Whenever we think about how a jail looks like, we always imagine dingy dark cells with very less space – a place out of our darkest nightmares. But prisoners of Islas Marias federal prison at Isla Maria Madre are having a tough time leaving the place because it’s so magical!
Just an 8-hour boat ride away from the mainland, the place looks more like paradise than a prison! It’s an island surrounded with blue waters, greenery, and inhabited by parrots and iguanas.
Prisoners here live in semi-captivity wherein they are free to roam around the palm trees and stay with their families. Every day feels like a vacation!
As you can see, the (prisoners’) houses don’t have bars. They were allowed to walk around during authorized hours, go for a run, play basketball or football, watch TV, come to the workshop,” said Gregorio Lopez, security chief for one of the prison’s sectors.
The area consists of cement-made prison houses with cement beds and doorless toilets. 8 low-risk inmates occupy a single house.
The high-risk inmates are stationed at a maximum-security building with traditional cells with bars.
But now President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has decided to close the prison. He feels that a place which is filled with beauty and biodiversity shouldn’t be inhabited by prisoners.
According to sources, the last 584 of them were sent back to the mainland last month. Some of them nearing the end of their sentence were freed and rest were transported to another prison.
“They were calmly serving their time, living happily with their families. The change took them by surprise, and they were definitely sad to leave”, said prison guard Jose Becerra.
If all prisons were like this, people would gladly serve punishment!