Activism in Prison

GUIDE Activism In Prison This brief guide was put together in 2017 to assist There are risks, of course. Retribution is possible. human rights activists who are at risk of being jailed. After Bahraini human rights defender Nabeel Rajab Rachel Lehr and Emily Sherwood at Case Western had articles published in international media he’d Reserve University Law School were the lead written from prison he was charged with new researchers under the supervision of Law Professor offenses as a result. Avidan Cover. In Egypt, prisoner Ahmed Said penned a letter This guide is split into two parts. The first section about his political beliefs and his commitment to offers an overview of some techniques used by advocating for human rights. Ahmed wrote that his activists to help themselves and help others while false imprisonment would not deter him from they are in detention. The second section describes continuing to call for democracy in Egypt. This letter specific activists’ experiences. was smuggled out of the prison and published on Amnesty International’s website. Other human rights What follows has been compiled through interviews organizations saw Ahmed’s letter and shared it on and secondary source research. Our list of their sites. techniques is not exhaustive, nor is it intended to be a comprehensive manual for how activists might In Cameroon, Enoh Meyomesse used his writing to cope in jail, but should be considered a modest advocate for fellow prisoners. Meyomesse wrote an attempt to initiate a discussion and to prompt further essay describing the prison conditions that was useful examples or ideas for coping strategies or shared via PEN international. It drew attention to advocacy techniques. We are not endorsing or corruption of the prison officials, the extortion of the suggesting that activists embark on any of these if prisoners, and their unsanitary conditions. jailed. All of the techniques carry risk, and in the Meyomesse also contributed to PEN’s Books for case of hunger striking, extreme risk. But we hope Prisoners Campaign, which advocates for UK this guide will encourage activists with experience of prisoners to be able to receive books in the post being in jail to share useful ideas with others from friends and family members, by writing a piece that supported the initiative. If you have suggestions for additions to this report please email [email protected]. In Azerbaijan, Ilgar Mammadov wrote a letter explaining how the extraction of fossil fuel was Prison Writing connected to the detention of Azerbaijani political While it is impossible for all activist to write while in prisoners. The letter was published by prison, many do. Some concentrate on their prison “nopolitcalprisoners.org”, a site run by the experiences while others find ways to continue Norwegian Helsinki Committee and available at advocating on the issues they worked on before [email protected]. being jailed. 1 GUIDE In Azerbaijan, Khadija Ismayilova was able to write information for international human rights from prison. She says she had five lawyers organizations. throughout her term in jail, and would give each a In Azerbaijan, Khadija Ismayilova helped those she few sentences to remember. Then the lawyers would felt were unfairly imprisoned write their applications meet to piece the writing together. Ismayilova would to the court and asked her lawyers to help as well. also write pieces to the court as legal motions, She would also pressure doctors to help prisoners saying they were related to her case. She knew that who fainted or who had severe medical conditions the judge would never read what she wrote but by “making a lot of noise about it.” Ismayilova says would dismiss them and turn them over directly to she prevented several suicides. her lawyers who could then deliver them to the press. BuilDing Relationships within In Turkey, novelist Asli Erdogan spent 132 days in Prison prison because she was connected to a pro-Kurdish Some prisoners maintained that establishing a civil newspaper. While in jail she wrote a letter to PEN relationship with prison staff and prison spies can describing Turkey’s suppression of other journalists. de-escalate dangerous or tense situations and PEN published the letter on their website. enable the activist to carry out a level of advocacy. In the UniteD States oF America, Mohamedou Ould In the UniteD Arab Emirates, Ahmed Mansoor said Slahi wrote a book about his experiences, he always made a point to be civil with prison guards Guantanamo Diary. With the help of his lawyer, he and officials, saying that trying to remain pleasant was able to publish a redacted version of it while still and never raising his voice to guards made them detained. easier to deal with over time. He also said he tried to Advocacy on BehalF oF Other befriend those sent to spy on him. Some admitted Prisoners they were informers and agreed to pass false information to the authorities. Prisoner advocacy takes a