URGENT ACTION APPEAL
13 January 2005
UA 08/05
Harsh prison conditions/ Torture or Ill treatment /
Death penalty
TANZANIA At least 15 prisoners on death row
On 3 January, at least 15 prisoners sentenced to death
in the main Ukonga maximum security prison in the
capital, Dar es Salaam, started a hunger strike
protesting about their harsh prison conditions. They
are reportedly protesting at a poor prison diet and
being severely beaten whilst being held in overcrowded
prison cells. Amnesty International is concerned for
their safety.
The prison authorities have rejected the complaints
and claim that the prisoners' diet has improved.
Prior to this, the Ministry of Home Affairs reportedly
announced that prison conditions in Tanzania had
improved overall.
Ukonga prison holds more than 3,000 inmates. Of these,
90 have been held under sentence of death for up to 20
years after courts found them guilty of murder. Many
say their appeals have not been heard and some of them
are no longer visited by relatives who think that they
have been executed.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Tanzania retains the death penalty for treason and
murder. According to official statistics, there were
387 prisoners under sentence of death in Tanzania in
August 2004. The last executions were carried out in
1995 and in April 2003, President Mkapa commuted 100
death sentences. Non- governmental organizations
(NGOs) and faith groups in Tanzania have continued to
campaign for the abolition of the death penalty.
Amnesty International opposes the death penalty in all
cases, regardless of the gravity of the crime, the
guilt or innocence of the condemned, or the method
used to kill the prisoner. The death penalty is an
affront to human dignity as it violates the right to
life and is a cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment,
contrary to the Universal Declaration on Human Rights.
RECOMMENDED ACTION
Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible:
- expressing concern for the safety of death row
prisoners on hunger strike in Ukonga prison in Dar es
Salaam;
- urging the Tanzanian authorities to provide all
necessary medical attention to those on hunger strike
and to ensure that they are given regular access to
family and lawyers;
- asking the authorities to take immediate action to
ensure that prisoners under sentence of death are not
subjected to torture or ill-treatment by being beaten
and kept in overcrowded conditions;
- requesting that the prison authorities conduct a
prompt, independent and impartial investigation into
all allegations of torture and ill-treatment;
- calling for the authorities to provide minimum
standards of detention for those being held, in line
with the UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment
of Prisoners;
- urging the government to commute these and all other
death sentences in Tanzania on the grounds that the
death penalty is a violation of the right to life and
of the right to be free from torture or cruel, inhuman
or degrading treatment or punishment.
APPEALS TO:
His Excellency Benjamin William Mkapa
President of the United Republic of Tanzania
P.O. Box 9120
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Fax: 011 255 22 211 3425
Salutation: Your Excellency
Mr Ramadhani Mapuri
Minister of Home Affairs
Ministry of Home Affairs
P.O. Box 9223
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Fax: 011 255 22 211 8223
Salutation: Dear Minister
COPIES TO:
Mr Bakari Mwapachu
Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs
Ministry of Justice
P.O. Box 9050
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Fax: 011 255 22 211 3236
Salutation: Dear Minister
The Commandant
Ukonga prison
P O Box 9091
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Salutation: Dear Commandant
Ambassador Andrew Mhando Daraja
Embassy of the United Republic of Tanzania
2139 R St. NW
Washington DC 20008
Email: [email protected]
Fax: 1 202 797 7408
Please send appeals immediately. Check with the
Colorado office between 9:00 am and 6:00 pm, Mountain
Time, weekdays only, if sending appeals after February
24, 2005.
Amnesty International is a worldwide grassroots
movement that promotes and defends human rights.
This Urgent Action may be reposted if kept intact,
including contact information and stop action date (if
applicable). Thank you for your help with this appeal.
Urgent Action Network
Amnesty International USA
PO Box 1270
Nederland CO 80466-1270
Email: [email protected]
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/
Phone: 303 258 1170
Fax: 303 258 7881
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END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL
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