Case ISR 070808.CC - Arbitrary use of administrative detention of two Palestinian female minors /Abusive treatment during the transfer to the prison


The International Secretariat of the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) requests your URGENT intervention in the following situation in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

Brief description of the situation

The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by Defence for Children-Palestine section (hereafter DCI-Palestine), a member organisation of OMCT SOS-Torture network, about the arrest during the night of June 5th, 2008 of two 16 year-old girls, Salwa Salah and Sara Siureh, and their administrative detention, without any official charges. During their arrest and the transfer to the prison, Salwa and Sara were also subjected to abusive ill-treatment by Israeli police and Israeli Security Agency (ISA) officers.

According to the information received, on Thursday June 5th, 2008, between 1:30 and 2:00 a.m., Salwa Salah and Sara Siureh (both 16 years old) were arrested by the ISA at their respective homes in Bethlehem. In both cases, Israeli forces used excessive force when they arrested the girls by handcuffing and blindfolding Salwa and by storming Sara’s house and shouting at her. Both girls are relatives (cousins) and one of the girls is still at school. The ISA claimed that the girls were involved in militant activities. However, no charge has ever been issued against them.

Following their arrest, Salwa and Sara were taken briefly to Telmond Prison and then to Ofer Prison where they were interrogated for one hour. During the interrogation, they were allegedly asked about what they were doing and if they had any relations with any political group. The girls did not confess to anything. After one hour the girls were taken back to Telmond prison where they spent a couple of days. They were then taken to Addamoun prison.

According to DCI-Palestine, military administrative detention orders were issued on 12th June. They justified the girls’ detention on the basis of their supposed involvement in militant activities which were “endangering the security of the area”. The orders have been set for four months (in respect of Salwa) and five months (in respect of Sara). A military court confirmed the orders on June 18th. An appeal hearing also confirmed the orders on July 16th although Sara's sentence was reduced from 5 to 4 months. The two girls are now detained in Addamoun prison in Israel with Palestinian adult female detainees. They will hopefully be released on October 4. However, according to the existing procedure, at the end of the detention period the Military Commander can renew the administrative detention order for up to 6 months, every 6 months and indefinitely, subject to review by a court (within 8 days of each order being issued). This possibility exists even in the absence of any charge or trial during the whole period of detention.

According to the same source of information, since their arrest, Salwa and Sara have been subjected to several violations of their human rights. In addition to the excessive use of force during the arrests, the girls also reported that during a transfer from Addamoun to Al Ramle prison on 15th July, they suffered extremely abusive behaviour from the female police officer escorting them. In particular, the officer pushed them forcefully with her hands and shouted at them. When they arrived at Al Ramle prison, according to the existing procedure, Salwa and Sara were searched: they were asked to strip totally naked while a female officer searched their hair, body and mouth with gloves. They felt the search was humiliating. Moreover, from the date of their arrest to 21st July, none of the girls had been allowed any contact with their families. In the meantime they at least had the opportunity to meet and speak with their lawyer (kindly provided by Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association).

The International Secretariat of OMCT expresses its deep concern about the situation of Salwa Salah and Sara Siureh and, in particular, the fact that their administrative detention does not respect international human rights standards. Indeed, administrative detention infringes the principle according to which deprivation of liberty of a child (below 18 years old) should “be used only as a measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time” (article 37-b of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child to which Israel is a State party). Moreover, OMCT considers that the mental suffering caused by not knowing the grounds for detention nor the length of detention is contrary to the UN Covention Against Torture and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to both of which Israel is a State party. OMCT would also like to recall that among the 323 Palestinian children detained as of the end of June 2008 in various places of custody and detention in Israel, 13 were held in administrative detention, among whom were two girls [1], namely Salwa Salah and Sara Siureh.

Action requested

Please write to the authorities in Israel urging them to:

i. Guarantee, in all circumstances, the physical and psychological integrity of Salwa Salah and Sara Siureh;

ii. Guarantee immediate and unconditional access to legal representation, their families and any care they may require;

iii. Order their immediate release in the absence of valid legal charges, or, if such charges exist, bring them before an impartial, independent, competent and fair tribunal and guarantee their procedural rights at all times;

iv. Order a thorough and impartial investigation into these events in order to identify all the officers that abused the victims, bring them to trial and apply the penal and/or administrative sanctions as provided by law;

v. Guarantee that adequate compensation is awarded to Salwa Salah and Sara Siureh;

vi. Ensure the respect of human rights and fundamental freedoms throughout the country in accordance with national laws and international human rights standards.

Addresses

• Mr. Ehud Olmert, Prime Minister, Office of the Prime Minister, 3 Kaplan Street, PO Box 187, Kiryat Ben-Gurion, Jerusalem, 91919, Israel, Fax: +972- 2-651 2631, E-mail: rohm@pmo.gov.il , pm_eng@pmo.gov.il 
• Mr Daniel Friedmann, Minister of Justice, Fax: + 972 2 628 7757; + 972 2 628 8618
• Mr Menachem Mazuz, Attorney General, Fax: + 972 2 627 4481; + 972 2 628 5438; +972 2 530 3367
• Mr Ehud Barak, Minister of Defense, Fax: +972 3 697 6218, sar@mod.gov.il

Please also write to the embassies of Israel in your respective country.

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Geneva, 7th July 2008

Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.

Source: OMCT