Dear Miss Nelson, You Are A Maltreater
ADECAF | 24.02.2008 19:42
I have received your letter of last May, 16th 2001. I can’t help but showing my utmost astonishment for the things that you reveal in your letter and which stress your absolute confusion regarding the facts described and documentally proved over and over again, and beyond any reasonable doubt, in our previous reports and communications with your organization. For all of the above mentioned, I’ll try to summarize for you as briefly and concisely as possible:
Dear Miss Nelson,
I have received your letter of last May, 16th 2001. I can’t help but showing my utmost astonishment for the things that you reveal in your letter and which stress your absolute confusion regarding the facts described and documentally proved over and over again, and beyond any reasonable doubt, in our previous reports and communications with your organization. For all of the above mentioned, I’ll try to summarize for you as briefly and concisely as possible:
ABSTRACT
On February, 28th 1993, in the prison of Can Brians (Barcelona), the inmate Mr. Miguel Ángel Rivas was submitted to ill-treatment. The prison officer Mr. Ismael Chicote reported the facts on March, 1st 1993 (DOCUMENT 1). The inmate reported the facts as well. And along the process of the investigation, another officer, Mr. Antonio Escobosa, confirmed the tortures (DOCUMENT 2). The D. A. (District Attorney) requested 5 years of imprisonment for all the accused. The main subject to the accusation was the union leader Mr. Ángel Colmenar Launes, chief of ward during the night in which the facts took place and also responsible of social matters (DOCUMENT 3), international relations and, finally, secretary of organization of the union USO-USIP (the major prison officer union at the time in Catalonia, Spain).
This union has defined its course of action by a most anti-rehabilitation profile and by a strong policy tending towards the toughest models such as the ones operating in the Southern U. S. In September 1993, the Secretary General of this union USO-USIP, Mr. Manuel Allué Pastor, signed an article in a local publication known as "Revista del Vallès" (DOCUMENT 4), saying that the rehabilitation system has clearly failed and he proposed the american correctional system instead. In their electoral programme of 1994 and 1998, USO-USIP (DOCUMENT 5) defended and legitimized the proceedings of the prison officers of Herrera de la Mancha, who in 1985 were condemned for ill-treatments of inmates to imprisonment penalties (DOCUMENT 6). The Spanish section of USO Prisiones was founded in Herrera de la Mancha after and out of these facts, as it has been clearly said by the above mentioned electoral programme. In other private publications of this union, and in a systematic manner, the rights of the inmates are put in jeopardy; the inmates are systematically insulted as a colective (using the words: "cacos" , "bastardos", "escoria presa"...) and, in general they develop a policy oriented towards generating hostility and confrontation between the prison officers colective and the inmate colective. Our report Informe sobre la instigación sindical de malos tratos a los reclusos en las prisiones catalanas (10-10-2000) does not only deal with the relations between ADECAF and USIP. The most of the report (pages 27 to 40) is dedicated to analyze the publications of this union for what they might mean as an instigation to ill-treatment. As we see it, the only legitimation of the facts occurred in Herrera de la Mancha (1979) in an electoral programme does vulnerate the articles 2 and 5of the Resolution 34/169 of the U.N. in prohibiting the instigation of ill-treatments.
Besides, we understand that there exists a connection between the profile of this union and the acting of the prison officer and leader of the union USO-USIP Mr. Colmenar. The legitimation of the facts occurred in Herrera de la Mancha included the harassing of the officer who dared to report cases of ill-treatment, as it happened with the prison officer Mr. Alvarez Tutor (DOCUMENT 7). This type of practices have been repeated in the case of Mr. Chicote Pablo. Eversince he filed his report, the tires of his car have been pierced several times (DOCUMENT 8), and in his place of work several paintings appeared where he was insulted and threatened. For all this he was transferred from one centre to another in several occassions, although the Administration did neither investigate nor punishe those responsible of this harassment. The union USO received financial and political support from the political party currently governing in Catalonia (DOCUMENT 9). The harassing of Mr. Chicote went on in two defamatory leaflets presented in the "Direcció General de Serveis Penitenciaris". The first leaflet, signed by 46 prison officers, contains insults and accusations of false witnesses. Chicote is qualified as an incompetent and his expelling from the Correctional Administration is asked. ADECAF has claimed the original text with the signatures of all the prison officers, but it’s already evident that the correctional administration was not willing to punish the signing officers. The Administration has admitted the existence of this writing but they said they won’t give it away (DOCUMENT 10). The second writing (leaflet) signed by three unions also insults Chicote, accusing him of being an incompetent and asking his expelling from the Correctional Department. This second writing has been obtained in the judicial process initiated by ADECAF (DOCUMENT 11).
