Despite the encouraging downward trend that began in 2017 and continued through 2018 and 2019, the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean continue to be affected by high rates of violence and homicides. Factors such as income inequality, the presence of organized crime groups, and the availability of firearms help explain why high levels of lethal violence persist in some areas of the region.
The high prevalence of gender-based violence against women and girls and femicides remains among the main challenges.
While a significant portion of criminal cases goes unreported in the region, those that are reported exceed the State's capacity to respond in most countries. As a result, only a small fraction of crimes, including those considered serious, tend to be properly investigated. The lack of consequences for criminal acts has created a sense of impunity among criminals and a loss of public confidence in the justice systems, including the police forces.
Limited and unequal access to justice undermines confidence in the process and makes people feel that justice is arbitrary and unattainable for those living in poverty and/or belonging to minorities and/or marginalized groups.
Additionally, the prison population has slowly increased in recent years, leading to levels of overcrowding that can violate the basic human rights of those deprived of their liberty, foster a climate of violence in penitentiary centers, and hinder social reintegration programs. It is also worth noting the high percentage of detainees without sentencing throughout the region, which has generally remained unchanged.
In the coming years, UNODC's work to strengthen crime prevention and enhance criminal justice will focus on three priority areas:
1. A new regional initiative on prison reform, aimed at reinterpreting imprisonment as a mechanism to protect society from crime and prevent recidivism through the reintegration and social integration of individuals deprived of liberty. This initiative consists of four parallel areas of work:
• Refocus the objective of prison systems towards prevention and rehabilitation by implementing the UN Common Position on Incarceration, including the Nelson Mandela Rules, the Bangkok Rules, and the Tokyo Rules, with particular emphasis on promoting alternatives to imprisonment, reducing pretrial detentions, and implementing tools to advance the rehabilitation and reintegration of individuals deprived of liberty into society.
• Improve the overall management and conditions of detention centers, including resource allocation, management models, career options and working conditions for staff, infrastructure, violence prevention, restriction of organized crime groups' influence within penitentiaries, incarceration conditions, and related issues such as overcrowding.
• Provide equal access to justice for all individuals by: strengthening the provision of legal assistance with a focus on those groups at higher risk of being left behind; supporting inclusive and fair justice systems to combat impunity and address inequalities; and supporting police services reform, including evidence-based and human rights-based strategies to address inequalities and strengthen monitoring and accountability mechanisms.
• Promote a regional network of prison experts to facilitate support and the exchange of knowledge and best practices at an intra-regional level.
2. Prevent and combat gender-based violence against women as a recurrent threat that requires effective addressing in the region through joint approaches developed with governments and strategic partners of the UN, including the Spotlight Initiative. UNODC will leverage its own expertise through gender experts from the region to:
• Continue raising awareness and strengthening the capacities of law enforcement agents and criminal justice experts to prevent and address gender-based violence against women and provide adequate assistance to victims.
• Establish capacities for the collection and analysis of relevant data on crimes involving gender-based violence against women, including victimization surveys and data collected by police, prosecutors, or the Judiciary.
• Conduct assessments of national legislation, policies, and strategies, as well as provide legal assistance based on international standards to address potential gaps and eliminate procedures that could be discriminatory.
• Promote access to swift and effective criminal justice resources for women victims of gender-based violence.
• Promote coordinated mechanisms within the justice chain to prevent and respond more effectively to gender-based violence against women.
3. Promote the development and implementation of crime prevention initiatives, with a particular emphasis on youth, education, and sports, as well as the prevention of gang violence. Some approaches used in the region that could be expanded include:
• Local security audits that have enabled the development and implementation of tailored crime prevention intervention strategies in coordination with authorities and civil society.
• Training in life skills, parenting programs, and efforts in the education sector that have enabled youth, their families, and communities to be more resilient.
• Support for community policing initiatives that have helped promote proactive and problem-solving-oriented surveillance.
Citizen Security
Penitentiary Systems
Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice
