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Date: 28 April 2016

News Brief

On Wednesday, 27 April 2016, Al Mezan Center for Human rights (Al Mezan) organized a workshop entitled: “Prisoners’ Rights under Palestinian Legislation”. The workshop targeted residents of the Rehabilitation and Reform Center in Khan Younis “Asdaa”. Participants were 90 detainees and prisoners, and 10 administrators, including the vice director of the center, Lieutenant Colonel Ayman Mohammed Eid.

Yehya Mohareb, Al Mezan’s lawyer, opened the workshop by welcoming the attendees and expressed his hope that the workshop will fulfill its desired goals of promoting prisoners’ rights in accordance with the Palestinian legislation and raising awareness of the prisoners regarding their own rights.

Mohareb discussed prisoners’ rights and the safeguards granted under the Palestinian legislation, particularly under the Amended Palestinian Basic Law of 2005, Code of Criminal Procedure No. 3 of 2001, and the Rehabilitation and Reform Centers Law No. 6 of 1998. He underlined Al Mezan’s ongoing work of monitoring the realization of prisoners’ rights inside the rehabilitation and reform centers.

Prior to the four-hour workshop, Al Mezan’s lawyer carried out an inspection visit to check on the prisoners, and observe to what extent their detention conditions abide by the relevant legal criteria.

During the workshop, the participating prisoners interacted positively, and raised several questions and legal queries regarding their rights as prisoners. They also talked about pressing issues facing them inside the rehabilitation center and demanded actions to fix them. On his part, Mohareb stressed the importance of abiding by the legal procedures regarding the detention process, particularly respecting the detention periods’ limits and prisoners’ rights.

This workshop was conducted in the context of the project “Protection of Human Rights through Legal Work and Judicial Reform in the Occupied Palestinian Territory”, funded by Sawasya, a UNDP and UN Women joint program.

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