[prisoner-rights] Egypt: Court orders opening of Istqball Torah Prison for visitors

Press Release
Date: 13/2/2002

The HRCAP obtained four judicial verdicts for opening Istqball Torah Prison
for visiting, and repealing the Minister of Interior order of banning
visits for this prison.

The HRCAP has obtained four new judicial verdicts that repeal the minister
of interior orders of closing Istqball Torah Prison against visitors. The
Court ordered the prompt implementation of the verdicts. The cases numbers
are (13060/55, 9338/55, 12680/55 and 383/56)

It is worthy mentioning that there are three prisons have been closed for
visiting, Istqball Torah is one of these prisons, the other two are Liman
Abu Zaabal, and The High security In Torah.

The legal reasons of the court verdict stresses on repealing the minister
of interior order of banning visits for this prison as well as focused on
the law maker intentions to secure the dignity and moral and physical
integrity of the human being. Recognize the right of visits for the
prisoners and their families regardless their offences. Whereas the
administrative department is "as an exception from the above-permitted to
prevent visits to prisons for health or security reasons." Without this
exceptional prevention being timeless and absolute, but should specifically
dated according to the health or security requirements.

Therefore, It is not permissible to claim that Article 42 of the prison law
allows for absolute prevention of visits for security reasons. Instead,
this permission is only applicable for specified periods, with
non-recognition of this, constituting a violation and moral abuse of the
prisoners' and their families' human dignity. It is unimaginable that such
violation is implied in the legislator=92s intention enshrined in article
42 as an exception.

The court verdicts asserted the illegality of the administration's conduct
of foul playing with the law provisions by passing successive decrees
banning visits for three months in prisons. The court declared that
successive decrees of banning visits under the claim that terrorist groups
are targeting the prisons, constitute a permanent deprivation of visits
which the legislator rendered impermissible for the preservation of the
prisoners family's legal and constitutional rights.

With these new four verdicts, the number of court verdicts supporting the
permission of visits for the closed prisons, reaches 112-court verdict.

The HRCAP is hoping that the Ministry of Interior would take more positive
steps and repeal all the decrees of banning visit for some Egyptian prisons
and to focus on the prisoners' rights and the respect of judicial verdicts.

The Human Rights Center for the Assistance of Prisoners