Israel/OPT
24.09.01
Urgent Interventions
Israel : torture and ill-treatment of femal prisoners and a child in Ramle
Case ISR 240901VAW/CC
VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN
CHILD CONCERN
Torture and Ill-treatment
The International Secretariat of OMCT requests your URGENT intervention in the following situation in Israel.
Brief description of the situation
The International Secretariat has been informed by reliable sources of the torture and ill-treatment of female prisoners including a child, in the Neve Tertze women prison in Ramle, Israel.
According to information received, on Thursday 13 September, the prison wardens entered the cells of the women, took away their possessions and took Maha Al-A’ak (22), Abeer Amer (21), Suad Ghazal (18), Wijdan Buji (22), and Rab’a Hamael (14) to isolation. They then removed Amne Muna (25) to an entirely different section, where there are only criminal prisoners. The women were fearful for Amne Muna’s safety and started screaming her name. Later that evening, male and female police and wardens entered their isolation cells and started beating them.
According to the information, the police and wardens tied their spread arms and legs to their beds with plastic restraints that were tight to the point of causing swelling and severe pain. The wardens covered Wijdan and Suad’s faces with their veils while they were chained to the bed, causing them difficulties breathing. After 2 hours, the wardens came back to the isolation cells and loosened the restraints, but left them chained to their beds in this humiliating position for the entire night.
A lawyer who visited the prison on 16 September 2001, reported that the women were still in isolation on that day and that they had wounds and bruises on their faces and bodies. During her visit, the prison warden refused to take the shackles off Amne Muna’s legs. There was no water in her cell, and at the time of the visit, at 13h45, she still had not received any water that day. One finger on her right hand was swollen, badly bruised and bloody.
Among her statements, Amen says in her affidavit: “They tried to attack me with their plastic shields. I tried to protect myself. Next thing I knew, I was on the floor, protecting my head - three men were beating me on my head and on my body. They sprayed gas on my face. I thought I was going to die…I could not breathe and I was screaming. One of the policemen started stomping his boot on my hand and I was bleeding… They put my face on the floor and continued to beat me. They grabbed me by my arms and legs and dragged me to the other room. My head was knocking on the floor. My hand was bleeding. Then Miri (a female warden) sprayed me again. I thought I was going to die. Then they put me on the bed, they tied my hands and legs to the bed – all the while bearing me – holding my head and neck in a choking position.”
OMCT fears for her as well as for the other female prisoners’ physical and psychological integrity in the Neve Tirtza prison. OMCT is also very concerned about the generally bad conditions for Palestinian female prisoners in this prison.
With regard to 14 year old Rab’a Hameal, OMCT recalls that as a State party to the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), Israel is bound to uphold the articles contained therein. Article 37 of the CRC states that "Every child deprived of liberty shall be treated with humanity and a respect for the inherent dignity of the human person, and in a manner which takes into account the needs of persons of his or her age (…) and shall have the right to maintain contact with his or her family through correspondence and visits…".
OMCT furthermore highlights that, according to the UN Rules for the Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty, solitary confinement of juveniles as a disciplinary confinement constitutes a cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment and should be prohibited. Moreover, according to article 37 (c) of Convention of the Rights of the Child, children shall be separated from adults.
Action requested
Please write to the Israeli authorities urging them to:
i. guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of the female prisoners in Neve Tirtza prison in Ramle at all times and to ensure their access to medical care;
ii. carry out a full and impartial investigation into the alleged torture and ill-treatment, in order to identify those responsible, bring them to trial and apply the penal, civil and/or administrative sanctions provided by law in accordance with international legal standards;
iii ensure that Rab’a Hameal will be seperated from adult prisoners and that she would not be subjected to solitary confinement;
iv. ensure that immediate action is taken to guarantee that the conditions in Neve Tirtza prison in Ramle meet minimum international standards;
v. guarantee all human rights and fundamental freedoms in accordance with to the international human rights standards.
Addresses
· Ariel Sharon, Prime Minister, Office of the Prime Minister, 3 Kaplan Street, Jerusalem 91007, Israel. Fax:(+ 972 2)566 48 38 / 691 79 15 E-mail: pm@pmo.gov.il or feedback@pmo.gov.il
· Meir Shitrit, Minister of Justice, Ministry of Justice, 29 Salah al-Din Street, Jerusalem 91029, State of Israel. Fax:(+ 972 2) 62 8 54 38 or Fax: ++ 972 2 628 8618 Email: sar@justice.gov.il
· Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, Minister of Defense, Ministry of Defense, 7 "A" Street, Hakirya, Tel Aviv, Israel. Fax:(+972-3)691 69 40, e-mail: sar@mod.gov.il
· Eli Yishai, Minister of the Interior, Ministry of the Interior, Fax: 00972 2 670 1411 Email: sar@moin.gov.il
· Minister of Police, Ministry of Police, PO Box 18182, 3 Sheikh Jarrah, Kiryat Hamemshala, Jerusalem 91181, State of Israel. Fax:(+ 972 2)582 67 69
· Shimon Peres, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Fax:(+ 972 2) 530 3704 E-mail: sar@mofa.gov.il
· The Supreme Court of Justice, Kiryat Ben Gurion, Jerusalem, Israel. Fax: (+ 972 2) 652 71 18
· Uzi Landau, Minister of Internal Security, Ministry of Internal Security P.O Box 18182, 3 Sheirkh Jarrah, Kiryat Hamemshala jerusalem, 91181, Israel. Fax: (+ 972 2) 582 67 69, E-mail : sar@mops.gov.il
· Director of Neve Tirza Prison, P.O. Box 229, Ramle 72101, Israel, fax: 00972 8 9776652:
Please also write to the embassies of Israel in your respective country.
