- Title: ARGENTINA: Prisoners get vote in Argentine election
- Date: 29th October 2007
- Summary: HALLWAY INSIDE PRISON VARIOUS OF VOTING DESK VARIOUS OF PRISONER VOTING PRISONER LEAVING WITH PRISON GUARD PRISONER VOTING (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) PRISONERS MAXIMILIANO FLORES SAYING: "It's a good feeling to have the right to vote and elect our representatives." PRISONER VOTING (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) JUSTICE AND HUMAN RIGHTS MINISTER ALBERTO IRIBARNE SAYING: "We're very satisfied with this step we're taking that means prisoners can exercise all their rights. One of those rights, for the people in the legal process who are technically innocent, is to elect authorities."
- Embargoed: 13th November 2007 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Argentina
- Country: Argentina
- Topics: Crime / Law Enforcement,Domestic Politics
- Reuters ID: LVABNT0K62VLYMOIHXBE405DTO6G
- Story Text: Prisoners awaiting trial get the opportunity to vote for the first time ever in an election in Argentina.
Prisoners who are awaiting trial voted in parliamentary elections in Argentina on Sunday (October 28).
Detainees cast their ballots thanks to measures passed by outgoing President Nestor Kirchner.
He's been praised for his human rights record in his four year term of office.
Ballot boxes were set up in prisons across the country for inmates who are being held in protective custody but have not been convicted of a crime.
At a prison an hour's drive south of the capital Buenos Aires, Maximiliano Flores said it felt good to vote.
"It's a good feeling to have the right to vote and elect our representatives," said Flores after casting his ballot.
Officials say the new prison voting system resembles the system Argentine citizens living abroad use. Prisoners vote from the centre where they are held, but their votes are counted in the province where they registered.
Alberto Iribarne, Argentina's minister of justice and human rights, applauded the measure.
"We're very satisfied with this step we're taking that means prisoners can exercise all their rights. One of those rights, for the people in the legal process who are technically innocent, is to elect authorities," he said.
At a nearby woman's prison, inmates were positive about the move.
One woman who didn't wish to be interviewed said it did make her feel better. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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