Despite tragedy, Pope Francis to visit Mexican prison

Despite tragedy, Pope Francis to visit Mexican prison

(Vatican Radio) The Pope's visit to a jail in the Mexican border city of Juarez is going ahead, in spite of a riot at another Northern Mexican jail in which 49 inmates died.

Pope Francis' visit to the prison in Juarez will involve contact with inmates, some of whom have been jailed for narcotics related crimes. The “Centro de Readaptación Social No. 3” is part of an effort to reorganize the prison system of the State of Chihuahua. The prison, which has approximately 3,000 inmates, has achieved accreditation under international prison standards. Pope Francis will be presented with approximately 700 of the inmates and will meet individually with approximately 50.

In another jail in the Northern industrial city of Monterrey a feud between inmates from rival drug cartels turned murderous with 49 convicts either bludgeoned to death or fatally stabbed. And this extreme level of violence due to chronic overcrowding and lack of basic amenities in a crumbling penal system, is exactly why Pope Francis is going within a prison's walls, to see for himself the origins and nature of the problems, and how they can be diffused and resolved, before the awful descent to homicide.

Meanwhile, millions of people all around Mexico are taking today off work to prepare for and to celebrate the first trip to Mexico of Pope Francis. The level of excitement and anticipation is tangible.

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