Prison authorities have denied claims by the Kingdom-based National Society for Human Rights (NSHR) that detainees at police stations are prevented access to lawyers.

“There is no reason to prevent detainees from hiring legal representation,” said Jalawi Al-Khamsi, assistant media spokesman at the Kingdom’s General Directorate of Prisons. “Suspects can hire lawyers during interrogation or when the case has been referred to court in accordance with criminal procedures.”

The human rights organization, however, maintains that many suspects remain in custody long after the detention period is over without being referred to a general prison.

A source familiar with the NSHR, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that several observations that have been made on the legal and human rights fronts are in need of urgent consideration.

“Suspects are detained in deplorable conditions without being given access to anyone who can defend their fundamental human rights,” they said. “They are often confined to very narrow rooms that are unfit for human use.”

“We have found large numbers of detainees at some stations, while others were found to have no access to water,” they said. “These types of conditions have been observed at more than one police station in major cities across the Kingdom.”