The prison workers union, identified as Your Abandonment Could Kill Me (TAMPM), has appealed to the Alicante ombudsman with concerns about conditions at the Fontcalent prison. They note that two housing modules currently hold 205 detainees, arguing that the rights of both inmates and staff are being violated.
TAMPM frames its appeal as a mission for oversight. The union emphasizes the constitutional obligation found in Article 25.2, which directs prison sentences and security measures toward rehabilitation and social reintegration.
The union leadership stated that Fontcalent prison decided to split a section into two units in response to the pandemic, aiming to reduce contact among inmates.
Given the urgency, TAMPM asserts that necessary work must proceed to achieve a genuine and effective architectural separation. They claim that, in reality, two new departments operate within the same facilities.
More than three years have passed since the plan was proposed, and the union condemns the ongoing lack of a true architectural divide. They warn that this shortfall diminishes the rights of people deprived of liberty and undermines trust for both the detainees and the staff who serve them.
TAMPM points out that two residential units continue to share essential facilities:
– there is only one shower zone for both modules, which limits its use as temperatures rise in summer; this restricts access to basic personal hygiene for many detainees.
– there are not enough offices to support the treatment of inmates across both modules, whether for the center’s professionals such as educators, lawyers, and social workers or for external teams assisting with these roles.
– a health facility operates in only one of the modules.
– one section lacks a hairdressing space.
– neither module houses a library or a classroom area, with only the adjacent module offering those facilities.
– in one section, the toilet area used by inmates outside their cells is very small, consisting of just two rooms, with the sheltered space accommodating a maximum of ten people.