On 20 August 2012, armed prisoners in the Yare I prison complex, an overcrowded prison in Miranda state near Caracas, Venezuela, rioted. A shootout between two groups[1] resulted in the deaths of 25 people, one of them a visitor. Among those injured during the incident were 29 inmates and 14 visitors.[2]
Venezuela's prison system is heavily overcrowded; its facilities have capacity for only 14,000 prisoners, yet house over 50,000 inmates.[3] More than 300 prisoners die every year, and not all of it is due to overcrowding. Prisoners have easy access to machine guns, grenades, and narcotics.[3] According to the Venezuelan Prisons Observatory, in the first half of 2012 clashes between prison gangs left 304 dead – a 15% increase from the same period last year.[4]
-killing-25-002302881.html|access-date=21 August 2012|newspaper=Yahoo! News|date=20 August 2012}}</ref> President Hugo Chávez announced a program to reduce the violence and the overcrowding in Venezuela's prison systems.[4]
With an upcoming presidential election, the prison chaos in Venezuela was a politically sensitive issue for Venezuela's president.[5] Chávez blamed the past regimes before he took office in 1999 for the current problems in Venezuela's prison system, while Henrique Capriles Radonski, the opposition leader, stated on Twitter after the prison riot that Chávez's administration has been oblivious of reforms.[5]
The deadliest prison massacre in Venezuela's history occurred in 1994 at Maracaibo National Jail, where around 130 inmates were burned to death or butchered with machetes during a gang fight and ethnic feud.[5][6]
Incidentedit
Inside the Yare I prison complex near Caracas on 20 August 2012, a clash between two prison gangs left 25 dead and 43 wounded.[7] The brawl started after a gunshot was fired during a discussion between the gang leaders of the two factions, although the shot did not hit anyone.[7] The gun battle between the two gangs vying for the control of the prison lasted over four hours, bringing the death toll to over 500 since the Government of Venezuela implemented a Prison Ministry to reform the country's prison system since July 2011.[8][9] About 980 women were on a visit trip at the prison when the riot occurred, and some of the relatives decided to stay inside because they were scared of how the security forces outside the prison would react.[10]
Local media reports indicated that the tension inside the prison may have started after several inmates were transferred to Yare I from La Planta, an overcrowded prison near Caracas that was closed after a series of violent incidents back in May 2012.[7]
Security experts believe that Venezuela's penitentiary system remains a "cauldron of violence" because the prison gangs rule the facilities, have easy access to weapons, and are too powerful for the corrupt and ineffective prison authorities.[7]
Reactionsedit
Venezuelan Prisons Minister Iris Varela responded that "we will make them answer for this."
Opposition leader and presidential candidate Henrique Caprilestweeted, "The transformation of the Venezuelan prison system is another big lie that we've been told by this government. How many more will die?"[11]
^"Venezuela prison riot kills at least 20". CBS News. Associated Press. 20 August 2012. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
^"Venezuela: At Least 25 Killed in Prison Riot". The New York Times. Associated Press. 20 August 2012. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
^ abSilverstein, Amy (20 August 2012). "Venezuela prison riot kills 20". Global Post. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
^ abSanchez, Fabiola (20 August 2012). "Venezuela Prison Violence Rises, Report Says". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
^ abc"Well-armed Venezuela prisoners riot again, killing 25". Yahoo! News. 20 August 2012. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
^"Ethnic Feud in Venezuela Jail Kills 106". The New York Times. 5 January 1994. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
^ abcdde Abreu, Lissy (20 August 2012). "Venezuela prison battle leaves 25 dead". Yahoo! News. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
^Rossi, Victoria (20 August 2012). "Armed Gangs Battle for Control of Venezuela Prison". InSight Crime. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
^"25 killed, dozens wounded as inmates wage gunbattle during latest Venezuela prison riot". The Washington Post. 20 August 2012. Retrieved 21 August 2012.[dead link]
^Sanchez, Fabiola (20 August 2012). "Venezuela Prison Riot Leaves More Than 20 Dead". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 21 August 2012.
^"Well-armed Venezuela prisoners riot again, killing 25". Reuters. 20 August 2012. Retrieved 20 August 2012.
