20 According to the expert witness, the deprivation of freedom is, per se, a traumatic event for any human being. Particularly, confinement in the conditions existing in Detention Center of Catia constitutes a highly disturbing experience that emotionally scars not only the prisoners but also their friends and families. Physical health disorders are common as a result of overcrowding, poor hygiene, and meager, and usually contaminated, food. Emotional factors contribute to weakening the immune system, reducing its ability to protect the body, thus increasing the likelihood of psychosomatic illnesses, the most common being skin, gastrointestinal, and respiratory system diseases, insomnia, and musculoskeletal disorders. It was observed that some relatives of the deceased prisoners suffered from chronic depression, physical disorders, and post-traumatic stress symptoms. k) Expert of Opinion of Ms. Magaly Mercedes Vásquez-González, expert witness The expert witness referred, in general terms, to the rules that governed the criminal procedure in Venezuela at the time of the events giving rise to this case and the one applicable at present, in reference to the role of the State as the guarantor of the right to life, to humane treatment and to personal liberty. She stated that, in 1992, an inquisitorial system of criminal procedure was in place in Venezuela. This model, developed in the Código de Enjuiciamiento Criminal (CEC) (Code of Criminal Procedure) and related statutes, was characterized by a strong concentration of functions in the judge. The Prosecutor´s Office had less involvement in the proceedings and it could be replaced by the judge in many of its functions. Police authorities were investigative bodies that exercised their powers by delegation from the judges. In 1995, there was intense debate in the Congress of Venezuela concerning the “criminal reform.” After over two years of intense work, the Código Orgánico Procesal Penal (COPP) (Organic Code of Criminal Procedure) was enacted on January 23, 1998. This code deprived the police of their investigative powers. The new procedure developed by the COPP was based on the rights to equal treatment, to a fair hearing, and to an oral, speedy and public trial as well as on the principles of ex officio prosecution and the judge’s immediacy of exposure to the facts of the case. The power to institute criminal actions was vested in the Prosecutor’s Office. The same Committee that prepared the COPP partially amended the laws of the Public Prosecutor´s Office of the Judiciary, the Judicial Career Act, the Code of Military Justice and the law that governed police powers. Said amendments came into effect on the same date as the COPP. The new Constitution, which embodied several principles included in the COPP, came into effect on December 30, 1999. It established due process as a guarantee, among others, applicable to all court and administrative proceedings. It further established the obligation of the State to guarantee a prison system that ensures inmate rehabilitation and respect for their human rights. Since then, several reforms to criminal laws have been adopted, which, according to the expert witness, have led to an increase in prison population with the ensuing prison overcrowding.