Monday, August 08, 2005

How to win friends and........erm...recruit bombers

Not Guantanamo...but a Cell in South Carolina.....

Al-Marri's complaint describes virtually complete isolation from
the world. He has been confined round the clock in a small cell
with an opaque window covered with plastic. He has not been
allowed to speak to his wife or five children. He is allowed no
newspapers, magazines, books (other than the Koran), radio or
television. He is allowed no personal property. His cell contains a
steel bed, a sink and a toilet. During the day, the mattress on his
bed has been removed.

Out-of-cell time has been limited to three showers and three short
periods of solitary recreation a week-but al-Marri has frequently
been denied that out-of-cell time. Once he went 60 days without
being permitted to leave his cell at all. When bad weather prevents
him from going outside, he must remain in hand cuffs and leg irons
during his indoor recreation. Leg irons and handcuffs are placed on
him when he goes to the shower.

Al-Marri alleges that on occasion he has been denied basic hygiene
products such as a toothbrush, toothpaste, soap and toilet paper.
When not provided with toilet paper, he has had to use his hands to
clean himself after he defecates, and it has taken more than an hour
before soap was brought to him so that he could wash his hands.
The water in his cell has frequently been turned off. He has been
denied socks or footwear for months at a time, including during the
winter months. Officers at the brig often lower the temperature in
his cell until it becomes exceedingly cold, but they do not give him
extra clothes or blankets to keep warm.