Religious freedom and cultural pluralism: New challenges in the prison law

Abstract

This article explores the scope and content of the right to religious freedom in the international human rights law, and its concrete application in the case of imprisoned indigenous people. To do achieve this goal, the article analyzes the relationship between prison regulation and fundamental rights to address the problems associated with the interpretation of religious and multicultural rights. In this context, this article describes the history of the Chilean prison system and the construction of the western penitentiary system, identifying the projection of the colonial system in the current penitentiary analyzing several high profile cases. Finally, this article propose a modification of the prison law based on international standards.