Detainees rap jail conditions

Dubai: Detainees at Al Muraqqabat Police Station claim their cases have been delayed and have not been produced in court as they wait patiently in a cell that is unhygienic and so cramped they find it difficult to breathe.

"We are stuffed one next to the other. We cannot breathe. Everyday the number of detainees increases. Most of them have been accused of producing bounced cheques or drinking alcohol," said a suspect. There are large numbers of illegal residents as well, they said.

"The place is unhygienic. We have no soap or anything to clean the plates which we use to eat. We only use water," said a detainee.

"We do not dare to complain as they might transfer us immediately to the central jail which is an unpleasant place.

"We have no place to sit. We cannot even sleep," another detainee claimed. He said some prisoners were renting out their space to others.

"Most of us are very sick because of the lack of oxygen," he claimed.

The detainees said the cells were underground and received little light. "We eat our food in the dark," one said.

Mohammad, an Afghan detainee in his late 50s, was transferred recently from Al Rifa'a Police Station where, he said, conditions were better.

"I was transferred last week to Al Muraqqabat Police Station for a bounced cheque case. I have not seen the public prosecutor yet. I am an old man. I am dying here."

Prisoners also claimed visits were not allowed, but they needed time to speak to their lawyers.

A senior police official at the station, however, denied the allegations. "They are all detained here upon request from the public prosecutor," he said, adding the jail was being monitored well and all issues were followed up.