The risks of relationships between female prison officers and inmates in Catalonia
Unions warn that relationships between female prison officers and inmates in Catalonia have become far too common. CSIF is calling for an explicit ban, and Spain's PP…
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
Catalan prisons: the wave of female officers running off with inmates
«What used to be isolated cases has become a far too common phenomenon». The warning comes from prison unions, who report a rise in romantic relationships between female prison staff and male inmates. CSIF has pushed for the «explicit prohibition of any kind of emotional, affectionate or sensual relationship between prison staff and inmates». The Partido Popular (Spain's conservative opposition party), for its part, is promoting a specific protocol in the Catalan parliament, the first of its kind in Spain, to prevent and punish this behaviour.
The profile of those involved: mostly female officers in men's prisons
The makeup of prison staff has changed. In many Spanish prisons, and especially in Catalonia, women now make up the majority of surveillance staff in male units. This imbalance, the unions warn, creates a breeding ground for relationships that compromise security. «You have to be seriously messed up in the head to feel love for 90% of inmates», a former officer summed up in remarks reported by the media, referring to the psychological phenomenon known as hybristophilia –attraction to people who have committed serious crimes–.
The institutional response: sanctions that never come
Although there are precedents of disciplinary sanctions and court convictions, the unions report that in many cases this kind of conduct is not even pursued internally. The PP's protocol aims to close this route to impunity by establishing clear mechanisms for detection and punishment. Meanwhile, cases keep multiplying, and with them the risk that inmates obtain privileged information, stage escapes or commit crimes beyond the prison walls with the officers' help.
The awkward detail: the very language used in official reports reflects the bias. As one analysis points out, «the article always says funcionariOs (male officers) when all the concrete examples involve women. If the topic is negative, they use the inclusive masculine».
«What used to be isolated cases has become a far too common phenomenon». The warning comes from prison unions, who report a rise in romantic relationships between female prison staff and male inmates. CSIF has pushed for the «explicit prohibition of any kind of emotional, affectionate or sensual relationship between prison staff and inmates». The Partido Popular (Spain's conservative opposition party), for its part, is promoting a specific protocol in the Catalan parliament, the first of its kind in Spain, to prevent and punish this behaviour.
The profile of those involved: mostly female officers in men's prisons
The makeup of prison staff has changed. In many Spanish prisons, and especially in Catalonia, women now make up the majority of surveillance staff in male units. This imbalance, the unions warn, creates a breeding ground for relationships that compromise security. «You have to be seriously messed up in the head to feel love for 90% of inmates», a former officer summed up in remarks reported by the media, referring to the psychological phenomenon known as hybristophilia –attraction to people who have committed serious crimes–.
The institutional response: sanctions that never come
Although there are precedents of disciplinary sanctions and court convictions, the unions report that in many cases this kind of conduct is not even pursued internally. The PP's protocol aims to close this route to impunity by establishing clear mechanisms for detection and punishment. Meanwhile, cases keep multiplying, and with them the risk that inmates obtain privileged information, stage escapes or commit crimes beyond the prison walls with the officers' help.
The awkward detail: the very language used in official reports reflects the bias. As one analysis points out, «the article always says funcionariOs (male officers) when all the concrete examples involve women. If the topic is negative, they use the inclusive masculine».
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (9 replies).
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