council of Ministers Resolution no. 32/2013, May 20th. (21)  The Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, which intend to establish a system of regular visits undertaken by independent international and national bodies to places where people are deprived of their liberty, in order to prevent torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, was ratified by Portugal in 2012, through the Decree of the President of the Republic no. 167/2012, of December 13th. | 79