Muslims in UK jails tell of plight

Audrey Gillan September 9, 2002 The Guardian

Two of the nine men detained without charge for nine months under British anti-terror legislation introduced in the wake of the September 11 attacks have spoken for the first time about their imprisonment and their fears that they will be held for many years.

In a letter to the Guardian brought out of prison, one detainee says: "I am not a criminal and I have not committed any crime." He claims he is the victim of a miscarriage of justice and that there is no evidence against him.

The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is one of a number of Muslims arrested because the home secretary believes they are "international terrorists". He claims he is not and that the label means his wife and daughter are now living in fear for their lives.

The other man, who spoke via his lawyer, Gareth Peirce, says the detainees have nothing to hide but have not even been interviewed by the police. The man predicts that they will be in prison for many years, adding: "We feel we are not being treated as human beings, that we have been captured for a purpose and that purpose is political and nothing to do with justice."

The Guardian was invited by one prisoner to visit him and discuss his case but permission was refused by the prison service. The detainee's solicitor, Natalia Garcia, said: "It's as if he is being held in a country where people are disappeared, where they are picked up off the streets and you never hear from them again."

The other prisoner, who speaks for three others detained in Belmarsh prison, said: "We have been screaming to put our side of the story but we have been put in prison arbitrarily without anyone hearing our case."

The nine men are being held under the Anti-terrorism Crime and Security Act 2001 which allows for the detention without charge or trial of foreign nationals. In July, the special immigration appeals commission ruled that the detention of the men was unlawful but the home secretary is appealing against the decision.