variety of forms, including In Azerbaijan, Khadija Ismayilova said that while writing to highlight conditions, but here we include she did her best to remain civil to the Azerbaijani more direct advocacy. Some activists bring skills into prison staff, she refused to ever ask for or accept prison other prisoners don’t have. Jailed lawyers can favors. She also told her cell mates soon after she help fellow inmates fill out forms and paperwork, arrived in prison that they should feel free to report medics can help sick prisoners who have not anything they see her doing to the prison officials if received adequate medical attention. they would benefit from passing information. In Egypt, surgeon Ahmed Said was able to conduct In Iran, Nasrin Sotoudeh and other women prisoners medical exams and provide diagnoses to fellow heard that Hoda Saber, a human rights activist, died inmates, who were often denied medical assistance from a heart attack during a hunger strike. Saber by prison officials. was imprisoned in the men’s ward and many of his In the UniteD Arab Emirates, activist Ahmed fellow inmates continued to hunger strike. Sotoudeh Mansoor used his law school experience to educate and the other women grew very concerned for the his fellow inmates on the UAE legal systems and men’s health and safety and wrote the men a letter help them to write defendant statements. He also urging an end to their hunger strikes. They sent the helped prisoners who had been tortured to letter through the prison’s mail system, which the document their experiences, and gave them contact 2 GUIDE authorities intercepted, and demanded to know who family or friends. Another method involved wrote the letter. handwriting statements and smuggling them out in other inmates’ legal documents. The ward’s security officer interrogated and threatened the women in an attempt to learn who In Turkey, Asli Erdogan wrote to PEN International wrote the letter. A group of 30 women prisoners about Turkey’s suppression and mistreatment of interrupted the interrogation. When he asked who journalists. Once published on PEN’s website, wrote the letter, Sotoudeh asked him, “Is that a Erdogan’s letter also allowed her to connect with question we must answer?” The officer said no. and thank her supporters. Sotoudeh told him that they would not be answering his question. The women left and none of them was Hunger Strikes punished. The letter was later smuggled into the Hunger striking remains a controversial and men’s ward. dangerous method of activism. Some human rights Utilizing MeDia defenders use it as a tactic of last resort. Some prisoners report an improvement in conditions after Contacting outside media to expose prison their hunger strikes, others do not. conditions or to advocate for outside issues can be In Iran, in response to the arrest of her attorney, her an enormously effective, if dangerous, activity. being forcibly subjected to a “virginity test,” and Some prisoners leak statements via their family or verbal abuse from a prison guard, Atena Farghadani lawyers. This technique relies on the human rights began a hunger strike. On the fourth day of refusing defender having friends, family, or lawyers willing to food and water, Farghadani received emergency assist in smuggling out information. This technique medical treatment for low blood pressure. is most effective when the human rights defender is Farghadani’s request for a transfer to another prison fairly well-known before their imprisonment or if a was approved and she ended the strike. well-known organization or publication is willing to give the human rights defender a platform. SelF-Care anD Coping In Iran Atena Daemi is still serving her original Mechanisms sentence but stays in touch with the media through Attending to self-care is a prerequisite for effective her mother who has been giving interviews on her advocacy in and out of prison. Jail presents a new behalf. Daemi has also successfully smuggled out set of challenges for activists including pressures on letters explaining the violent and illegal mental health. circumstances of her arrest. In Egypt, Ahmed Said and his fellow detainees In Bahrain, prominent human rights defenders distracted themselves from prison life by playing Zainab Al Khawaja, Nabeel Rajab, Mahdi Abu Deeb, chess with pieces they made from soap. Ali Alekry and others have all managed to have In Libya, Jaballa Matar coped with the stress of pieces published in the international media to prison by frequently reciting poetry. highlight their country’s repression. In China, Peter Dahlin was kept in solitary In the UniteD Arab Emirates, five detainees confinement and interrogated in one of China’s charged together leaked statements to international secret prisons. To keep his mind occupied he recited media and human rights organizations about the the lyrics to his favorite songs and did basic details of their unfair trial.

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