External linksedit
In Venezuela's prisons, inmates are the wardens – GlobalPost (Video included)
yare, prison, riot, august, 2012, armed, prisoners, yare, prison, complex, overcrowded, prison, miranda, state, near, caracas, venezuela, rioted, shootout, between, groups, resulted, deaths, people, them, visitor, among, those, injured, during, incident, were,. On 20 August 2012 armed prisoners in the Yare I prison complex an overcrowded prison in Miranda state near Caracas Venezuela rioted A shootout between two groups 1 resulted in the deaths of 25 people one of them a visitor Among those injured during the incident were 29 inmates and 14 visitors 2 Date20 August 2012LocationYare I prison complex Miranda state VenezuelaMethodsPrison riotCasualtiesDeath s 25 inmates 1 visitor Injuries29 inmates 14 visitors Contents 1 Background 2 Incident 3 Reactions 4 See also 5 References 6 External linksBackground editVenezuela s prison system is heavily overcrowded its facilities have capacity for only 14 000 prisoners yet house over 50 000 inmates 3 More than 300 prisoners die every year and not all of it is due to overcrowding Prisoners have easy access to machine guns grenades and narcotics 3 According to the Venezuelan Prisons Observatory in the first half of 2012 clashes between prison gangs left 304 dead a 15 increase from the same period last year 4 killing 25 002302881 html access date 21 August 2012 newspaper Yahoo News date 20 August 2012 lt ref gt President Hugo Chavez announced a program to reduce the violence and the overcrowding in Venezuela s prison systems 4 With an upcoming presidential election the prison chaos in Venezuela was a politically sensitive issue for Venezuela s president 5 Chavez blamed the past regimes before he took office in 1999 for the current problems in Venezuela s prison system while Henrique Capriles Radonski the opposition leader stated on Twitter after the prison riot that Chavez s administration has been oblivious of reforms 5 The deadliest prison massacre in Venezuela s history occurred in 1994 at Maracaibo National Jail where around 130 inmates were burned to death or butchered with machetes during a gang fight and ethnic feud 5 6 Incident editInside the Yare I prison complex near Caracas on 20 August 2012 a clash between two prison gangs left 25 dead and 43 wounded 7 The brawl started after a gunshot was fired during a discussion between the gang leaders of the two factions although the shot did not hit anyone 7 The gun battle between the two gangs vying for the control of the prison lasted over four hours bringing the death toll to over 500 since the Government of Venezuela implemented a Prison Ministry to reform the country s prison system since July 2011 8 9 About 980 women were on a visit trip at the prison when the riot occurred and some of the relatives decided to stay inside because they were scared of how the security forces outside the prison would react 10 Local media reports indicated that the tension inside the prison may have started after several inmates were transferred to Yare I from La Planta an overcrowded prison near Caracas that was closed after a series of violent incidents back in May 2012 7 Security experts believe that Venezuela s penitentiary system remains a cauldron of violence because the prison gangs rule the facilities have easy access to weapons and are too powerful for the corrupt and ineffective prison authorities 7 Reactions editVenezuelan Prisons Minister Iris Varela responded that we will make them answer for this Opposition leader and presidential candidate Henrique Capriles tweeted The transformation of the Venezuelan prison system is another big lie that we ve been told by this government How many more will die 11 See also edit2013 Uribana prison riotReferences edit Venezuela prison riot kills at least 20 CBS News Associated Press 20 August 2012 Retrieved 21 August 2012 Venezuela At Least 25 Killed in Prison Riot The New York Times Associated Press 20 August 2012 Retrieved 21 August 2012 a b Silverstein Amy 20 August 2012 Venezuela prison riot kills 20 Global Post Retrieved 21 August 2012 a b Sanchez Fabiola 20 August 2012 Venezuela Prison Violence Rises Report Says The Huffington Post Retrieved 21 August 2012 a b c Well armed Venezuela prisoners riot again killing 25 Yahoo News 20 August 2012 Retrieved 21 August 2012 Ethnic Feud in Venezuela Jail Kills 106 The New York Times 5 January 1994 Retrieved 21 August 2012 a b c d de Abreu Lissy 20 August 2012 Venezuela prison battle leaves 25 dead Yahoo News Retrieved 21 August 2012 Rossi Victoria 20 August 2012 Armed Gangs Battle for Control of Venezuela Prison InSight Crime Retrieved 21 August 2012 25 killed dozens wounded as inmates wage gunbattle during latest Venezuela prison riot The Washington Post 20 August 2012 Retrieved 21 August 2012 dead link Sanchez Fabiola 20 August 2012 Venezuela Prison Riot Leaves More Than 20 Dead The Huffington Post Retrieved 21 August 2012 Well armed Venezuela prisoners riot again killing 25 Reuters 20 August 2012 Retrieved 20 August 2012 External links editIn Venezuela s prisons inmates are the wardens GlobalPost Video included Animation Series Highlights Life in Venezuela Prisons Archived 5 September 2012 at the Wayback Machine InSight Crime Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Yare prison riot amp oldid 1210309498, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
