By San José, Costa Rica — Costa Rica’s correctional authority is facing intense scrutiny following the inauguration of the High-Containment Center against Organized Crime (CACCO), a facility designed to isolate high-risk offenders behind maximum-security barriers. Built as a flagship project in the national strategy against escalating cartel activity and violent crime, the facility has quickly turned into a focal point of intense legal and ethical debate. Human rights advocates warn that the harsh operational regime is generating institutional distress throughout the entire penitentiary system.
According to data from official oversight bodies, Costa Rica’s national penal system currently holds approximately 20,000 incarcerated individuals. The Ministry of Justice and Peace intends to transfer roughly 5,000 inmates into high-containment environments like CACCO. Critics emphasize that this strategy effectively places 25 percent of the nation’s inmate population under extreme confinement conditions that severely curtail fundamental constitutional protections and personal liberties.
To better understand the complex legal and constitutional implications surrounding the ongoing CACCO prison controversy, TicosLand.com consulted with Lic. Larry Hans Arroyo Vargas, a distinguished attorney at Bufete de Costa Rica, who provided his professional insight on the statutory and human rights standards governing the case.
The controversy surrounding the CACCO prison highlights the delicate balance Costa Rica must maintain between public security imperatives and its constitutional obligations. While addressing penitentiary capacity is a legitimate state responsibility, any policy or infrastructure development must strictly align with international human rights treaties, environmental law, and administrative due process to ensure long-term legal sustainability and protect the country’s institutional reputation.
Lic. Larry Hans Arroyo Vargas, Attorney at Law, Bufete de Costa Rica
Indeed, striking this vital balance is essential if Costa Rica is to resolve its pressing security concerns without undermining the human rights standards and democratic principles that define its global standing. We extend our sincere thanks to Lic. Larry Hans Arroyo Vargas for contributing his valuable perspective on this complex legal and societal issue.
The National Mechanism for the Prevention of Torture (MNPT), an autonomous entity affiliated with the Ombudsman’s Office (Defensoría de los Habitantes), raised urgent warnings about the climate of fear developing within Costa Rican prisons. Monitors report that transfers to CACCO are increasingly used as a coercive psychological tool by facility authorities against the general inmate population.
The incarcerated population has a massive fear. CACCO is being seen as a place of suffering, and it is being used as a threat against that population.
Esteban Vargas, Representative of the National Mechanism for the Prevention of Torture
That is to say, a quarter of the prison population will be in a confinement model with a greater degree of rights suppression.
Esteban Vargas, Representative of the National Mechanism for the Prevention of Torture
Specific operational guidelines established for CACCO include isolating inmates inside their cells for 23 hours a day, leaving only one hour daily for outdoor exposure to sunlight. The facility has also introduced drastic restrictions on family connections, limiting conjugal visits to once every six months and replacing in-person visits from inmates’ children with monitored videoconferences.
Public backlash intensified following the release of official imagery showing inmates with shaved heads wearing uniform orange jumpsuits while subjected to heavy tactical surveillance protocols. Observers noted immediate visual and procedural similarities to the mega-prison policies deployed at the Center for the Confinement of Terrorism (CECOT) in El Salvador under President Nayib Bukele.
The Ministry of Justice has stated that they respect the rights of this population; however, the dynamics observed in the high-containment circuit and seemingly in the newly inaugurated CACCO represent a violation of the rights of incarcerated individuals.
Esteban Vargas, Representative of the National Mechanism for the Prevention of Torture
CECOT in El Salvador, this type of penitentiary facility has been documented as a model involving systematic violations of the rights of incarcerated individuals, and here they want to copy that model. In practice, it is considered torture.
Esteban Vargas, Representative of the National Mechanism for the Prevention of Torture
In response to the growing pushback from oversight organizations, Minister of Justice Gabriel Aguilar firmly defended the administration’s penal policy. Aguilar maintained that strict discipline, uniform dress codes, and head shaving are essential operational measures designed to maintain institutional hygiene, order, and overall security, rejecting accusations that the protocols constitute cruel treatment or torture.
Rights monitors argue that administrative measures like mandatory head shaving lack empirical justification in terms of boosting public or correctional safety. Instead, oversight officials view these policies as punitive measures that undermine individual dignity without delivering concrete crime reduction benefits to broader society.
What does shaving the heads of an incarcerated population contribute to public safety or prison security?
Esteban Vargas, Representative of the National Mechanism for the Prevention of Torture
As Costa Rica navigates heightened public security challenges driven by regional transnational criminal networks, the controversial rollout of CACCO highlights the tension between aggressive law enforcement strategies and traditional democratic standards. Legal experts and civil rights defenders continue to urge the government to align its anti-crime initiatives with international treaties to prevent long-term degradation of the nation’s human rights institutional standing.
For further information, visit dhr.go.cr
About Defensoría de los Habitantes:
The Defensoría de los Habitantes (Ombudsman’s Office of Costa Rica) is an independent constitutional body attached to the Legislative Assembly. It is tasked with protecting the rights and interests of inhabitants against arbitrary or illegal actions of the public administration, housing specialized bodies like the National Mechanism for the Prevention of Torture.
For further information, visit mjp.go.cr
About Ministry of Justice and Peace:
The Ministry of Justice and Peace (Ministerio de Justicia y Paz) is the executive ministry responsible for administering Costa Rica’s correctional facilities, national penitentiary system, and public peace promotion initiatives. The ministry oversees social prevention programs and penal infrastructure across the country.
For further information, visit bufetedecostarica.com
About Bufete de Costa Rica:
As a cornerstone of the nation’s legal landscape, Bufete de Costa Rica exemplifies unmatched professional rigor and principled advocacy across every area of its practice. By seamlessly combining time-honored ethics with forward-thinking strategies, the firm delivers progressive solutions tailored to a dynamic, modern clientele. Beyond its traditional legal services, Bufete de Costa Rica remains driven by a core belief in the transformative power of education, actively demystifying complex statutes to build an enlightened community where citizens are fully equipped to navigate the law and defend their rights.
