Cageprisoners
27-03-05, 03:39 PM
Help the Ex-Detainees in Control Order Chaos
Cageprisoners.com & HHugs
26-03-05
In the week following the release of the ten foreign nationals who were detained in Britain’s Guantanamo, Cageprisoners.com reported of the chaotic and cruel new regime they faced under the recently introduced control orders. When the police arrived at the council flat assigned to one detainee, B, they had to break the door down to gain entry, causing ‘B’, who had already made one attempt on his life, to have a further breakdown. B subsequently had to be taken to a unit in the local hospital. Another, identified as ‘Q’ spent the first day hungry and alone, without food or money. A third, ‘P’, who has no arms, was unable to make any calls because the phone had not been adapted to his disability. The mother of one detainee, visiting from abroad, was kicked out of the accommodation as her name was not amongst those registered to live in the house according to the Home Office records. Others are terrified of even taking their rubbish out fearing that they may violate the terms of their release unknowingly and end up back in Belmarsh. The men are under a curfew from 7pm at night until the following morning. They are not allowed to organise any pre-arranged meetings and all visitors to their home must be vetted by the Home Office. They cannot leave their properties without notifying the Home Office beforehand. The men have thus been extremely isolated; in some cases, such as those who are unmarried, have found the experience more lonely than their time in prison. As their solicitor commented, "It has been continuous crisis management for the past 10 days."
Since that time, the confusion over the workings of the control orders and the lack of available support led Mahmoud Abu Rideh, a former detainee at Broadmoor hospital, to take a severe overdose last weekend, finding it unbearable to live under the conditions imposed by the Home Secretary. He was taken to Charing Cross hospital after swallowing 35 tablets and was not released until Monday evening. Mahmoud said in an interview this week that “it is just as bad to be free with a control order as it is in Belmarsh prison or Broadmoor hospital”.
“The conditions are too complicated and they don't work. The Home Office emergency number doesn't work. I phoned Fulham police station and they said it's not their problem." He also claims that the voice recognition system operated by the tagging company Premier Monitoring Services does not work and the Guardian found that the Home Office control order hotline was an answering machine.
He is consumed by fears of being re-arrested: "My kids worry that when they get back from school I will be gone and they might not find me again. My wife can't sleep. She is asking me not to go out." Surprise searches by Scotland Yard officers leave his family on edge, he said, and his wife sleeps fully clothed in case of any eventuality.
The former detainees are in great need of assistance. Cageprisoners.com & HHugs encourage all to show their support for the former detainees in the following ways.
1. Write to them.
Never underestimate the importance of writing letters of support to the prisoners, reminding them that they are not alone and have not been forgotten, and that the British public and their Muslim brothers and sisters care. In the past, your letters have been a light in the darkness of prison, raising the morale of the inmates significantly. Due to the draconian conditions placed on the men, the vetting required for visits, it is even more important that they find this support now. At least five of the detainees (indicated by asterisk) are single and many do not have any family in the UK. Some did not even have a single visitor for the three years they were detained in Belmarsh.
To write to the following detainees, please send it to the address below:
Mahmoud Abu Rideh, Abu Qatada (HP5918), Detainee A (GC9022), Detainee B*, Detainee E (FF9416), Detainee G (FF9415), Detainee H (HP4390), Detainee K (HP5668)* , Detainee P (in previous campaigns identified as Detainee M)*
Name
c/o Daniel Guedalla
Birnberg Peirce & Partners
14 Inverness Street
Camden Town
London NW1 7HJ
Please send letters for Detainee Q* to the following address:
Detainee Q
c/o Natalia Garcia
Tyndallwoods Solicitors
Windsor House
Temple Row
Birmingham B2 5TS
2. Financial Support. At most the men are receiving £35 a week on which to live. Many of them have young children and families to support. The council accommodation that has been designated for the single detainees is bare, dismal and depressing to say the least. Your donations can help to finance their needs and may go towards the payment of bills, food, furnishings, etc.
You can send cheques to:
Hhugs
PO Box 415
New Malden
KT3 9AF
Alternatively you can pay directly into HHugs account, quoting the reference “control orders”:
Hhugs
HSBC account number 31438603
Sort code 40-34-24
3. Practical Support. Hhugs are also looking for volunteers who will be able to help the men in practical terms; whether that may be shopping on their behalf, cooking meals for them, visits and so forth.
