[Bloquez l'empire!] report: Health Professionals for hunger strikers

[Hunger strikers support Montreal]

Health Professionals urge Prime Minister to act now:
Situation dire for hunger strikers in Toronto prison

By: Samir Shaheen-Hussain
September 3, 2005

[Please note that according to a statement read at a rally held in Toronto
today (September 3, 2005: see statement below), Hassan Almrei, on the 73rd
day of his hunger strike, expressing his sorrow that the government will not
give him his rights, expressing his faith in the people of Canada, said that
the outcry following his hunger-strike has given him enough new hope that he
will end his hunger-strike, but not the struggle for his rights. Mohammad
Mahjoub continues with his hunger strike, having completed his 59th day
today.]

On Friday, September 2nd, 2005, a group of health professionals made up of
nurses and medical doctors formed a delegation to Prime Minister Paul
Martin's office in Old Montreal. We wanted to present the PM with a letter
outlining our grave concerns about the health and well-being of Mr. Hassan
Almrei and Mr. Mohammad Mahjoub who, along with 3 other Muslim men, make up
the "Secret Trial Five".  Mr. Almrei and Mr. Mahjoub are currently being
detained under a security certificate process in Metro West Detention Centre
in Toronto and had been on a hunger strike for 72 and 58 days, respectively,
as of September 2nd.

The goal of the delegation was to focus attention on the prolonged hunger
strike of these two men, while urging the PM to act immediately to have
their demands met so that their health and lives are no longer at risk.
Their demands are modest, to say the least, given that they have been held
without charges and without having access to any evidence that may be being
used against them as part of the security certificate process for four and
five years, respectively; Mr. Almrei's principal demand is to be allowed to
have one hour outside his solitary confinement cell while Mr. Mahjoub's is
to have contact visits with his wife and children. Although two men are not
convicted of any crime, they are demanding no treatment beyond that which is
accorded to most federal prisoners!

During the delegation, the media was informed of the fact that Mr. Almrei
and Mr. Mahjoub have been ingesting only water and some orange juice.  The
deleterious physical and psychological effects of such an excessively
prolonged hunger strike - particularly in light of the deplorable conditions
of long-term solitary confinement detention with no trial, under threat of
deportation to torture - were underscored.

The delegation's attempt to hand-deliver the letter to the PM's office was
cut short by security blocking our entrance and subsequently locking us out.
After some confusion, and perhaps due to the persistence of members of the
delegation wanting to gain entry with media cameras steadfastly looking on,
security personnel advised the delegation that there would be someone from
the PM's office who would be coming down to speak with us.

Subsequently, a security officer was sent to speak with one of the members
of the delegation; a pseudo-forced agreement was reached where only two
members of the delegation would be allowed entry into the office, but
without any media accompaniment.  Other members of the delegation were
forcefully prevented from entering the building.  After several minutes, the
attaché from the PM's office did come out to meet the delegation and was
presented with the letter in front of the cameras. She assured the
delegation that she would bring the contents of the letter to the PM's
attention as soon as possible, although refused to provide any assurance as
to whether the PM would intervene immediately, particularly given concerns
about bureaucratic delays anticipated because of Labour Day weekend -- a
concern that was shared by the health care workers, fearing that even one
further day's delay could be fatal for the two hunger strikers.

The delegation served as an important, but arguably desperate, attempt to
shed more attention on the hunger strikes of Mr. Almrei and Mr. Mahjoub to
avoid a tragic and fatal outcome.  It is regrettable that a crisis is
necessary to focus attention on the deplorable and unnecessary suffering of
the security certificate detainees and that in the process a broader focus
on the draconian security certificates, which allows for their arbitrary
detention in the first place, is jettisoned.

While Dr. Amir Khadir, member of Médecins du Monde, did liken the situation
of the men detained under the auspices of security certificates to those
imprisoned in Guantanamo Bay by the United States, our intervention
generally shied away from exposing the security certificates as inherently
illegal and unjust. With concern understandably centered on the immediate
life and death of Mr. Almrei and Mr. Mahjoub, the fact that the security
certificates clearly contravene articles 7 and 9 of the Canadian Charter of
Rights and Freedoms (as former Solicitor General, Warren Allmand, stated at
a rally in support of Hassan Almrei this past week) was overshadowed.  Due
to the immediate emergency, focus turned attention away from the context:
the attack on immigrants and refugees - particularly of Arab, South Asian
and Muslim background - which has been exacerbated since the United States
unilaterally declared its "war on terror" following 9/11/2001; an attack the
Canadian government has legislated through, inter alia, provisions in the
Immigrant and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA).  Such policies manifest
themselves not only in the on-going use of security certificates (which have
been in effect since 1991), but also in the exploitation of migrant workers
and the deportation of refugee claimants, permanent residents and (as in the
highly-publicized case of Maher Arar) Canadian citizens.

It is clear that Mr. Almrei and Mr. Mahjoub's demands must be met
immediately so that they may end their hunger strike and receive appropriate
medical treatment. However, this will be no victory at all so long as these
men remain in indefinite detention (or, in the case of Adil Charkaoui - who
was recently released on bail - so long as his activities are severely
restricted and closely monitored) without charge, without having access to
any evidence being used against them, without recourse to a fair and open
trial, and under the omnipresent stress of eventual deportation to further
psychological and physical torture.

Free the Secret Trial Five in 2005!

**
Samir Shaheen-Hussain is a social justice activist and writer, and is a
member of the Montreal-based Indigenous Peoples Solidarity Movement (IPSM).
He is trained as a medical doctor.

