Costa Rica

NPM Overview

Facts and figures1

Recommendations

Solitary confinement

Plan to vacate and close Módulo B5 del Centro de Atención Integral Vilma Curling Rivera [Module B5 of the Vilma Curling Rivera Comprehensive Care Centre], carrying out a study to determine whether it should be closed, considering that the conditions there give rise to violations of the human rights of the women deprived of their liberty.

Take the necessary administrative measures to establish a specific regulation governing the application of precautionary measures, including isolation, for persons in coercive detention for failure to pay maintenance obligations. 

Older women

To make the necessary arrangements for the construction of the necessary works inside Module B-1 of the CAI Vilma Curling Rivera to guarantee accessibility for elderly women in prison, such as, for example, the construction of ramps to access the individual bedrooms, and from the corridors to the patio and vice versa, as well as the installation of support bars in bathrooms and toilets and the provision of hot water in the showers.

Detention issues

Solitary confinement, isolation

Historically, the only penitentiary establishment exclusively for women, the CAI Vilma Curling Rivera, has maintained a wing that provides greater containment to some women due to their convivial profile or for reasons of protection of their personal integrity. Currently, Module B5 functions as the largest containment unit, which years ago was known as Module F (Maximum Security).

When observing the dormitories in Module B5, the MNPT found poor conditions, with worn, deteriorated and very unhygienic spaces, the same as those found in previous MNPT reports, in 20156 and in 20177 and also by the UN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture in 2019.8 

Isolation of women for failure to pay maintenance obligations

During a visit in May 2022,9 the MNPT found that, following a quarrel, the Prison Police had placed two women in isolation cells. One of the women in coercive detention for failure to pay maintenance obligations concerned, who was in an isolation cell in Module B4 from 12 to 14 May 2022, presented elements of distress related to her placement in that cell and a deep fear of being placed in a isolation cell again at a later time. Her cell had very poor hygienic conditions, with excrement on the concrete bed, vomit on the floor and dried blood.

The incarcerated person said the following: "while I was there, I lost my way of being", referring to the affliction caused by the isolation and the conditions of isolation, even if only for a few days; "the smells disturbed me for several days", referring to how it affected her after her release and how she continued to perceive them in the following days. She also stated that, because of these conditions, she preferred not to eat at certain mealtimes, nor to bathe, and that, during her stay there, she was not provided with personal items or cleaning supplies to clean the cell. 

Although the Regulations of the National Penitentiary System, from article 352 and subsequent articles, regulate the application of Precautionary and Disciplinary Measures to incarcerated persons, these regulations do not take into consideration the unique needs of persons placed on maintenance, nor the supervisory measures corresponding to the penitentiary authorities themselves, and above all to the judicial authorities.

The MNPT questions which judicial authority is responsible for approving and extending isolation for more than 48 hours, since the use of isolation in a single-person cell is neither provided for nor regulated in the context of coercive detention for failure to pay maintenance obligations. This has been a practice adopted by the prison staff, which even allows us to affirm that the placement of persons in solitary confinement, even more so if it is carried out for an indeterminate period of time and without external supervision, would constitute an illegitimate and irregular practice. 

For the above reasons, the MNPT questioned the use of solitary confinement for women in coercive detention placed in the module for maintenance obligations and recommended taking the necessary administrative measures to establish specific regulations governing the application of precautionary measures, including isolation, for persons in coercive detention for failure to pay maintenance obligations.

Access to mental healthcare

At the CAI Vilma Curling Rivera, an intake interview and an initial interdisciplinary assessment are carried out, which allow the Psychology and Medicine departments to identify situations such as psychopathologies, suicide risk, patterns of self-harming behaviour and other matters for appropriate psychotherapeutic and medical treatment. 

Periodic assessments are carried out in accordance with the sentence, at the request of the centre Management and/or sub-directorate, by referral from psychology or other professional sections, or at the request of institutional and judicial authorities. This is done to determine mental health needs.

The CAI Vilma Curling Rivera has a psychology team and a clinical psychologist, as well as medical and nursing staff who provide mental healthcare. Both psychotherapeutic treatment and medication are provided.

Suicide prevention and mental health campaigns have been implemented. Through the Analysis Councils, Interdisciplinary Councils and Security Councils, the Psychology and Health Section provides information on mental health issues and makes recommendations on the management of women in prison with psychopathologies and their treatment. The Psychology Section has provided training to staff (professional and police) on the National Penitentiary System Protocol on self-harm. Interdisciplinary coordination is carried out to provide care through workshops and talks aimed at the mental health of the prison population.

One of the major limitations in mental healthcare is inter-institutional coordination with the National Psychiatric Hospital and Care Centre for Persons with Mental Illness in Conflict with the Law (CAPEMCOL). On occasions, the psychological and medical criteria of the CAI Vilma Curling Rivera has pointed out the need for possible placement of incarcerated persons in hospitals. However, the staff of these centres often state that they do not have necessary capabilities for the placement of incarcerated persons, and these criteria are unknown. It is important to coordinate meetings with the courts and the Costa Rican Social Security Fund in order to be able to unify an adequate procedure for the respective referrals and comply with them.

Women in Special Situations of Vulnerability

Older women

In its report on its visit to the CAI Vilma Curling Rivera in 2018,10 the MNPT verified that sentenced older women are placed in Module B-1, given that it is the one with the best cohabitation, there is no overcrowding and it applies a model of opportunities. 

Alternatives to Detention

The interdisciplinary team at the CAI Vilma Curling Rivera has the power to recommend to the National Institute of Criminology (INC) the transfer of an incarcerated woman to the level of trust, on the understanding that she has sufficient conditions to complete her sentence outside prison. 

The transfer to a semi-institutional centre is intended to enable the person to gradually integrate into the family and the community. In October 2023, 238 women were placed in the semi-institutional level. There is a specific semi-institutional centre for the care of women, called CASI La Mujer, which cares for 118 women. 

Electronic monitoring with bracelet is granted by the Judges of the Republic, when a person is under indictment or sentenced. The Specialised Unit of Electronic Monitoring of the General Directorate of Social Adaptation is in charge of executing and administering the orders of the judicial offices, which entrust the imposition of electronic monitoring devices. In October 2023, 294 women were being monitored in this way. 

The community level deals with persons who are fully incorporated into the family and community. These are situations ordered by judges or legal institutions. In October 2023, there were 1812 women being monitored in this way. 

In summary, as of October 2023, of the 2276 women accused of some type of crime, only 552 were in prison, representing 24.25%.