August 15, 2004
Campaign for the Rights of Political Prisoners Need your Support!
Palestinian Political Prisoners in Israeli Prisons Begin Hunger Strike Today
To all Friends and Supporters of Human Rights around the World:
The Committee for the Families of Political Prisoners and Detainees in the West Bank, representing 7,500 political prisoners currently in Israeli prisons, is seeking the support of the international community in its campaign against the gross violations of their rights that the prisoners are enduring and against the appalling conditions under which they are being detained.
Political prisoners in Israeli prisons will be commencing
a hunger strike on Sunday, August 15, 2004 to protest their conditions.
They complain that the conditions they experience are reminiscent of
the former Abu Ghoraib
facility in Iraq which gained worldwide notoriety recently for its treatment
of detainees.
The families of the Palestinian political prisoners plead with you, the members of the international community, to join in solidarity with our sons, daughters, fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters who are being held in Israeli prisons by organizing demonstrations, marches, holding silent vigils or activities to publicize the plight of the political prisoners and to bring pressure on the government of Israel to cease these violations of law and to treat Palestinian prisoners as human beings entitled to basic human rights.
Israeli Public Security Minister, Tzachi Hanegbi, told reporters at a press conference in Jerusalem on August 13th that the prisoners "can strike for a day, a month, even starve to death, we will not respond to their demands".
Some of the conditions that the prisoners are protesting
include:
*Arbitrary and indiscriminate beating of prisoners in their cells, in
prison courtyards and during transportation to and from prisons.
* Arbitrary and indiscriminate firing of tear gas into prisoner'fs cells
and prison courtyards and intimidation of prisoners by guards entering
their cells with guns.
* Humiliating strip searches of prisoners in full view of other prisoners
and guards each time they enter or exit their cells
* Subjecting prisoners to solitary confinement for excessive periods
of time, for months and even years.
* Arbitrary imposition of financial penalties on prisoners for minor
infractions, arbitrary revocation of visitation rights and extended
confinement to cells as punishment for minor infractions such as singing
or speaking too loudly
* Confining children with adult prisoners and political prisoners with
criminals
* Withholding or delaying medical treatment and the provision of medication
to sick detainees
* Severely restricting the category of family members entitled to visit
prisoners thus denying visitation rights to other close family members
* Arbitrary denial of travel permits to family members of prisoners
living in the West Bank or Gaza so that they cannot travel to prisons
to see their relatives
* Imposing conditions on travel for family members and obstacles that
result in travel of a few hours being prolonged to 16 or 17 hours for
a 45-minute visit
* Conducting humiliating strip searches of visiting family members even
though they are usually separated from the prisoners by a full glass
barrier as well as a wire mesh barrier.
* Providing such poor visitation facilities that prisoners find it difficult
to see or hear their loved ones
* Maintaining prisoners on near starvation diets that are insufficient
to sustain health.
* Applying rules concerning items that prisoners may receive from their
families arbitrarily and inconsistently, on the whim of the guards,
with each visit.
* Withdrawing studying privileges that in the past allowed prisoners
to continue their high school or university studies through correspondence
courses
The treatment of Palestinian prisoners in Israel violates both international and Israeli laws, as well as rules governing the administration of Israeli prisons. The Committee for the Families is planning a series of activities in the West Bank to coincide with the start of the hunger strike on August 15th.
Scheduled Activities:
1. A press conference at noon in Ramallah will kick off
the campaign Sunday, August 15.
2. Hunger strike solidarity tents will be set up in the centre of all
the cities in the West Bank and in all the Red Cross Centres and will
be occupied by the public around the clock for as long as theprisoners'
strike lasts.
3. August 18; The Palestinian Prime Minister's office has declared this
day National Day for Prisoners, a day that all Palestinians will show
solidarity with the prisoners. All government ministers, members of
the Palestinian National Council and heads of all political parties
will join the public in the Solidarity Tents and fast in support of
the prisoners.
4. August 20; after Jum'a prayers at mosques processions will march
towards the Solidarity Tents.
