WILLEMSTAD — Prison warders and other personnel of the Bon Futuro prison who are a member of civil servant trade union Abvo stopped working Thursday morning.
There are half a dozen points, amongst which regards the legal position, on which Minister of Justice Magali Jacoba (PAR) provided no clarity, said Gregory Wilson of the service group. According to him, the security within the prison was entirely in the hands of the management and the Minister. There was supposedly a question of minimal work force. However, the warders associated with the STrAF trade union were working. Vice-Chairman Deanix Martis could not say at noon, whether the members would join the strike. "We first have to find out what this is all about."
Wilson said that Jacoba’s reaction to the letter regarding the pressure points, which was recently forwarded by the Abvo, was not satisfactory. The presented ultimatum ran out yesterday. The Minister, which was not available for comment, had supposedly not responded in first instance. The service group therefore decided to hold a meeting during working hours this morning. Meanwhile an answer was received from Jacoba, but the warders and the other personnel did not accept this. They gathered at the Abvo-office in Brievengat this afternoon to discuss further actions.
The pressure points, amongst others, concern the assignment of an allowance 33 months ago to a certain number of the warders. The remaining warders are also entitled to such, but have not received anything yet. According to the service group, a dozen members are still uncertain about their legal position.
Two weeks ago, a monthly briefing took place at Abvo for prison warders, during which it appeared that the question of slumbering unrest had been there for quite a long time. Besides the mentioned pressure points, the warders also disagree with the status of affairs regarding the deployment of the assistants from the Dutch prison system in support of the management of the Bon Futuro prison to improve the security. Three of the nine appointed assistants have meanwhile starting working, Jacoba told this newspaper a few weeks ago.
The enlisting of Antillean warders in the Netherlands to supplement the structural understaffing is still in progress. The prison warders of the Abvo request all cards on the table regarding the deployment of these six assistants. Agreements were made with the Netherlands on their deployment a few months ago.
The security situation of the prison has been under pressure for a long time now. Four prisoners escaped simultaneously after a short hostage of two warders last March. One of the prisoners is still on the run.
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