By Laetithia Harb | Staff Writer

Prisons in Lebanon are a cruel reality to all those incarcerated.  

At a time when citizens in Lebanon can barely afford to provide their family’s necessities, individuals in prison have been facing dehumanizing living conditions. 

The Minister of Interior stated to Human Rights Watch (HRW) in August 2023 that nearly 80 percent of the Lebanese prison population is held in pretrial detention. Roumieh prison, the biggest Lebanese prison, is holding more than twice the number of prisoners it is capable of handling. 

The prison’s cells are effectively overcrowded, and their conditions of health, safety, as well as nutrition, are deteriorating. As mentioned in the HRW article, the Lebanese Internal Security Forces (LebISF) explain that the reasons behind the overcrowding could be traced back to a few reasons. Delayed trial proceedings, the inability of prisoners to pay for their bail, and the current economic and financial meltdown of the Lebanese State are the main contributors to an increased crime rate and are believed to be the main catalysts behind this growing number of prisoners and the worsening of their conditions. They explain that these circumstances have “resulted in worsening humanitarian and livelihood conditions and a drop in the level of health, food, and security, which was further exacerbated as a result of the financial and economic crisis that Lebanon has been suffering since 2019.” 

A relatively recent alarming concern, however, has been the quantity and quality of food served to the detainees which has greatly diminished. With the number of convicts imprisoned in detention centers far exceeding their actual capacity, in addition to the unstable economy, the ISF has not been able to afford sufficient food for all the incarcerated. The ISF hasn’t been able to provide the minimum dietary intake required by law, as it forced to purchase a lesser quantity of food for double the number of prisoners. 

A family member of a Roumieh prisoner said, “In the past, they would bring four large pots [of Burghul, a cracked wheat] for 500 prisoners. Now they bring only one pot.”

This is considered a rigid dichotomy between prisoner treatment in Lebanon and the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners that states, “every prisoner shall be provided by the prison administration at the usual hours with food of nutritional value adequate for health and strength, of wholesome quality and well prepared and served.” Moreover, drinking water and healthcare services should be available for prisoners at all times. However,  this does not mean that these requirements are applied in real life. In fact, according to Amnesty International, statistics show that the number of deaths in Lebanese detention centers has almost doubled in 2022 compared to 2018. A mother of a prisoner in Roumieh described the food her son receives as “food even dogs wouldn’t eat.” 

The ISF claimed that they are trying to take temporary steps to relieve the overcrowding and find quick solutions. Despite governmental planning and the contribution of little funds to the prisons, no significant work was achieved.

As of December 2023, prison food provider companies have announced that starting January 2024, they will not provide prisons with their necessities unless the prison’s debts are paid.  

References

https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/08/23/lebanon-harrowing-prison-conditions

https://www.alaraby.co.uk/society/سجناء-لبنان-مهدّدون-في-غذائهم-مع-تقاعس-السلطات-عن-دفع-الفواتير?amp

https://www.asasmedia.com/news/398213/قنبلة-السجون..-هل-اقترب-الانفجار؟

https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/08/23/lebanon-harrowing-prison-conditions

https://www.alaraby.co.uk/society/%D8%B3%D8%AC%D9%86%D8%A7%D8%A1-%D9%84%D8%A8%D9%86%D8%A7%D9%86-%D9%85%D9%87%D8%AF%D9%91%D8%AF%D9%88%D9%86-%D9%81%D9%8A-%D8%BA%D8%B0%D8%A7%D8%A6%D9%87%D9%85-%D9%85%D8%B9-%D8%AA%D9%82%D8%A7%D8%B9%D8%B3-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B3%D9%84%D8%B7%D8%A7%D8%AA-%D8%B9%D9%86-%D8%AF%D9%81%D8%B9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%81%D9%88%D8%A7%D8%AA%D9%8A%D8%B1

https://www.asasmedia.com/news/398213/%D9%82%D9%86%D8%A8%D9%84%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B3%D8%AC%D9%88%D9%86..-%D9%87%D9%84-%D8%A7%D9%82%D8%AA%D8%B1%D8%A8-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%81%D8%AC%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%9F