their liberty and the persons visiting them;
(e) Establish clear rules about the use of weapons within prisons, so as to ensure that they are used in strict conformity
with the principles of proportionality and necessity. A register of the use of any means of coercion, including non-lethal
means, should be kept.
87.The Subcommittee takes note of the information provided by the State that after its visit, a commission was set up to investigate
the role of the so-called “limpieza” (cleaners). The Subcommittee hopes to be informed of the conclusions of the study.
88.The Subcommittee interviewed a number of inmates of facilities in the province of Buenos Aires who were enrolled in the
“violence-prevention wings Programme”, under which persons are held in isolation for 23 hours a day for nine months, with one hour
outside in an individual yard. However, the Programme does not appear to address the root causes of violence. The Subcommittee
takes note of the information provided by the State party, according to which, after its visit an evaluation was carried out of the
Programme and it was decided to discontinue it. The inmates enrolled in the Programme have been transferred to the “Provincial
Violence-Prevention Programme”, which gives priority to establishing guidelines for coexistence so as to lower levels of conflict, with
the help of specialists from different disciplines.
C.Juvenile detention centres
89.The Subcommittee visited the Almafuerte closed centre in La Plata and the closed centre in Lomas de Zamora. In the former, in
addition to the poor state of repair of the facilities, the Subcommittee found an oppressive regime of confinement under which the
inmates are kept constantly in closed spaces (cell, refectory, school and yard), and are unable to move freely and unhindered
between these places. They have only sporadic access to open-air recreation grounds, even though the centre has a field next door.
In the common area or canteen, where the young detainees spend much of the day doing virtually nothing, just getting to the bathroom
is a problem, given that they must request a member of staff to open the door and go with them. Furthermore, they spend long
periods during the day in their single cells. Disciplinary punishment consists of being kept in solitary confinement in their cells for up to
10 days. Inspections, for which they are obliged to strip naked and bend over, take place twice a day.
90.A similar disciplinary regime is in place at the Lomas de Zamora centre. Although the rules on free time in the yard are not as strict
as in Almafuerte, they remain excessive, given that inmates are allowed out only every other day. The Subcommittee received
information relating to the lack of effective judicial control of the punishments imposed on the young detainees in these centres.
Sometimes, the punishments are not even registered, so as not to give lawyers any grounds for intervening.
91.In both centres, it was found that the youth workers lack training and expertise, as they themselves recognized, so that proper
basic training programmes with periodic refresher courses need to be set up urgently. It was also found that there was a shortage of
professionals, including teachers and psychologists, working in both centres, and that their material working conditions are poor and
the equipment available inadequate. In the Lomas de Zamora centre, for example, teaching time is limited to one-and-a-half hours per
pupil per day.
92.Many of the young inmates, including minors, whom the Subcommittee interviewed spoke of having been beaten and subjected to
other ill-treatment by police at the time of arrest and in police stations. They also said they felt that having committed one offence
stigmatized them for life.
93. In conformity with international standards the Subcommittee recommends to the State party that it:
(a) Take measures to amend the punitive culture that prevails in juvenile detention centres and to ensure that the regime
in those centres favours social rehabilitation rather than isolation. Daily physical exercise in the open air should be
guaranteed;
(b) Expand the training available with a view to facilitating the social reintegration of the young persons;
(c) Maintain and encourage the participation of parents throughout the period of socio-educational measures to allow the
young people to remain constantly in contact with their families;
(d) Guarantee that the young peoples may receive free and independent legal representation and have access to an
independent and effective complai nts mechanism for ill-treatment;
(e) Draw up a plan to improve, at both the federal and provincial levels, the infrastructure and the training of staff who
work with young detainees.
D.Psychiatric institutions
94.The Subcommittee visited psychiatric establishments, including institutions for persons whose confinement had been ordered in
connection with criminal proceedings, and establishments accommodating, in addition to those admitted voluntarily, patients sectioned
as a result of civil proceedings.
95.The National Mental Health Act (No. 26657), which was adopted in November 2010, applies in all circumstances throughout the
national territory. When it was adopted, the Act was widely acknowledged to be an important step towards guaranteeing the rights of
persons with mental or psychosocial disorders and towards improving their treatment and situation. Nevertheless, the Act’s enabling
legislation has not yet been adopted, and as a result its application is partial and depends on the interpretation, resources and
understanding of each institution. The lack of enabling legislation is compounded by unresolved divisions within the profession and by
the corporatist interests of sectors that feel excluded from and dissatisfied with the new health-service model introduced by the Act.