A/HRC/4/40/Add.3 page 18 83. While the lack of clear records in police stations meant that the delegation was unable to observe these irregularities, it did have interviews with a large number of detainees in Bluefields police station, over the period of several weeks, who said that they had not been brought before any judge, although it was not possible, from the registers that were produced, to verify the exact stage that they had reached in their proceedings. B. “Los Donados” 84. In the correctional institutions which it visited, the delegation encountered detainees, most of them already serving sentences, who had practically no communication with the outside world, either because they were being held in prisons far from the departments where they lived, or because their relatives were unable or unwilling to visit them, or because they had no funds to pay for the services of a lawyer. These prisoners are sometimes called - and they call themselves - “los Donados” - that is to say, they have been dumped as “gifts” on the prison system. Apart from the tragic nature of their plight, this situation could also give rise to arbitrary detention, since these persons are incapable of exercising privileges to which they might be entitled, such as, for example, parole once they have served part of their sentence. The delegation noted that poverty, marginalization and lack of education impeded the exercise of the rights and powers accorded to them by law. Some prisoners complained that they had already completed their sentences but were not being released because there was no one to whom they could turn to perform the necessary formalities. Enforcement judges and the public defenders must give particular attention to the situation of these persons. The delegation came away with the impression that, while civil society organizations and, in particular, the churches, may be conducting excellent material and spiritual welfare work among the prison population, there were no civil society initiatives under way to provide legal assistance and protection to those persons, such as “los Donados”, who appeared to need it most urgently. C. Disproportionate severity of penalties for offences relating to the sale and use of narcotics 85. The working group is aware that, since the Nicaraguan coastline runs through one of the major shipping areas for drug traffickers, the authorities have particular international obligations and a specific national interest in taking firm action against such traffickers. The criminal provisions contained in Act No. 285 and its practical application arouse certain concerns, however, falling within the mandate of the Working Group. 86. In the first place, given the geographical situation of the country, the legislation is geared towards firmly combating international drugs trafficking and handing down criminal penalties on drug traffickers using Nicaragua and its territorial waters for the transit of such merchandise. In practice, however, it is primarily users and small-scale traffickers who are punished, generally the least significant among the local traffickers. These individuals usually belong to the poorest and most vulnerable population sectors. Women and, in particular, mothers and housewives, are disproportionately affected by the anti-drugs legislation. As already noted above, of the 177 inmates in the La Esperanza women’s prison, 147 are serving drugs-related sentences.