Tampa Bay Coalition for Justice and Peace

May 28, 2004

I. Associated Press: “Islamic Group: Prison Conditions Inhumane”
II. Send a letter to Judge McCoun

I. Islamic Group: Prison Conditions Inhumane

http://news.yahoo.com/newstmpl=story&u=/ap/20040528/ap_on_re_us/attacks_professor_1

By VICKIE CHACHERE, Associated Press Writer

TAMPA, Fla. – An Islamic civil rights organization said Thursday that
a former professor accused of financing terrorists is being held
under inhumane conditions.

The wife of former University of South Florida professor Sami Al-
Arian compared his treatment to the abuse of Iraqi prisoners by
American troops.

“Maybe my husband is not tortured physically, but mentally and
emotionally,” Nahla Al-Arian said. “I want this nightmare to end.”

Al-Arian has been held for 14 months at Coleman Federal Penitentiary
on charges he used an Islamic think tank and a charity he founded to
raise money for the Palestinian Islamic Jihad. He is being held in a
unit designed to house disruptive prisoners.

Nahla Al-Arian and Nihad Awad, executive director of the Council on
Islamic-American Relations, said Al-Arian is held 23 hours a day in a
small cell.

They said Al-Arian continues to be strip-searched despite a judge’s
order that such searches stop and has been denied access to religious
services. He is only allowed one 15-minute telephone call per month,
they said.

A spokesman for the U.S. attorney’s office declined to comment.

Awad said that earlier this month, Al-Arian was strip-searched in
front of other prisoners after a videotaped court conference. He said
the search was unnecessary because Al-Arian was only moved from his
cell to the room where the conference took place and was under a
guard’s watch.

Federal Bureau of Prisons spokeswoman Traci Billingsley said she
could not comment on the specifics of Al-Arian’s treatment. She said
officers are allowed to search an inmate if they believe the person
is concealing contraband.

Council on Islamic-American Relations officials said they believe Al-
Arian is being treated overly harsh because he is a Muslim and an
Arab.

Council officials contrasted Al-Arian’s experience with Robert Jay
Goldstein, a Jewish podiatrist from the Tampa Bay area who pleaded
guilty to plotting to bomb a local Islamic center to avenge the Sept.
11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Goldstein is being held in a low-
security federal facility in Mississippi.

Al-Arian was charged in a 50-count racketeering indictment. Another
defendant, Sameeh Hammoudeh, is also being held at Coleman, and two
others have been released on bond.

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II. Send a letter to Judge McCoun about the harsh prison conditiond for Dr.
Al-Arian and Sameeh Hammoudeh:

Dear Friends of Justice and Peace,

Please consider sending a letter or a postcard to Judge McCoun about the
Continued harsh treatment of Al-Arian and Hammoudeh

His address is:
The Honorable Thomas B. McCoun
U.S. District Court
891 North Florida Avenue
Tampa, Florida 33602

In your letter you could say:

I am concerned that Al-Arian and Hammoudeh were not permitted to attend their
hearing on Monday May 17. Why are Al-Arian and Hammoudeh are being denied this
right?

An additional concern is the denial of the opportunity to examine, in a timely
manner with their attorneys present, evidence that is in the possession of the
government.

Conditions in the SHU unit at Coleman do not meet prescribed standards for
detainees awaiting trial. As one example, the right to make a phone call and to
complete it is made almost impossible when handcuffed and shackled. Why is this
needed in an already secure facility?

The International Red Cross called attention to inhumane treatment of prisoners
at Abu Ghraib and timely action was not taken. Amnesty International has called
attention to the harsh and inhumane treatment of Al-Arian and Hammoudeh. I call
your attention to this parallel.

I am appalled that many in our judiciary and in Congress give scant attention to
the treatment of prisoners in our correctional facilities. Wardens at federal,
state and local levels appear to be untouchable in most instances.

When a judge allows the kind of incarceration and treatment that Al-Arian and
Hammoudeh are receiving it gives the appearance that he is part of the
prosecutorial team. I request that if these detainees cannot be released on
bond, they be moved from Coleman to Orient Road. Coleman is an inappropriate
facility for those who have not been tried and convicted of serious crimes.

Please try to find the time to do this. It really does matter because inhumane
treatment of prisoners regularly occurs in U.S. prisons with little national
attention or public outrage. This happens because of the lack of oversight and
accountability, the balance between human rights and security interests and
overcrowding

For a more complete story about prisons and prisoners go to:

www.commondreams.org/headlines04/0506-07.htm

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For more information on the case, please visit:
www.freesamialarian.com