UN condemns poor prison conditions in Tunisia

The living conditions in Tunisian prisons are horrible. Ben Emmerson, UN rapporteur on human rights and the fight against terrorism sounded the alarm during a meeting with Tunisian officials on Friday. He began by criticising widespread overcrowding in prisons across the country.

“I was particularly concerned about the prison conditions I witnessed in the Mornagua prison which fall well below the international minimum standards. The prison is approximatively 150% over capacity with more than ninety prisoners crammed into dormitories with inadequate space, natural light, sleeping or sanitary facilities,” Ben Emmerson, UN special rapporteur for human rights and the fight against terrorism said.

He lauded the considerable measures which have been taken in the human rights domain since the fall of Ben Ali. However he regrets that torture is still practiced there and has called on the Tunisian government to eradicate torture and also to revise the terrorism law.

Emmerson is expected to present a complete report to the UN Human Rights Council in March 2018.