========================

LETTER FROM DOCTORS

(translation from French)

Dear Mr. Prime Minister,

The undersigned health professionals would like to express our grave concern
about the effects of the hunger-strike and conditions of detention on the
health of Mr Hassan Almrei and Mr. Mohammad Mahjoub.

As you know, these two men have been ingesting only water and some orange
juice, for 72 days in the case of Mr. Almrei and 58 in the case of Mr.
Mahjoub. This is an excessively prolonged period for such a severe hunger
strike. In comparison, may we remind you that the duration of Mr. Almrei's
hunger-strike dangerously approaches the maximum survival time for the Irish
political prisoners of the 1980's, some of whom died after a much shorter
hunger strike.  According to the information we have, Mr. Almrei has already
lost 50 pounds. It is important to note that a weight loss of 35-50% of
initial body weight is considered to be incompatible with life. Given that
the average male weighs approximately 150 pounds, the weight loss that has
already occurred appears alarming.

Despite the ingestion of a little sugar and vitamins, the risk of death due
to overwhelming infections, heart arrhythmias, or the dysfunction and
failure of vital organs is quite high, if not imminent. Grave and permanent
sequelae, including severe neurological impairment and
other complications, can be predicted if the hunger strike continues, as
well as further complications with the cessation of the strike and medical
treatment.

Additionally, the conditions of detention to which the two men are subject
are far from conducive to physical and mental health. In fact, a balanced
diet and a modicum of physical exercise constitute the most basic
requirements of physical health. Moreover, a sense of security about the
future as well as significant and regular human contact are among the
essential conditions for safeguarding mental health. These fundamentals
appear to be absent from the current conditions under which Mr. Almrei and
Mr. Mahjoub are detained,  in complete contradiction with the directives of
our various professional orders. Prolonged solitary confinement, the
uncertainty of the legal proceedings, the threat of deportation to a country
which practices torture constitute treatment which is comparable to
psychological torture, and which we denounce as injurious to mental health.

In conclusion, we regard the conditions under which Mr. Almrei and Mr.
Mahjoub are currently detained to be unacceptable from a health standpoint.
It is shocking that people have to resort to a hunger strike to demand
conditions that we feel to be so basic and justified. Furthermore, it is
imperative to understand that if this hunger strike continues much longer, a
fatal outcome or at least a disability is to be expected. This is an
entirely avoidable outcome and for these reasons we urge your urgent and
immediate intervention to avoid an extremely regrettable consequence in
anticipation of the upcoming Labour Day long weekend.

Yours sincerely,

Nazila Bettache, MD
Janet Cleveland, PhD
Pierre Dongier, MD
Catherine Gagnon, RN
Samir Hussain, MD
Amir Khadir, MD
Marie Munoz, MD
Marie Jo Ouimet, MD
Olivier Sabella, MD
Scott Weinstein, RN
Gerald van Gurp, MD

========================

STATEMENT BY HASSAN ALMREI

Isolation Cell, Metropolitan West Detention Centre
Toronto, Canada

September 3, 2005

This is a note for the people of Canada, and for all the people
demonstrating today at this jail.:

 I, Hassan Almrei, am in day 73 of my sixth hunger strike since October,
 2001, when I was arrested on a security certificate. I have not been
 charged with anything, ever, in this country or in Syria, and my home for
 the past four years has been four walls in a 9 X 12 solitary confinement
 cell. I am held on secret evidence.

 My hunger strike is not just for myself. It is for all the people who face
 these conditions of detention. I am sad that the Ontario government will
 not give me my basic human rights. These rights are in international law
 and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. This is why we need to go to court
 on October 11 to fight for these rights. I wish the government would save
 the taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars and give me my rights, but
they are insisting we go to court.

 Many people have asked me to stop my hunger strike. They have said how
 upset they are. They have sympathy for these issues. I appreciate this.
But sympathy is not enough. People need to speak up, to challenge this
secret evidence, the deportations to torture, this indefinite detention in
 solitary confinement, for me, for the other secret trial detainees, for
 anyone in this situation.

 In the past week, I have heard about demonstrations in Canada supporting
my demands. I have heard that hundreds and hundreds of people have been
 writing, calling, faxing Monte Kwinter, Paul Martin, Anne McLellan, and
Joe Volpe. This has given me hope.

 Despite everything that has happened to me, I still think Canada is the
 best country in the whole world. The response of the Canadian people to my
 hunger strike confirms this for me. When they know what is really
 happening, people in Canada do care. I also want to thank the guards in
 segregation and the health unit at Metro West, who have shown very great
 concern for me during this hunger strike.

 The hunger strike is my only voice in here. It is the only way I have to
 wake people up to what is going on in here. You, the Canadian people,
have helped me make my voice very loud and clear. I want to thank you a
million times for this. My words can't express how much I feel and
appreciate your
 support, and your concern about my health. I wish there were something I
 could give all of you.

 Mahatma Gandhi went on hunger strikes in India. Sometimes he would stop
 them when he saw positive things happening, when he saw a reason to
believe in hope.

 Because of the new hope you have given me, today I will end my hunger
 strike, but NOT my struggle for my rights.

 So please, as my voice on the outside, I need you to keep speaking up, to
 not be afraid, and to come to court on October 11 for my hearing. I need
 you to speak up about the secret trials, about the conditions of
detention, about the deportations to torture.

 I hope I can meet each and every one of you someday soon. But for now,
 someone else holds the key to my door.

 Thank you very much.

Hassan Almrei

MORE INFO:
Campaign to Stop Secret Trials in Canada
tel 416 651 5800
tasc at web.ca
www.homesnotbombs.ca