Detainees in Badr 3 prisons have leaked a message revealing that 55 suicide attempts occurred in the newly-built prison over the space of just ten days, and the subsequent removal of approximately 200 detainees.
Written on 2 March, the letter explains that prison authorities had refused detainees’ demands for proper medical treatment, unless detainees removed the covers they had placed on cameras in their cells.
The letter states that 55 detainees then attempted suicide by various means within the space of 10 days, in protest against the conditions of their detention and various abuses they routinely suffer. Whilst all of the attempts failed, 250 prisoners were subsequently removed to other prisons, with numerous elderly, sick, and otherwise vulnerable prisoners denied treatment.
The handwritten letter explains that after 10 days of “disobedience” the prison administration then exerted massive pressure against them in an attempt to break their spirit.
Without providing any treatment to detainees, including the elderly and those with chronic health conditions, 50 prisoners were transferred to Badr 1, and another 200 were sent to Shadid al-Minya, Wadi al-Natrun, Burj al-Arab, and other Egyptian prisons.
The Badr 3 prisoners’ main demands are for family visits, the chance of exercise, the provision of health care, and a general improvement of their conditions and a respect for human rights.
According to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, “all prisoners shall be treated with the respect due to their inherent dignity and value as human beings.”
