As far back as 2008, the world began to hear about the horrific nature of the Venezuelan prison system. The list of issues and problems is a long one and ranges from things like processing delays and overcrowding to inmate possession and trafficking of weapons and drugs. And all of this has happened under prison minister, Iris Varela. So why hasn’t she been ousted for her failure to provide safe, clean, and orderly prisons? Shockingly, she has been!
Varela is close pals with Venezuela’s current/former president, Nicolas Maduro. In just 2017, within the prisons run by Varela and sanctioned by Maduro, a mass grave of 14 bodies was discovered. And that is just a drop in the hat when you look further into this — in 2013, over 60 inmates died in a prison riot at one of the largest prisons in the country. Many of the prisons are like small villages where the inmates have total control over everything. In the worse prison, in Guárico state, there is a caste system of three different groups, and each group has different rights.
All of this and more is now the subject of La Causa, a documentary that took over eight years to make. Andres Figueredo Thomson is the director and started going to Venezuelan prisons when he was just a senior in high school. The trailer dropped not long ago and the movie looks jaw-dropping.
For a more in-depth look at La Causa, its director, and the prisons click here. One can only hope that the continued public eye on Venezuela’s prison system will yield some changes. Until those changes happen, Venezuela will continue to be home to the world’s worst and scariest prisons. From all of us at Trill!: wash your hands, wear your masks, and keep your distance from others.
