17 September 2026
Bilbao campus
During the 2025–2026 academic year, students from the Loiola Legal Clinic at the University of Deusto (Bilbao campus) produced the report «Manual de buenas prácticas para la ejecución de la pena privativa de libertad: análisis jurídico y propuestas de intervención en la CAPV», developed using a service-learning methodology.
The project arose in response to an urgent need identified by Third Sector organisations working in the Basque prison system (Bidesari, Etorkintza, Gizakia, Susterra, Zubietxe and Fundación ADSIS).
It has two key objectives:
- To carry out a diagnosis of the prison system, providing an overview of the situation in prisons in the Basque Country and identifying the barriers that hinder the effective exercise of the rights of people deprived of their liberty.
- To put forward proposals for improvement by developing a set of practical recommendations to optimise the day-to-day work of social organisations providing support in prisons.
Report structure
The report is divided into five thematic chapters:
- Transparency regarding the status and circumstances of prisoners.
- An analysis of the legal grounds for prison decisions.
- Technical and complex issues relating to the calculation of sentences.
- Administrative barriers and their impact on access to basic rights.
- Specific issues and vulnerabilities faced by women in prison.
Alongside the report, the team has also produced the manual «Euskadi: Manual de acompañamiento social a personas con problemas de adicciones durante el proceso judicial», promoted by the Basque Addiction Care Network, in collaboration with Lakoma (Madrid) and funded by the Ministry of Health.
Both the report and the manual have been produced by the students: Marta Pérez-Roca, Claudia Vega Matilla, Goizeder Argonzoniz González, Naia Mena Linaza and Sofía Dávila Castro.
The academic tutors who have supported the process are: Itziar Casanueva, José Ramón Canedo and Asier Martínez de Bringas, together with the invaluable legal advice provided by Josune Aguirre (Gizakia), Heraclio Varona (Bidesari) and professionals from partner organisations.
Both projects are conceived as living, constantly evolving tools. The findings will serve as the basis for a second report aimed at exploring additional factors in greater depth, while ensuring a human rights-based approach to the prison system and to the rights of people in prison, taking into account the principle of social reintegration.
