This award, which is given annually by the Department of Justice, recognizes the valuable and committed work carried out in the field of penal measures, reintegration and victim care.
Suara Cooperativa has received the Mercè award this year, which is given annually by the Department of Justice. In an official ceremony, which took place yesterday at the Headquarters of the City of Justice, the relevant work that Suara Cooperativa carries out in prisons with intercultural mediation services was recognized.
The Director of Intercultural Mediation in Prisons at Suara Cooperativa, Marta Julián, was in charge of collecting this award, in an event where the work of 64 other professionals and entities was also recognized.
“The prison population, like the general population, is increasingly diverse and intercultural mediation is a great tool for the present and future to achieve more equitable societies”, explains Julián.
In this context, he assures, strategies are needed that promote a culture of peace and coexistence among all people deprived of their liberty. “In addition, without any distinction, all of them must be able to enjoy rehabilitation and reintegration itineraries that allow them to develop their life projects”, emphasizes Julián.
This year, from Suara Cooperativa we have actively participated in the Community of Practices (CoP) of Mediation and Anti-Racism promoted by the Center for Legal Studies and Specialized Training (CEJFE) of the Department of Justice, which, among other tasks, has designed the framework program that seeks to define functions and unify them in the different centers. This has served to dismantle stereotypes such as mediation being only translation and documentation, since coexistence between people goes beyond language.
Precisely with this desire, Suara Cooperativa has carried out a first approach of virtual reality glasses to penitentiary centers to improve coexistence within them and that allows people to work on their emotions.
Suara Cooperativa currently manages the intercultural mediation services of six penitentiary centers in Catalonia. This figure was implemented for the first time in 2019 in a penitentiary resource for men. Since 2023, the figure of the intercultural mediator has also been introduced in penitentiary centers for women.
Achieving reintegration
Our Lady of Mercy is the patron saint of penal execution services. For this reason, every year, the Department of Justice grants these awards to recognize those entities that carry out valuable and committed work in the field of penal measures, reintegration and victim care.
At this year's event, the Minister of Justice and Democratic Quality, Ramon Espadaler, wanted to thank the work of all the people and entities that have received this distinction.
“Recognizing all the people who make things work and that the objective of reintegration is possible,” said Espadaler during the event, adding: “this is a job that requires many hands to do.”
