San Pedro, village or prison? (2009)

A thousand and four hundred men are jailed in San Pedro's penitentiary, in La Paz (Bolivia). Since they cannot leave the compound, some of the prisoners live with their wife. Others have even brought their children in. In San Pedro, most inmates work for a living, because all basic goods and services have to be paid for, including accommodation. While some detainees own their cell, others rent it. The wardens seldom enter the grounds; they only monitor the entrance gate. Left alone, convicts have set up their own village. Along the narrow streets of San Pedro, there are restaurants, grocers, fruit vendors, and even a carpentry workshop. These small businesses sell their production to inmates, but also to customers outside of the compound. But in San Pedro, drug trafficking and inequalities also abound.