History of San Lucas Island

As promised here is a little bit of the history of San Lucas Island where Alpha One are currently based.
Until 1991 San Lucas was the infamous and feared prison island of Costa Rica. Other well known prison islands include Alcatraz and Devil’s Island off the coast of French Guiana (the setting for the book/film Papillion).
San Lucas was established in 1873 with the aim of hiding from society those considered guilty of serious crime. San Lucas was famous for the violation of human rights. Conditions were said to be so terrible that people said being sent to San Lucas was equivalent to receiving a death sentence
Whilst on the island Alpha One have been reading ‘The Lonely Men’s Island’. It is written by José León Sánchez who was a prisoner on the island. Although the story is fictional it is based on the authors own experience. The details of the treatment of the prisoners makes grim reading. So well known were the atrocities of San Lucas island amongst Costa Ricans that you will not find anywhere else in the country named after Saint Luke.
In the prison cells there is a lot of graffiti drawn by past prisoners – some of it rather graphic! Up to 100 men were kept in one of the cells together. Each wore a ball and chain. The weight of the ball depended on how dangerous the prisoner was deemed to be. In the centre of the prison courtyard is ‘The Disk’. It is a dark hole in the ground half filled with water. Prisoners were put into this as punishment, some for as long as two weeks!
Since the prison closed, the island has been become a protected wildlife reserve. The island is Raleigh’s longest standing project site and over the years we have made a massive contribution to the opening of the island as a visitor attraction.
Alpha One are all well and the latest news is that they are building an outdoor shower! Also the American ambassador visited the other day and I am sure Alpha One gave him a warm welcome.
Rose