It is necessary to add that the prison officer Mr. Colmenar was finally condemned on April, 26th 1999, for ill-treating an inmate, although the tortures were not admited because the officer Mr. Escobosa, probably as a consequence of the harassment Mr. Chicote went through, affirmed in the trial that he had forgotten everything (DOCUMENT 12). This strange forgetting is the summary of ADECAF denounces: the brutal pression exercised upon the officers to hide the cases of ill-treatments, using a union which is financed by the ruling political party in Catalonia. As a consequence of our denounce to Amnesty in February, 28th 1999 a media scandal took place in our country, provoking the parliamentary intervention of Miss Núria de Gispert (local secretary of Justice) who denied the facts and covered up the union (DOCUMENT 13). The prison section of USO was forced to leave USO and joined another union called CATAC. This union has kept overlooking the ill-practices of the old syndicate and has publicly denied that Mr. Colmenar was an ill-treater at all (DOCUMENT 14). The Supreme Court has ratified the condemnatory sentence against Mr. Colmenar in February, 19th 2001. On his part, CATAC publishes in his bulletins insulting articles against the officers who dare to denounce ill-treatments, accusing them of being "traitors" and "Judas" (DOCUMENT 15). Consequently, under the new name CATAC, the situation has not changed much, and many of the officers who would be able to denounce cases of ill-treatments are worried that their situation will become the same as the one of their peer, Mr. Chicote, who is still on psychological leave, as a consequence of the harassment.
Hoping that this summary will serve you to get a fresh impression on our subject, we send you our best wishes.
Jaume Farrerons
Centre d’Estudis Penitenciaris
ADECAF
I have received your letter of last May, 16th 2001. I can’t help but showing my utmost astonishment for the things that you reveal in your letter and which stress your absolute confusion regarding the facts described and documentally proved over and over again, and beyond any reasonable doubt, in our previous reports and communications with your organization. For all of the above mentioned, I’ll try to summarize for you as briefly and concisely as possible:
ABSTRACT
On February, 28th 1993, in the prison of Can Brians (Barcelona), the inmate Mr. Miguel Ángel Rivas was submitted to ill-treatment. The prison officer Mr. Ismael Chicote reported the facts on March, 1st 1993 (DOCUMENT 1). The inmate reported the facts as well. And along the process of the investigation, another officer, Mr. Antonio Escobosa, confirmed the tortures (DOCUMENT 2). The D. A. (District Attorney) requested 5 years of imprisonment for all the accused. The main subject to the accusation was the union leader Mr. Ángel Colmenar Launes, chief of ward during the night in which the facts took place and also responsible of social matters (DOCUMENT 3), international relations and, finally, secretary of organization of the union USO-USIP (the major prison officer union at the time in Catalonia, Spain).
