JEDDAH, 4 February 2008 — The National Society for Human Rights (NSHR) received a complaint recently from a family of a 38-year-old man serving time for accruing a financial debt he couldn’t pay off.
The family claims that Jeddah’s Briman Prison is guilty of medical negligence for failing to respond to the inmate’s health complaints, which included bloody urine, over the past seven months.
Two weeks ago, the inmate was finally examined and diagnosed with colon cancer that requires invasive surgery and chemotherapy.
According to the family, the man was repeatedly denied access to medical care over months, allegedly because no officer was available to escort him to a hospital. During that time, the inmate’s health deteriorated further, the complaint alleges.
The family also says that the man continues to be given shoddy treatment for access to medical care. A chemotherapy session scheduled for Monday was missed because the prison officials didn’t provide him a security escort to the hospital.
Family members requested that their name not be published out of fear that it could make matters worse for their relative. “Our top concern is his health, which needs immediate attention,” said his sister. “He is in his prime years and it is sad enough to know that after the operation he will expel feces from the body through an outer bag.” She said her brother was subsisting on a liquids-only diet.
Hussain Al-Sharif, NSHR’s Western Province director, said his organization had taken up this issue with the Interior Ministry. He added that the NSHR managed to secure family visitation privileges.
The man is serving time for having accrued a debt of over SR1 million that he was unable to repay.
Arab News submitted a request for information regarding prisoners’ rights related to medical care to the General Directorate of Prisons in Jeddah, but has yet to receive a reply.
