03 February 2023 , 08:09
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A mega-prison designed to house over 40,0000 inmates and described as "inescapable" has been built to tackle one country's gang problem.
El-Salvador has erected the huge 'Terrorism Containment Centre' so that inmates cannot have access to "prostitutes, PlayStations, screens, mobile phones and computers," according to President Nayib Bukele.
Deputy Justice Minister Osiris Luna said inmates would be made to work and this would "compensate for some of the damage they did to society."
He continued: "All the terrorists who (caused) grief and pain to the Salvadoran people will serve their sentences... under the most severe regime."
Around 850 prison staff, 600 of them soldiers, are needed to guard the facility in the remote area of Tecoluca. Guards will be given assault rivals to try and deter inmates from escaping.
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The jail is designed to hold around 40,000 people (gobierno de El Salvador HANDOUT/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)In addition, there are 19 watchtowers, electric fencing, patrol zones and reinforced steel making up a perimeter wall.
At 166 hectares, the new facility could be the largest prison in the world. Currently, the Guinness World Records lists Silivri Penitentiaries Campus in Istanbul as the biggest.
Tecoluca reportedly has a population of around 30,000 people, meaning the number of people in the jail could outscore the population outside when at full capacity.
The prison might be the biggest in the world, according to some reports (gobierno de El Salvador HANDOUT/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)Around two per cent of El Salvador's population of 6.3 million are behind bars and overcrowding in the country's prisons has been slammed.
Approximately 20 prisons had a total capacity of 30,000 inmates but hold far more than intended. La Esperanza is El Salvador's largest prison and holds around 33,000 people despite having a capacity of just 10,000.
A national state of emergency was declared last year - this was extended by 30 days this month - amid an ongoing "war" against gangs in El Salvador.
President Nayib Bukele (L) during an inspection visit to the new jail (EL SALVADOR'S PRESIDENCY PRESS O)The emergency declared intends to "[to continue] the reestablishment of order, citizen security and territorial control" and Bukele says gangs control around 80 per cent of the country.
The declaration gives the state emergency powers, which has been condemned by rights activists and the United Nations.
Over 62,000 are believed to have been detained under the powers.
Human Rights Watch said: "Many arrests appear to have been based on the appearance or social background of the detainees, and local human rights groups have documented that hundreds of people with no connection to gangs have been detained."
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El Salvador declared a state of emergency last year, but this has led to thousands of arrests slammed by the UN and rights groups (EL SALVADOR'S PRESIDENCY PRESS O)They continued: "Over 54,000 people arrested during the state of emergency went into pre-trial detention, contributing to prison populations increasing to an estimated 97,000 detainees, over three times official capacity
"Historically poor conditions in detention - overcrowding, violence, and poor access to such services as food and drinking water - worsened."
'MS-13' and 'Barrio 18' are two of El Salvador's biggest gangs and have an estimated 70,000 people between them.