UN INDEPENDENT EXPERT CALLS ON US TO BAN PROLONGED, INDEFINITE SOLITARY CONFINEMENTS

From: UNNews <UNNews@un.org>
Date: 23 Aug 2013 15:00:01 -0400
Subject: UN INDEPENDENT EXPERT CALLS ON US TO BAN PROLONGED,
INDEFINITE SOLITARY CONFINEMENTS
To: news11@ny-mail-p-lb-028.ptc.un.org

UN INDEPENDENT EXPERT CALLS ON US TO BAN PROLONGED, INDEFINITE
SOLITARY CONFINEMENTSNew York, Aug 23 2013 3:00PMAs nearly 200
inmates in California detention centres approach their fifth
consecutive week on hunger strike against cruel, inhuman and degrading
prison conditions, yet a former inmate of the Prison detention state
otherwise the Hunger strike is more toward move of Gang activity that
the State Governor Jerry Brown is stopping due to the "Bully" approach
by Gangs to control The Prison and the fall out of "The Green Wall"
that is a mixture of Gang inmates and Prison Guards that refuse to go
under State Control but wish more of Private control of Prisons a
United Nations right expert today urged the Government of the United
States to abolish the use of prolonged or indefinite solitary
confinement without proper hearing by Rule violation Committee in that
follow does conflict the purpose of Rule Violation punishment
therefore some stated remarks do conflict State of California Policy
by Private Prisons.

"Even if solitary confinement is applied for short periods of time, it
often causes mental and physical suffering or humiliation, amounting
to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment," UN Special
Rapporteur on torture, Juan E. Méndez said in a
<"http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=13655&LangID=E">news
release, "and if the resulting pain or sufferings are severe, solitary
confinement even amounts to torture."

There are approximately 80,000 prisoners in the United States who are
subjected to solitary confinement; nearly 12,000 are in isolation in
the state of California.

"I urge the US Government to adopt concrete measures to eliminate the
use of prolonged or indefinite solitary confinement under all
circumstances," Mr. Méndez said.

He added that the US should absolutely ban solitary confinement of any
duration for juveniles, persons with psychosocial or other
disabilities or health conditions, pregnant women, women with infants
and breastfeeding mothers as well as those serving a life sentence and
prisoners on death row.

Since 8 July, thousands of prisoners detained in nine different
prisons have gone on hunger strike to peacefully protest prison
conditions. They are demanding a change in the state's excessive use
of solitary confinement as a disciplinary measure, and the subjugation
of prisoners to solitary confinement for prolonged periods of time by
authorities under the California Department of Corrections and
Rehabilitation.

In California's maximum security prison in Pelican Bay, more than 400
prisoners have been held in solitary confinement for over a decade,
and the average time a prisoner spends in solitary confinement is 7.5
years. Often that time is spent in an 8-foot-by-12 foot cell lacking
minimum ventilation and natural light. The prisoners remain in their
cells for 22 to 23 hours per day, with one hour of exercise alone in a
cement lot.

In the context of reported reprisals against inmates on hunger strike
and a District Judge's approval of Californian authorities' request to
engage to force-feed prisoners under certain circumstances, the UN
Special Rapporteur also reminded the authorities that "it is not
acceptable to use threats of forced feeding or other types of physical
or psychological coercion against individuals who have opted for the
extreme recourse of a hunger strike."

In March, Mr. Méndez called on the Inter-American Commission on Human
Rights to investigate the practise of solitary confinement and its
harmful effects in the Americas and urged stronger regulation of its
use.

In a 2011 global report to the UN General Assembly, Mr. Méndez called
solitary confinement a "harsh measure which is contrary to
rehabilitation, the aim of the penitentiary system."

Independent experts or special rapporteurs are appointed by the Human
Rights Council to examine and report back, in an unpaid capacity, on
specific human rights themes.Aug 23 2013 3:00PM
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