Palestinian prisoners gearing to go on hunger strike

[ 16/10/2010 - 04:52 PM ]

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- Palestinian Prisoners Movement leaders called on all concerned parties to gear to join forces with Palestinian prisoners in their next battle with the Israeli prison administration. Prisoners in Israeli detention, writing to the Prisoner Studies Center on Saturday, said they will soon begin an open-ended hunger strike “Irish style”, on water and salt only. The strike, which will be voluntary from beginning to end, will be announced at the moment when one of the top prison leaders will begin by himself to mark the first stage in agreement with all prisoners. Then, 50 prisoners will join the strike during the first weekend. In conjunction with the above mentioned prisoners, other inmates will begin to go on strike with them for one day only. The prisoners said their actions “will pick up in the second week” with 100 other prisoners joining the hunger strike. All prisoners will begin a solidarity strike for one other day to coincide with them. The strike will escalate on the third week when 100 prisoners go on strike with all prisoners striking with them for two consecutive days. In the fourth week, after 21 days of fasting, the door will be open for prisoners to strike how they choose. The Prisoners Center said the strike will go on until all of the demands of the National Prisoners Movement are met. The strike will not end until the entire prisoner dialogue committee meets and forces the prison administration to meet with the committee to consult in one place for an agreement. Prisoner Center director Rafat Hamdouna stressed that the strike is purely to achieve demands and has no political dimensions. The demands, as set out in the letter, are to bring solitary confinement prisoners to the regular wards, to reach a solution for the visits problem and the women and juvenile prisoners issue, to allow prisoners to communicate with their families, to solve health and education issues, and to put an end to searches, torture, and fines.