Geneva, 24 September 2001
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply
VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN
CHILD CONCERN
Torture and Ill-treatment
The International Secretariat of OMCT requests your URGENT intervention in the following situation in Israel.
Brief description of the situation
The International Secretariat has been informed by reliable sources of the torture and ill-treatment of female prisoners including a child, in the Neve Tertze women prison in Ramle, Israel.
According to information received, on Thursday 13 September, the prison wardens entered the cells of the women, took away their possessions and took Maha Al-A’ak (22), Abeer Amer (21), Suad Ghazal (18), Wijdan Buji (22), and Rab’a Hamael (14) to isolation. They then removed Amne Muna (25) to an entirely different section, where there are only criminal prisoners. The women were fearful for Amne Muna’s safety and started screaming her name. Later that evening, male and female police and wardens entered their isolation cells and started beating them.
According to the information, the police and wardens tied their spread arms and legs to their beds with plastic restraints that were tight to the point of causing swelling and severe pain. The wardens covered Wijdan and Suad’s faces with their veils while they were chained to the bed, causing them difficulties breathing. After 2 hours, the wardens came back to the isolation cells and loosened the restraints, but left them chained to their beds in this humiliating position for the entire night.
A lawyer who visited the prison on 16 September 2001, reported that the women were still in isolation on that day and that they had wounds and bruises on their faces and bodies. During her visit, the prison warden refused to take the shackles off Amne Muna’s legs. There was no water in her cell, and at the time of the visit, at 13h45, she still had not received any water that day. One finger on her right hand was swollen, badly bruised and bloody.
Among her statements, Amen says in her affidavit: “They tried to attack me with their plastic shields. I tried to protect myself. Next thing I knew, I was on the floor, protecting my head - three men were beating me on my head and on my body. They sprayed gas on my face. I thought I was going to die…I could not breathe and I was screaming. One of the policemen started stomping his boot on my hand and I was bleeding… They put my face on the floor and continued to beat me. They grabbed me by my arms and legs and dragged me to the other room. My head was knocking on the floor. My hand was bleeding. Then Miri (a female warden) sprayed me again. I thought I was going to die. Then they put me on the bed, they tied my hands and legs to the bed – all the while bearing me – holding my head and neck in a choking position.”
OMCT fears for her as well as for the other female prisoners’ physical and psychological integrity in the Neve Tirtza prison. OMCT is also very concerned about the generally bad conditions for Palestinian female prisoners in this prison.
With regard to 14 year old Rab’a Hameal, OMCT recalls that as a State party to the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), Israel is bound to uphold the articles contained therein. Article 37 of the CRC states that "Every child deprived of liberty shall be treated with humanity and a respect for the inherent dignity of the human person, and in a manner which takes into account the needs of persons of his or her age (…) and shall have the right to maintain contact with his or her family through correspondence and visits…".
OMCT furthermore highlights that, according to the UN Rules for the Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty, solitary confinement of juveniles as a disciplinary confinement constitutes a cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment and should be prohibited. Moreover, according to article 37 (c) of Convention of the Rights of the Child, children shall be separated from adults.
Action requested
Please write to the Israeli authorities urging them to:
i. guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of the female prisoners in Neve Tirtza prison in Ramle at all times and to ensure their access to medical care;
ii. carry out a full and impartial investigation into the alleged torture and ill-treatment, in order to identify those responsible, bring them to trial and apply the penal, civil and/or administrative sanctions provided by law in accordance with international legal standards;
iii ensure that Rab’a Hameal will be seperated from adult prisoners and that she would not be subjected to solitary confinement;
iv. ensure that immediate action is taken to guarantee that the conditions in Neve Tirtza prison in Ramle meet minimum international standards;
v. guarantee all human rights and fundamental freedoms in accordance with to the international human rights standards.
Addresses
· Ariel Sharon, Prime Minister, Office of the Prime Minister, 3 Kaplan Street, Jerusalem 91007, Israel. Fax:(+ 972 2)566 48 38 / 691 79 15 E-mail: pm@pmo.gov.il or feedback@pmo.gov.il
· Meir Shitrit, Minister of Justice, Ministry of Justice, 29 Salah al-Din Street, Jerusalem 91029, State of Israel. Fax:(+ 972 2) 62 8 54 38 or Fax: ++ 972 2 628 8618 Email: sar@justice.gov.il
· Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, Minister of Defense, Ministry of Defense, 7 "A" Street, Hakirya, Tel Aviv, Israel. Fax:(+972-3)691 69 40, e-mail: sar@mod.gov.il
· Eli Yishai, Minister of the Interior, Ministry of the Interior, Fax: 00972 2 670 1411 Email: sar@moin.gov.il
· Minister of Police, Ministry of Police, PO Box 18182, 3 Sheikh Jarrah, Kiryat Hamemshala, Jerusalem 91181, State of Israel. Fax:(+ 972 2)582 67 69
· Shimon Peres, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Fax:(+ 972 2) 530 3704 E-mail: sar@mofa.gov.il
· The Supreme Court of Justice, Kiryat Ben Gurion, Jerusalem, Israel. Fax: (+ 972 2) 652 71 18
· Uzi Landau, Minister of Internal Security, Ministry of Internal Security P.O Box 18182, 3 Sheirkh Jarrah, Kiryat Hamemshala jerusalem, 91181, Israel. Fax: (+ 972 2) 582 67 69, E-mail : sar@mops.gov.il
· Director of Neve Tirza Prison, P.O. Box 229, Ramle 72101, Israel, fax: 00972 8 9776652:
Please also write to the embassies of Israel in your respective country.
Geneva, 24 September 2001
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply