The National Preventive Mechanism addressed a recommendation to the General Director of Reintegration and Prison Services
Following the visit to the prison facility of Castelo Branco on December 29th, 2016, the National Preventive Mechanism issued a recommendation to the General Director of Reintegration and Prison Services, on which it was recommended the adoption of measures in order to improve the cells conditions and the disciplinary area. It was also recommended that the access to the content of the communications’ box, used as a communication mean between the inmates and the board, was made only by this one.
The competence of National Preventive Mechanism was committed to the Portuguese Ombudsman in 2013. Its mission is promoting and defending the rights of persons who are deprived of their liberty and who are, therefore, in places of detention such as prison facilities, detention areas of the police forces and courts’ cells. The visits carried out by the National Preventive Mechanism to these places of detention — currently 126 — are made with the purpose of to prevent the occurrence of acts that may be considered as torture or ill-treatment.