There are jobs that are part of our daily lives and, yet, we barely notice. That of the professionals of Penitentiary Institutions is one of them.
Each year, the Day of Mercy offers us the opportunity to recognize a job that has a lot to do with security, but also with something we sometimes forget: second chances.
In Lanzarote, this reality has a name and a place: Tahíche. There, at the Arrecife Penitentiary Center, men and women work every day whose responsibility goes far beyond guarding a center.
Their task requires professionalism, responsibility, and also an important human dimension. Because behind each file there is a person; behind each sentence, a story; and behind each person, the possibility that their life can take a different course.
Our Constitution establishes that custodial sentences must be oriented towards re-education and social reintegration. But these principles do not remain in a legal text. They are built every day with the work of male and female officials, technical teams, psychologists, social workers, educators, healthcare personnel, and so many other professionals.
That is why, when we talk about penitentiary institutions, we talk about security. But we also talk about coexistence, training, treatment, and opportunities.
And both dimensions are profoundly related.
A secure society not only needs sentences to be served. It also needs that, when the time comes to return to society, a person has more tools to avoid reoffending.
On an island like Lanzarote, where we know well the value of coexistence and integration, this reflection takes on a special meaning. Reintegration does not depend solely on what happens within the walls of a penitentiary center. It also
requires a society capable of opening doors: to training, to employment, to family, and to a life away from crime.
As Insular Director of the General State Administration, I want to take advantage of this date to especially recognize the professionals of the Tahíche Penitentiary Center. Their work does not always make headlines, but it is essential.
I also want to remember their families, who know firsthand the schedules, responsibilities, and difficulties that accompany this profession.
The Day of Mercy is, ultimately, a date to look a little beyond the walls.
To remember that security and reintegration are not different paths, but two parts of the same responsibility.
And to thank those who, every day, make it possible for our prison system to function with security, professionalism, and humanity.
Because a society is also measured by its ability to offer a second chance when the law and circumstances permit.
Happy Day of Mercy.
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