14/09/2022
Prisonners are concerned about a man on hunger strike for 25 days. He already had health problems when he arrived in the center 2 months ago, and is very weak. He is a man who has been living in Belgium for 5 years. He tells us that he does not want to stop his hunger strike. The doctor of the center does not seem worried and he does not have any medical follow-up adapted to his situation. We urgently seek an outside doctor to consult him.
Several detainees call us outraged by the violence of a guard.
The “Turkish chef”, as some of the inmates call him, comes into their rooms, pushes them around, knocks on the beds and calls them “bums” and other insults that they do not understand. Two inmates are particularly targeted.
The inmates testified that there is a head guard who is very, very racist with the inmates. He tries to provoke him either with words or sometimes he pushes them with his shoulder in the corridor. Yesterday (13/09/2022) he gave him the obligatory pill (medication?), he touched his mouth to see if he had swallowed the medication. Ron (not his real name) was very upset. He told him many times not to touch him but the guard insisted. He opened the door on the inmates without knocking. Once he told him: “If you want to fight here, there is a corner where there is no camera”. They trie to avoid him all the time. This morning they spoke with the director of the center but she told them that she does not work the next day. She is going to have a meeting with the others from the management and look into this matter.
In the meantime the inmates are hoping for justice:
“either there’s an investigation inside and this guy leaves them alone, or something outside to make the people who are going through it swing.”
NO TO CLOSED CENTER
FREE THEM ALL !