Please contact hhugs_2004@yahoo.co.uk or ring 07931 833980 if you are able to help.
Cageprisoners.com & HHugs
26-03-05
In the week following the release of the ten foreign nationals who were detained in Britain’s Guantanamo, Cageprisoners.com reported of the chaotic and cruel new regime they faced under the recently introduced control orders. When the police arrived at the council flat assigned to one detainee, B, they had to break the door down to gain entry, causing ‘B’, who had already made one attempt on his life, to have a further breakdown. B subsequently had to be taken to a unit in the local hospital. Another, identified as ‘Q’ spent the first day hungry and alone, without food or money. A third, ‘P’, who has no arms, was unable to make any calls because the phone had not been adapted to his disability. The mother of one detainee, visiting from abroad, was kicked out of the accommodation as her name was not amongst those registered to live in the house according to the Home Office records. Others are terrified of even taking their rubbish out fearing that they may violate the terms of their release unknowingly and end up back in Belmarsh. The men are under a curfew from 7pm at night until the following morning. They are not allowed to organise any pre-arranged meetings and all visitors to their home must be vetted by the Home Office. They cannot leave their properties without notifying the Home Office beforehand. The men have thus been extremely isolated; in some cases, such as those who are unmarried, have found the experience more lonely than their time in prison. As their solicitor commented, "It has been continuous crisis management for the past 10 days."
Since that time, the confusion over the workings of the control orders and the lack of available support led Mahmoud Abu Rideh, a former detainee at Broadmoor hospital, to take a severe overdose last weekend, finding it unbearable to live under the conditions imposed by the Home Secretary. He was taken to Charing Cross hospital after swallowing 35 tablets and was not released until Monday evening. Mahmoud said in an interview this week that “it is just as bad to be free with a control order as it is in Belmarsh prison or Broadmoor hospital”.
“The conditions are too complicated and they don't work. The Home Office emergency number doesn't work. I phoned Fulham police station and they said it's not their problem." He also claims that the voice recognition system operated by the tagging company Premier Monitoring Services does not work and the Guardian found that the Home Office control order hotline was an answering machine.
He is consumed by fears of being re-arrested: "My kids worry that when they get back from school I will be gone and they might not find me again. My wife can't sleep. She is asking me not to go out." Surprise searches by Scotland Yard officers leave his family on edge, he said, and his wife sleeps fully clothed in case of any eventuality.
The former detainees are in great need of assistance. Cageprisoners.com & HHugs encourage all to show their support for the former detainees in the following ways.
1. Write to them.
Never underestimate the importance of writing letters of support to the prisoners, reminding them that they are not alone and have not been forgotten, and that the British public and their Muslim brothers and sisters care. In the past, your letters have been a light in the darkness of prison, raising the morale of the inmates significantly. Due to the draconian conditions placed on the men, the vetting required for visits, it is even more important that they find this support now. At least five of the detainees (indicated by asterisk) are single and many do not have any family in the UK. Some did not even have a single visitor for the three years they were detained in Belmarsh.
To write to the following detainees, please send it to the address below:
Mahmoud Abu Rideh, Abu Qatada (HP5918), Detainee A (GC9022), Detainee B*, Detainee E (FF9416), Detainee G (FF9415), Detainee H (HP4390), Detainee K (HP5668)* , Detainee P (in previous campaigns identified as Detainee M)*
Name
c/o Daniel Guedalla
Birnberg Peirce & Partners
14 Inverness Street
Camden Town
London NW1 7HJ
Please send letters for Detainee Q* to the following address:
Detainee Q
c/o Natalia Garcia
Tyndallwoods Solicitors
Windsor House
Temple Row
Birmingham B2 5TS
2. Financial Support. At most the men are receiving £35 a week on which to live. Many of them have young children and families to support. The council accommodation that has been designated for the single detainees is bare, dismal and depressing to say the least. Your donations can help to finance their needs and may go towards the payment of bills, food, furnishings, etc.
You can send cheques to:
Hhugs
PO Box 415
New Malden
KT3 9AF
Alternatively you can pay directly into HHugs account, quoting the reference “control orders”:
Hhugs
HSBC account number 31438603
Sort code 40-34-24
3. Practical Support. Hhugs are also looking for volunteers who will be able to help the men in practical terms; whether that may be shopping on their behalf, cooking meals for them, visits and so forth.
Please contact hhugs_2004@yahoo.co.uk or ring 07931 833980 if you are able to help.