Calls for Morocco to stop strike of west Sahara prisoners
Morocco, Politics, 8/31/2005

The Moroccan human rights committee, one of the major human rights independent groups in Morocco, urged the government on Monday to start talks in order to end the hunger strike carried out by prisoners in the western Sahara demanding improvement of their detention conditions.

The society said that 29 prisoners in three jails, one of them in the western Sahara and the other two in two cities in northern Morocco, have refused to eat food since three weeks.

Abdul Illah Bin Abdul Salam, the spokesman for the society, said that the strike started to reflect negatively on their health conditions, noting that the life of the prisoners has now become critical.

Bin Abdul Salam explained that the trials were not fair in addition to that those waiting the trials were held for long periods of time, more than what is allowed in the law, which means a flagrant violation of their basic human rights as convicted persons.

The Moroccan society which visited many of those prisoners said that they wish to be transferred to other jails near their families in order to facilitate the visits and to lessen intensive security deployment for Morocco in Laayoune city, the major city of the western Sahara.

The Moroccan society and two human rights organizations urged the government authorities to hold talks with the detainees in an attempt to end their food strike.

Some 37 prisoners of the people of the area were detained during and after acts of riot against the Moroccan government that took place in the western Sahara in May, and several persons were injured in clashes with the police during these incidents.

A spokesman for the ministry of justice said that between 20 and 22 detainees are observing the food strike while 8 of them did not take part in the strike.

Human rights groups in Morocco said that some of the detainees were tortured, an accusation denied by the Moroccan authorities.

Imprisonment sentences reached up to five years, were issued against 12 of them, under the charges of committing crimes including acts of destruction of public properties and the use of weapons against state officials. Others will go to trial next month.

The Moroccan authorities say that acts of riots in May this year were provoked by supporters of the Polisario Front which seeks independence for the Sahara from Morocco.

For its part, the Polisario, which takes Algeria as a headquarters called on the European Union at the beginning of the week to interfere in order to help ensuring the release of the 37 detainees which it described as political detainees.

Previous Stories:
  Morocco welcomes its prisoners, holds Algeria responsible   (8/20/2005)
  Former Polisario executive calls on civil society to defend Moroccan Sahara issue   (7/13/2005)
  Morocco does not welcome hostile persons, PM   (7/2/2005)
  Spain underlines need for 'urgent' solution to Sahara issue   (7/1/2005)
  Several shantytowns destroyed in Laayoune   (6/30/2005)
  Court condemns persons involved in Laayoune incidents up to 20 years in jail   (6/29/2005)
  Spanish delegation barred from Laayoune   (6/27/2005)
  Court condemns persons involved in Laayoune incidents up to five years in jail   (6/25/2005)
  Moroccan Sahara native flees separatists camps in Algeria   (6/21/2005)

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