The trial of Abdallahi Boukioud, a Saharawi political prisoner detained in Ait Melloul prison, was, on 20 October 2014, once again postponed until November.
The trial of Abdallahi Boukioud, a Saharawi political prisoner detained in Ait Melloul prison, was, on 20 October 2014, once again postponed until November.
As AdalaUK has already reported, Abdallahi is 27 years old and was detained on 27 October 2013 in El Aiún; he was sentenced to 4 years in prison following his first court appearance.
The human rights activist was subjected to torture, ill treatment, medical neglect, harassment and racism. In May 2014 he held an open hunger strike for 67 days after which he was forced fed by the Moroccan authorities.
Although he maintained his hunger strike over a long period of time, there remained no change in his situation and the prison authorities did not respond to any of his demands. His health has been seriously compromised as he did not receive medical care. On 23 September 2014 he started an open hunger strike again, which ended on 2 October 2014. He began hunger striking again four days later after being informed that he would appear in court on 13 October without the presence of a solicitor. On 20 October his trial was again postponed until November. Abdallahi continues his hunger strike. Today he will have been on hunger strike for 97 days since the beginning of the year. It is imperative that he is given proper medical assistance and removed from the general population of the prison.
Adala UK demands that immediate action is taken to assure that an international medical organisation visits the Saharawi political prisoners and assures that they urgently receive adequate treatment. Abdeslam Lomadi (in Ait Melloul prison) and Brahim Daoudi (in Inzegan prison) have been diagnosed with tuberculosis but remain in cells with other detainees and are going without treatment; Abdejalil Laaroussi (in Sale prison in Rabat) has suffered from extreme hypertension for over a year; he faints repeatedly and suffers nasal and rectal bleeding. These are just a few cases AdalaUK presents as examples, since all the political prisoners are denied proper medical care or even the most basic human rights.
AdalaUK alerts the international community to Hassan Elwali’s recent death which was directly caused by the ill treatment and medical neglect he was victim of, despite the declarations of the Moroccan authorities to the contrary. The Moroccan government denies knowing that Hassan suffered from diabetes, but AdalaUK is aware that that was common knowledge. In order to prevent future ‘denials’ of this ilk, AdalaUK will, whenever possible, report on the health status and chronic illnesses of prisoners