Catalan prison officers, the first in the State to become agents of authority

BarcelonaA long-standing demand of prison officers, which gained momentum after the murder of a cook at Mas d'Enric prison, has been approved. Votes from the PP, Vox, Aliança Catalana, and Junts secured the passage in the Catalan Parliament of a proposal from the PSC granting these workers the status of law enforcement officers. The measure also extends to prison directors and rehabilitation staff: psychologists, educators, lawyers, and social workers. With Thursday's decision, Catalan prison workers become the first in Spain to achieve this status, which is also held by police officers. Until a few months ago, the Catalan government had always maintained that only the Spanish government could implement such a measure, but on the first anniversary of the crime at Mas d'Enric, the Minister of Justice, Ramon Espadaler, He pledged to grant this prerogative using the powers that Catalonia has been delegated in matters of prisons.

In practical terms, the fact that civil servants acquire the status of law enforcement officers will mean that the information they include in their reports during administrative proceedings, for example, regarding an incident at the center, will be presumed to be truthful. Law enforcement officers are also the only ones against whom the crime of assaulting an authority figure can be committed, which includes both aggression and intimidation, or offering "serious resistance" to civil servants. This crime can carry a sentence of up to four years in prison, while identical conduct against someone who is not a law enforcement officer carries, at most, a sentence of six months. Furthermore, the regulation approved this Thursday also establishes the obligation of the Generalitat (Catalan government) to compensate these workers for injuries or damages they suffer at work if they do not first receive compensation through other means, such as an insurance company. The Catalan Socialist Party (PSC) has received the support of Junts, the People's Party (PP), Vox, and Aliança Catalana to transform prison officers into law enforcement agents, with the rest of the left-wing parties opposing the measure. The Department of Justice had committed to fulfilling one of the long-standing demands of prison officers' unions, and the Catalan Parliament approved it this Thursday. The initiative, processed through a single reading procedure, arose following the murder of Núria López, a cook at Mas de Enric prison, by an inmate. The PSC, which brought the proposal to the plenary session, defended the measure, considering it "necessary, responsible, and in accordance with the law to strengthen the prison system." "This law is not about punishment, but about legal certainty for officers," added Socialist MP Judit Alcalá, of the PSC. Opposition votes

Francesc Dalmases, of Junts, pointed out that "prisons must be safe spaces" and that granting authority to prison officers "is not a gift," but rather makes them "guarantors of rights" to improve the prison system. "We want better schools and hospitals, but also better prisons and better working conditions for officers," he concluded. Sergio Macián, of Vox, denounced that the left wants to "turn prisons into youth centers" and responded to the CUP by saying that human rights should be upheld for the prison officers who have been assaulted by inmates to defend the measure. Alberto Villagrasa, of the People's Party, defended the measure so that "officers can work in a safer environment," despite advocating, like Vox, that it should apply to all staff, a position rejected by the PSC. Aliança Catalana also supported the proposal. Deputy Sílvia Orriols stated that "they don't want to provide more benefits to thieves and rapists, but rather improve the working conditions of those who guard these criminals." "They only want to give privileges to inmates while assaults on officers continue to rise," she criticized, referring to the left-wing parties' rejection of the measure. The left-wing parties, which had presented a comprehensive amendment that was rejected, were highly critical of the PSC's alignment with right-wing forces. ERC reiterated its support for voting against the measure, arguing that turning prison officers into law enforcement agents is not the solution. "This will create more problems than it solves," said Anna Balsera. Andrés García, from the Comuns party, stated that it is "a reform against the prison staff" and that "it could have negative consequences in prisons because there are far more risks than benefits." Xavi Pellicer, of the CUP, has made it clear that the measure will generate "more impunity that only responds to corporate pressures."