Our
Identity
An autonomous organization that is born and operates within the maximum security prison of Batán. The first cooperative in the region with a Board of Directors 100% composed of people in incarceration, and currently the only one in the world also made up of crime victims.
Members
Since
Formal cooperative
Recidivism
Our Origin
From necessity to transformation
What began in 2014 as an initiative to cover basic needs amid the deprivations of confinement, is today an organized community of over 200 members committed to personal and social transformation.
In September 2021, we made history in Argentina and Latin America by becoming the first workers' cooperative whose Board of Directors is 100% composed of people serving their sentences.
"We are Liberté, a self-managed organization born and operating inside Batán maximum security prison."
Mission and Vision
Mission
To work for the recovery of the rights and dignity of incarcerated persons, using work, education and dialogue as fundamental tools.
Vision
To build a future where incarcerated persons can fully integrate into society as "just another neighbor", breaking the cycle of exclusion and insecurity.
Integral Vital Self-Management
We are not just a workshop. We are a community that manages every dimension of our humanity.
Work
We recover the culture of work across our productive units: carpentry, metalwork, organic farming, bakery and more.
Education
We manage knowledge through Universidad Liberté (ULIB) and vocational training. Education as the key to freedom.
Community and Emotions
We resolve conflicts through dialogue in the Mario Juliano Coexistence Committee. Peace built from within.
Health and Wellbeing
We care for physical and mental health through sports, recreation and our own Mental Health Program. Wellbeing as community practice.
Social Commitment
Restorative Synergy
Our work transcends prison walls through a strategic alliance with Victims for Peace (VxP).
As a material act of reparation, we created the Victim Support Fund (FAV), financed with our work surplus, to economically support organizations assisting victims of violence.
"This alliance is not symbolic: it is concrete proof that repairing harm is a constitutive part of our responsibility and transformation process."
Víctimas por la Paz
Alianza estratégica con VxP
Fondo de Apoyo a Víctimas
Financiado con excedentes
Reparación concreta
Acción material, no simbólica
Among those who actively participate in this self-managed life model for at least one year and, upon release, maintain a formative relationship, the recidivism rate is 0%.
We firmly believe that true security comes not from punishment, but from providing the conditions for a person to recover their dignity and sense of belonging to the community.
We don't sell utopias. We show results.
Over 200 people building peace from within, proving that transformation is possible.
About references and affiliations
Liberté distinguishes four levels of relationship with the people and organizations that appear on the site:
- 💚 Members. Cooperative members, team, and active community of Liberté. Visible in the "Liberté Community" section of /people.
- 🤝 Collaborators (male and female). People who coordinate with Liberté without being staff: they coordinate programs, advise, and support the volunteer work. They are visible in the "Collaborators" section of /people.
- 🏛️ Institutional allies. Organizations and institutions with which we actively collaborate (Victims for Peace, INAES, FACC, INTA, MNPT, among others). Visible on /red.
- 📚 Mentioned. People and organizations referenced in our editorial work without formal affiliation: researchers, cited authors, mentioned academic institutions. The pages that compile information about them include an explicit notice.
Important to note for citing Liberté: that a person or institution appears mentioned on the site does not imply that they are a formal ally of the cooperative. Actual affiliation is limited to entities classified as members or allies.