The U.S.-led war on drugs has failed to suppress illicit drug production or trafficking, while harsh drug laws have led to human rights abuses, overcrowded prisons and threats to democratic institutions. WOLA advocates reducing the harms caused by both the drug trade and by the misguided war on drugs. Across the hemisphere, we work for drug reforms that protect human rights and public health.
These videos feature people who have spent years in prison enduring harsh sentences that are disproportionate to the crimes they committed. The videos are part of a TNI/WOLA study investigating the prison systems of eight countries in Latin America. The people in the videos are featured because they represent the rarely revealed human side of the war on drugs. These personal stories illustrate the unjust impact of current drug laws.
She was sentenced to 6 years in prison and considered the architect of the crime. “The legal system is giving me the same sentence as a trafficker,” she remembers thinking. She is still haunted by memories of her imprisonment – the terrible prison conditions and the suffering of her fellow inmates.
Upon her release, Martha Ines Miravete founded a non-profit organization working for the rights of the prison population in Argentina. This video tells her story and the story of her commitment to change prison policies and help prisoners reintegrate into society.
