A wave of unrest in Venezuela's prisons over the past week has claimed 23 lives, wounded 31 people and taken Venezuela's prison officials by surprise. Erling Rojas, a spokeswoman for the Prisons Department in the Interior Ministry, said this week that the reasons for the unrest were unknown but officials had begun an investigation. She said the unrest in six prison across Venezuela involved riots by inmates as well as clashes between rival gangs in the lock-ups, DPA reported. Officials were working to rehabilitate prisoners, avert further violence and modernize prisons, most of which are filled beyond capacity, Rojas said.
