Justice promises that prison officers will be considered agents of authority

BarcelonaThe Department of Justice pledged to meet one of the long-standing demands of prison officials' unions: recognition of their status as law enforcement officers. This long-standing request, and the Minister of Justice, Ramon Espadaler, responded to it from Parliament on the eve of the first anniversary of the murder of a cook at Mas d'Enric prison.

At the time of the crime, the prison unions' demand to be considered law enforcement officers was already on the table, but the Generalitat (Catalan government) had always argued that the decision could only be made by the Spanish government, which has also recently shown itself to be supportive. Now sources from the department tell ARA that the ministry is considering doing so using the powers delegated to it in prison matters, although it remains to be decided whether this will be through a bill from the Catalan government or a bill in Parliament.

"After listening to everyone's opinions and a process of listening and analysis, I announce that we have decided to promote a legislative reform to grant prison officers the status of law enforcement officers," Espadaler assured in Parliament. This would equate prison officers with bodies such as the Mossos d'Esquadra (Catalan police), local police, parking attendants, firefighters, doctors, and public transport guards. In practice, this will mean that crimes they suffer in their workplace (such as assault) will be considered aggravated. Law enforcement officers are also the only ones against whom the crime of assault against authority can be committed, which includes both assault and intimidation, or even offering "serious resistance" to officials. In Espadaler's words, this legal status would give officials "special protection in the criminal sphere."

Compensation for damages and more training

According to the minister, the legislative reform the government wants to promote will recognize the status of law enforcement officers for management and civil servants in penitentiary centers who perform internal affairs functions. Therefore, it would exclude other prison workers such as educators, psychologists, service staff, and kitchen staff.

Another effect of the legislative reform announced by Espadaler will be to apply the principle of indemnity—that no public official be harmed by their work—to compensate workers for injuries or material damage they may suffer on the job. Third, the legislative change will include initial and ongoing training for these officials "so they can access better training and professional advancement." Regarding how this reform will be implemented, the minister limited himself to saying that they will seek "the most agile and secure path."

A promise to be fulfilled

In fact, how Wednesday's promise will be fulfilled is also a mystery among staff sources consulted. Following Espadaler's announcement, the UGT union has requested an urgent meeting with him to discuss the "specific measures" he proposes. "Without changes, the competition continues in Madrid. We want to know what the measures are in order to assess the real impact or scope of the announcement," warns union spokesperson Montse Balaguer, in statements to ARA.

For his part, a spokesperson for Marea Azul, Francesc, warned: "We hope that the parliamentary process will be urgent and include the principle of indemnity; otherwise, it would be a completely meaningless consideration." He himself describes the announcement as "window dressing" because it was made the day before the first anniversary of the Mas d'Enric murder.

That crime set in motion a cycle of unprecedented protests among prison officials, who for weeks staged blockades that kept prisoners locked in their cells. In addition to political resignations, unions were demanding new security measures. There have been various changes in the prison system in the last year. regulations on which jobs in prison inmates can access, until reaching the current one, based on a circular banning kitchens and other jobs considered risky to all those inmates imprisoned for violent crimes.