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In Panama, EcoSólidos, a waste recycling programme, has come to the rescue of the detainees in the prison of La Joyita.

The La Joyita prison, in Panama, offers a number of programmes to help the inmates occupy their time fruitfully. By educating themselves, the inmates also work towards reducing their sentences. One of the most popular and valued programmes is the Sembrando Paz (Sowing Peace) vivarium where more than 50 workers grow plants as part of a process that prepares them for reintegration into society.

Antonio, who is detained at the penitentiary complex of La Joya in Panama was reunited with his family after seven years.

The president of the ICRC, Peter Maurer, today urged governments in Latin America and the Caribbean to support the negotiations on a new treaty to prohibit and eliminate nuclear weapons.

Representatives of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement have adopted a declaration in response to an increased indifference by governments and society to the plight of migrant populations, in which they commit to sensitize and ensure that the causes of migration are understood, and that the rights and needs of migrants are recognized, respected and addressed.

Communities in Panama's Darién province lack basic water and health facilities, especially in the area bordering Colombia. The difficulty of obtaining safe water forces them to drink river water, with all the health problems that implies. In 2011, the ICRC and the community built a rain water catchment system, improving health in these communities.

Nowadays the ICRC works in over 80 countries throughout the world, including El Salvador, Honduras, Mexico and Panama. It visits people in prison and monitors detention conditions and whether there is respect for the due process of law and the basic rights of detainees.

The ICRC's operational priorities in North and Central America focus on the protection of and assistance to communities and individuals most vulnerable to and affected by armed violence; in particular migrants, missing persons and their families.