After rebellions in prisons that left more than 50 dead in the city of Manaus (state of Amazonas) and 33 in the state of Roraima, the federal government released R$ 1.2 billion to modernize Brazil’s prison system. The funds are to be used for the construction of prisons and initiatives to improve criminal justice systems.
The release represents the largest investment in the history of the Brazilian prison system.
Of the total, R$ 799 million will be allocated to the construction of prisons in various states, ensuring the opening of necessary vacancies to reduce overcrowding, improved infrastructure, and greater rationalization and modernization of the penal system.
Another R$ 321 million will be used to promote citizenship, alternatives to imprisonment, community-based control policies, and improvement of penal services. This also includes resources for the purchase of new equipment, such as scanners that will replace personal searches on visitors of inmates.