Today the protocol act was held in which the Outgoing President Rapporteur, Maestro Carlos Solórzano, imposed the pin that accredits Doctor Lesther Castellanos as president of the National Mechanism of the Office for the Prevention of Torture and other cruel and degrading treatment or punishment in Guatemala.
Roxana Orantes Cordova
The event of the National Mechanism of the Office for the Prevention of Torture and other cruel and degrading treatment or punishment in Guatemala (OPT), took place this morning and the program included a cultural presentation, by the Folkloric and Modern Ballet of the Ministry of Culture and Sports.
The presidents of the Judicial and Legislative bodies, as well as the spokesman for the Presidency, deputies, ministers and other officials, as well as the invited press, were present at the activity.
According to the Executive Secretary of the OPT, this mechanism derives from the convention approved by Guatemala in 1989 and its objective is to protect populations such as those deprived of liberty, minors, the elderly and migrants, from situations that violate their dignity, undermining their rights.
“Physical suffering undermines dignity and violates fundamental rights,” said the official, who expressed that one of the challenges of the mechanism is to become leaders committed to the defense of legitimate human rights, as well as to create spaces that promote citizen participation and public policies, programs and actions such as training for the justice sector.
OPT: achievements and challenges
The Outgoing President Rapporteur, Carlos Solórzano, recalled that in 2014 the optional protocol of the OPT was approved, and mentioned that currently, it is up to Dr. Lesther Castellanos to preside over that office, during the year 2023-2024.
Some actions of the OPT that had a positive impact were the warning that the mechanism issued about the situation in the Safe Home, before the tragedy occurred in 2017. In addition, he recalled that they managed to influence the delivery of food for 6,000 children who were going to be left unprotected, due to the State’s delay in distribution, which was achieved with a meeting between the office and a judge who ordered the extension to end.
Regarding the prison situation, he recalled that Guatemala has the largest prison population in Central America (around 25,000 people), which contrasts with the system’s capacity of just 6,000. On the other hand, it is necessary that the prisons are totally in charge of the Penitentiary System and programs are established for the reintegration of those deprived of liberty.
Meanwhile, the current President Rapporteur, Lesther Castellanos, emphasized his commitment to prompt attention to all cases in which there are indications of rights violations and torture, as he also expressed that he is willing to face the challenge by contributing new perspectives that will allow transformations. with a focus on human rights.