5. August 21st; Palestinians in various Israeli cities will march, together
with other supporters, to the prisons where Palestinian political prisoners
are being held
6. August 22; after church services, processions will march to the Solidarity
Tents. These processions will be held every weekend during the campaign.
7. August 23; children of the prisoners will lead a procession.
8. August 25; all professionals involved in the Justice system in Palestine
will congregate at the Solidarity Tents in their official legal gowns
and will lead a procession to the centre of theircities.
9. August 26; the grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, Arun Gandhi, will lead
a mass procession in Ramallah.
10. August 28; candlelight processions will be held at 8:00 p.m.
11. August 29; all members of the public are invited to join the open
hunger strike.
September 4, 2004: International Day of Solidarity with Palestinian Prisoners
We ask you also to register your protests by letter, fax, email, or telephone to the officials listed below. Ask them to stop the harsh treatment of Palestinian political prisoners and to accede the demands of the striking prisoners so that the conditions under which they are imprisoned are consistent with international norms of human rights and basic decency.
In addition, please register your protest with your own political representatives and governments ministers.
Please send a copy of your protest message to alhureih@yahoo.com Messages of support from organizations would also be appreciated by the prisoners and their families. Please send them to the same address with some details of the organization.
For more information visit our temporary website at
www.palsolidarity.org/prisoners or telephone (972) 2 277 4602 or (972)
547-358-579 or email: info@palsolidarity.org
With much appreciation for your valued support,
Mahmoud Ziadi, General Secretariat,
Families of Palestinian Political Prisoners
PO Box 2151, Ramallah, Palestine.
Israeli Government Contacts:
Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon
Office of the Prime Minister
3 Kaplan Str., P.O. Box 187
Jerusalem, 91919 Israel
Fax: 972-2-670-5475
e-mail: pm_eng@pmo.gov.il
Minister of Defense, Shaul Mofaz
37 Kaplan Str.
Tel Aviv, 61909, Israel
Fax: 972-3-696-2757 or 691-7915
e-mail: san@mod.gov.il or pnoit@mod.gov.il
Minister of Justice, Yosef Lapid
29 Salah al-Din Str.
Jerusalem, 91010, Israel
Fax: 972-2-628-5492
e-mail: san@justice.gov.il
Minister of Interior, Tzahi Haneghi
Kiryat Hamenshala, P.O. Box 18182
Jerusalem, 91181 Israel
Tel. 972-2-530-9999
Fax: 972-2-584-7872
e-mail: sar@mops.gov.il
Addresses of Israeli embassies worldwide can be found
at
www.embassyworld.com/embassy/isreal1.htm or go to the Government of
Israel website at www.info.gov.il/FirstGov/
For news reports and additional information:
Hebrew:
http://www.haaretz.co.il/hasite/pages/SearchArticle.jhtml
English
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/464469.html
http://www.maarivintl.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=article&articleID=10670
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/465053.html
For Links on Prisoner Abuse:
1. A PHRMG report that describes and substantiates many
of the prisoners' grievances:
http://www.phrmg.org/monitor1997/may97-7.htm
2. PHRMG Testimonials:
http://www.phrmg.org/monitor1999/mar99-visit.htm
3. General statement on Israeli prison conditions from
HRW: http://www.hrw.org/prisons/mideast.html
4. Urgent Appeals in specific cases by Amnesty Int'l:
http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGMDE150512003?open&of=ENG-ISR
http://web.amnesty.org/library/index/ENGMDE151122002
5. http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/stories/WO0406/S00087.htm
Petition to Israel High Court: Stop Prisoner Abuse
Wednesday, 9 June 2004, 9:33 am
Press Release: Physicians For Human Rights In Israel
6. http://www.ipc.gov.ps/ipc_e/ipc_e-1/e_News/ipc-prisoners.html
http://www.dci-pal.org/prisonweb/brief10.htm
Defense for Children International
Palestine Section
CHILD PRISONERS BRIEFINGS: 22 May 2002 No.10
7. News Reports on Prison Abuse and Torture
http://www.imemc.org/archive/prisoners.htm