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Haiti's president appoints commission to probe prisons and overcrowded lockups

Published:Monday | February 27, 2017 | 12:00 AM
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In this February 13 photo, prisoners cram shoulder to shoulder to watch TV in their crowded cell inside the National Penitentiary in downtown Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
AP
Haiti's President Jovenel Moise (centre) walks with Police chief Michel-Ange Gedeon past National Police at the National Palace after being sworn-in at Parliament in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on February 7.
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The newly appointed Haitian President Jovenel Moise has appointed a nine-member commission to probe prisons and overcrowded lockups across the country.

The commission should also make recommendations to improve the conditions for inmates.

Moise said the commission is expected to finish its review and submit a report within one month.

The presidential announcement came a few days after the international media agency the Associated Press published a report on an upsurge of inmate deaths at the Haiti’s biggest prison.

The Associated Press says the deaths are due in large part to malnutrition-related illnesses and other preventable diseases.