This union has defined its course of action by a most anti-rehabilitation profile and by a strong policy tending towards the toughest models such as the ones operating in the Southern U. S. In September 1993, the Secretary General of this union USO-USIP, Mr. Manuel Allué Pastor, signed an article in a local publication known as "Revista del Vallès" (DOCUMENT 4), saying that the rehabilitation system has clearly failed and he proposed the american correctional system instead. In their electoral programme of 1994 and 1998, USO-USIP (DOCUMENT 5) defended and legitimized the proceedings of the prison officers of Herrera de la Mancha, who in 1985 were condemned for ill-treatments of inmates to imprisonment penalties (DOCUMENT 6). The Spanish section of USO Prisiones was founded in Herrera de la Mancha after and out of these facts, as it has been clearly said by the above mentioned electoral programme. In other private publications of this union, and in a systematic manner, the rights of the inmates are put in jeopardy; the inmates are systematically insulted as a colective (using the words: "cacos" , "bastardos", "escoria presa"...) and, in general they develop a policy oriented towards generating hostility and confrontation between the prison officers colective and the inmate colective. Our report Informe sobre la instigación sindical de malos tratos a los reclusos en las prisiones catalanas (10-10-2000) does not only deal with the relations between ADECAF and USIP. The most of the report (pages 27 to 40) is dedicated to analyze the publications of this union for what they might mean as an instigation to ill-treatment. As we see it, the only legitimation of the facts occurred in Herrera de la Mancha (1979) in an electoral programme does vulnerate the articles 2 and 5of the Resolution 34/169 of the U.N. in prohibiting the instigation of ill-treatments.
Besides, we understand that there exists a connection between the profile of this union and the acting of the prison officer and leader of the union USO-USIP Mr. Colmenar. The legitimation of the facts occurred in Herrera de la Mancha included the harassing of the officer who dared to report cases of ill-treatment, as it happened with the prison officer Mr. Alvarez Tutor (DOCUMENT 7). This type of practices have been repeated in the case of Mr. Chicote Pablo. Eversince he filed his report, the tires of his car have been pierced several times (DOCUMENT 8), and in his place of work several paintings appeared where he was insulted and threatened. For all this he was transferred from one centre to another in several occassions, although the Administration did neither investigate nor punishe those responsible of this harassment. The union USO received financial and political support from the political party currently governing in Catalonia (DOCUMENT 9). The harassing of Mr. Chicote went on in two defamatory leaflets presented in the "Direcció General de Serveis Penitenciaris". The first leaflet, signed by 46 prison officers, contains insults and accusations of false witnesses. Chicote is qualified as an incompetent and his expelling from the Correctional Administration is asked. ADECAF has claimed the original text with the signatures of all the prison officers, but it’s already evident that the correctional administration was not willing to punish the signing officers. The Administration has admitted the existence of this writing but they said they won’t give it away (DOCUMENT 10). The second writing (leaflet) signed by three unions also insults Chicote, accusing him of being an incompetent and asking his expelling from the Correctional Department. This second writing has been obtained in the judicial process initiated by ADECAF (DOCUMENT 11).
It is necessary to add that the prison officer Mr. Colmenar was finally condemned on April, 26th 1999, for ill-treating an inmate, although the tortures were not admited because the officer Mr. Escobosa, probably as a consequence of the harassment Mr. Chicote went through, affirmed in the trial that he had forgotten everything (DOCUMENT 12). This strange forgetting is the summary of ADECAF denounces: the brutal pression exercised upon the officers to hide the cases of ill-treatments, using a union which is financed by the ruling political party in Catalonia. As a consequence of our denounce to Amnesty in February, 28th 1999 a media scandal took place in our country, provoking the parliamentary intervention of Miss Núria de Gispert (local secretary of Justice) who denied the facts and covered up the union (DOCUMENT 13). The prison section of USO was forced to leave USO and joined another union called CATAC. This union has kept overlooking the ill-practices of the old syndicate and has publicly denied that Mr. Colmenar was an ill-treater at all (DOCUMENT 14). The Supreme Court has ratified the condemnatory sentence against Mr. Colmenar in February, 19th 2001. On his part, CATAC publishes in his bulletins insulting articles against the officers who dare to denounce ill-treatments, accusing them of being "traitors" and "Judas" (DOCUMENT 15). Consequently, under the new name CATAC, the situation has not changed much, and many of the officers who would be able to denounce cases of ill-treatments are worried that their situation will become the same as the one of their peer, Mr. Chicote, who is still on psychological leave, as a consequence of the harassment.
Hoping that this summary will serve you to get a fresh impression on our subject, we send you our best wishes.
Jaume Farrerons
Centre d’Estudis Penitenciaris
ADECAF
ADECAF