Palestine

Prisoners at Asqalan threaten may initiate hungerstrike

13 July 2002

LAW is deeply concerned about deteriorating conditions at Asqalan prison. Israeli prison authorities fail to ensure that detainees receive adequate medical care and lack sanitary conveniences which conform to the rules of hygiene. Palestinian prisoners have threatened to initiate a hungerstrike if the prison authorities continues to fail to meet these minimum standards.

LAW's lawyer, Fahmi Shkirat, who visited Asqalan prison today said that prisoners suffer from medical neglect, in particular after interrogation, poor sanitary conveniences which had led to skin disease among prisoners. Murad Abu Sakout, a prisoner at Asqalan prison, told LAW that after interrogation his health condition is deteriorating and he suffers from breathing difficulties and a skin disease. He has sent a letter to the prison authorities explaining his condition, however, the prison authorities only provided him with painkillers instead of adequate medical care.

Article 91 of the Fourth Geneva Convention guarantees the right of detainees to obtain the medical attention they require: detainees suffering from serious diseases, or whose situation requires special care, surgery, or hospital facilities, must be referred to a proper institution to receive the necessary care 'not inferior to that provided for the general population'. Furthermore, they 'shall for preference have the attention of medical personnel of their own nationality'. These rights are also affirmed by Principles 24, 25, and 26 of the UN Body of Principles and article 22 of the UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners.

Issa Jabareen, a prisoner at Asqalan prison, suffers of a kidney infection, pains in his back, as well as breathing difficulties. His deteriorating health condition is neglected by the prison authorities. Prisoners have said that their cells are continuously searched late at night. Since, the prisoners' families are not allowed to visit Asqalan prison, they have a shortage of clothes, in particular underwear. Arbitrary measures have deprived the prisoners of these visits.

A number of detainees are in solitary confinement and cells lack basic humanitarian living conditions. There are approximately 560 Palestinian detainees in Asqalan prison. LAW's lawyer Fahmi Shkirat added that he was prevented from visiting a number of prisoners.

Israel's treatment of Palestinian detainees does not meet the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, the Body of Principles for the Protection of All Persons Under Any Form of Detention or Imprisonment, and the Basic Principles for the Treatment of Prisoners. These instruments are binding on Israel to the extent that the norms set out in them explicate the broader standards contained in human rights treaties.

LAW is deeply concerned about the deteriorating conditions in which Palestinian prisoners are held. LAW calls on Israel to promptly and effectively investigates all reports of torture and ill-treatment. All those responsible for torture must be brought to justice. LAW holds the Israeli government and the prison authorities accountable for the fate of Palestinian prisoners and their deteriorating prison conditions.

LAW - The Palestinian Society for the Protection of Human Rights and the Environment is a non-governmental organization dedicated to preserving human rights through legal advocacy. LAW is affiliate to the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), and the World Organization Against Torture (OMCT).

LAW - The Palestinian Society for the Protection of Human Rights and the Environment, PO Box 20873, Jerusalem, tel. +972-2-5833530, fax. +972-2- 5833317, email: law@lawsociety.org, web: www.lawsociety.org