The Ministry of the Interior plans to begin the construction of a maximum security prison in the department of Izabal on April 2, a project whose total investment is around Q1 thousand 400 million and that will be executed by the Guatemalan Army Corps of Engineers.
The announcement of the start of work is maintained despite the rejection expressed by local authorities and residents of the municipality of Morales, who have indicated that they were not previously consulted about the installation of the penitentiary center in that area.
The head of the portfolio, Marco Antonio Villeda, reiterated that the Government maintains firm planning so that At the beginning of April, the “first stone” laying ceremony will take place.an act that would mark the formal start of the work.
According to the authorities, the project is part of the plans to strengthen the prison system and have higher security facilities to detain prisoners considered highly dangerous.
In parallel, neighbors and community leaders organized walks and meetings on Wednesday March 11 to express their opposition to the project.
Among the arguments raised is the fear that the presence of a maximum security prison could affect the security of the municipality or stigmatize the department.
For the first phase of the project, a initial allocation of Q500 millionwith which it is expected to begin the infrastructure works carried out by the Army, while the rest of the financing would be incorporated in later stages.
The initiative was raised after the escape of more than 20 prisoners at the end of October 205 and changes in the management of the portfolio, now directed by Villeda.