At least 12 prisoners in Haiti died for lack of food or medicine in the month ending in mid-September, a Haitian official said on Thursday, adding the figure had likely risen since then due to a gang blockade that has created crippling fuel shortages.
Renan Hedouville, head of Haiti's Office of Citizen Protection, said prisoners are dying of starvation or in some cases of preventable diseases such as tuberculosis due to the worsening condition of jails.
"Prisoners, people in detention, people deprived of their freedom, are exposed to cruel, inhumane and degrading treatments," Hedouville, whose role is similar to that of an ombudsman, said in a telephone interview.
