Tunisia
Abdel Salam Al-Zayanne, a young man in his thirties from Sfax Governorate, died
almost a year and a half ago. On February 28, 2021, he and his brother were arrested by a
security patrol in Sfax in southern Tunisia, for breaking the curfew. The police report stated that Abdel Salam and his brother disrespected a government employee, challenging and threatening him while he was carrying out his duties.
Abdel Salam Al-Zayanne died due to acute diabetes complications, as he did not get his insulin shot for two consecutive days during his detention and imprisonment in Sfax. The forensic report issued on June 4, 2021 states that the victim’s diabetes required three insulin shots daily and 100mg pill of a medicine called ‘Januvia’ to keep it at bay.
The forensic report also states that “In the case of Al-Zayanne, his attendants should have kept him in emergency care until the results of his medical tests have been checked by a doctor prior to discharging him only if a doctor allowed him to leave the emergency care unit, and that his blood glucose levels should have been tested to detect any severe complications.”
Photo of the forensic medicine report
Abdel Salam’s mother Dalinda Qissara said that her son’s death was premeditated, because the security officers failed to comply with his lawyer’s request to provide him with insulin. His health status deteriorated into a critical condition as recorded in the forensic report. Qissara added that she sent insulin shots to his detention centre, but the police failed to hand it over to him. She also said that her second son Wael who was also arrested with his brother informed the police of the deteriorating state of Abdel Salam’s health in the detention centre, but they ignored his calls, and this made his health condition worse.
The official spokesperson for the Sfax Governorate courts, Judge Murad Al-Turki, confirmed to Al-Diwan FM Radio Station that fourteen people were charged in the case of Abdel Salam’s death, including three doctors and a healthcare worker in addition to security, prison and reform officers who were investigated and charged with the crime of manslaughter for failing to take the necessary precautions, and their negligence as per article (217) of the Penal Code of Tunisia. They were also found guilty of intentionally perpetrating the crime by taking measures that facilitated it, without the intention to kill.
There action was seen to have resulted in death, as per article (215) of the Tunisian Penal Code and in committing a crime due to their lack of intervention to help or rescue a person in danger, according to Law (3) of June 1966.
The unfortunate case of Abdul Salam has raised many questions about the right of arrestees to a medical examination in their detention centres, as stated in the Tunisian Detention Law No. (5) of 2016. Also, how are medical examinations done and what mechanisms do they follow? How are the rights of detainees preserved, since the incident involving Abdel Salam Al-Zayanne is not the first one in Tunisia.
In a statement to Al-Diwan FM Radio, Mundhir Al-Charni, Secretary-General of “Organization Against Torture” in Tunisia declared that the death of Abdel Salam Al-Zayanne, is classified as a medical negligence, and is a turning point in the detention process, which stipulates that medical examination and care should be made available to detainees specially that many among them suffer from chronic diseases, such as diabetes and blood pressure, and their health condition may deteriorate during incarceration. Moreover, they may not be taking medication in a timely manner, and this may lead to serious complications.
In the Code of Criminal Procedures, Tunisian law provides details about the duties of the authorities
that are in charge of the detention process by setting up detention guarantees and specify detention procedures. Through the 2016 amendment, the Tunisian legislation added a number of
formal and objective guarantees for detainees.
Article (13) of the amended law of February 16, 2016 on detention and medical care for
detainees in Tunisia stipulates that a medical examination may be requested for the detainees,
and it makes medical examinations obligatory. The text states, “The detainee, his lawyer or a
person may ask the representative of the public prosecutor or the judicial police officers
to conduct a medical examination on the detainee during the detention period or upon its
expiration. In this case, a doctor must be delegated to conduct the required medical examination
immediately.”
It is preferable that the detainee go through a mandatory medical examination before, during and
after the detention period since torture may take place on the first day, and its traces may be gone
in the following days. According to legal expert Jabir Al-Ghunaimi’s interpretation of the law,
this would ensure the principle of guaranteeing detainees’ human rights.
The actual law grants the right to a medical examination without providing details about it or clarifying the procedures to be followed.
The dissolved Tunisian parliament adopted a historic law that guarantees a set of rights for
detainees as a step towards preventing torture, forced confessions and other violations. However,
it is still not fully implemented, as Judge Al-Turki asserts. He believes that there is an imbalance
in applying the rights stipulated in the 2016 law, due to the lack of capacity to adapt detention
rooms in a manner consistent with the law.
In a statement to Al-Diwan FM Radio, lawyer Ghassan Al-Ghuraibi explained that Law No. (5)
did not specify the mechanisms for medical examinations, and he emphasized the importance of
providing a place for medical examinations and delegating a doctor to detention centres, so he
could carry out comprehensive medical examination.
Al-Ghuraibi pointed out that this examination would provide information about the health status
of detainees, would ensure their safety and guarantee that their health condition would not
deteriorate later.
This was confirmed by Mundhir Al-Charni, Secretary-General of “the Organization Against Torture” in Tunisia who said that there are many flaws in applying the right to a medical
examination in line with the text of Law No. (5). He attributes that to the absence of adapted
rooms dedicated to the medical examination process in security centres in various regions. These also lack a resident full-time doctors, or some doctors on rotation assigned to examine detainees.
Al-Charni highlighted that there is a significant shortage in the number of doctors who work in
civil prisons in Tunisia compared to the annual rate of inmates entering and leaving prisons,
which is estimated at about 50,000.
Al-Charni said that Tunisian prisons should have healthcare infrastructures, especially in major
Cities, and that regardless of the mistakes a person makes, the state must care for the individual’s health and enable him to enjoy his rights.
Al-Charni states that a number of security and police officers do not have sufficient awareness of the matter of healthcare and the right of detainees to a medical examination, which leads to incidents of death.
Lawyer Al-Ghuraibi also confirmed that a number of security and prison officers do not consider the issue of medical examination important, and do not inquire about the detainees’ health and psychological status. He explained that he has witnessed many violations related to this issue.
The death Abdel Salam Al-Zayanne, sparked a wave of protests and denunciation by a number of civil and human rights bodies. These have demanded that the authorities in charge hold the perpetrators accountable and limit the violations of the rights of detainees in civil prisons and security centres in Tunisia. This incident opened a discussion about the conditions of preventive detention in security centres and civil prisons in Tunisia. Noman Mezyid the head of the Tunisian Human Rights League in Sfax confirmed that the League documented bad practices by a number of security officers against detainees in police stations. These practices were serious violations of the amended law on detainees in Tunisia. He pointed out that these violations cannot be justified as detainees are not informed of their rights, including their main right to request a lawyer or to be interrogated in the presence of a lawyer. This is in addition to the bad treatment they receive and the verbal and physical abuse they experience.
Mezyid stressed that the law in a number of security centres is manipulated, as these fail to
institute the practice of medical examinations and to inform detainees of their right to mental and
physical health. This is in addition to the lack of proper adequate cells that uphold a level of human
dignity. Moreover, delays in addressing cases and pressure on detainees leads to confessions under duress.
The reporter has contacted the spokesperson of the Tunisian Ministry of Interior in the hope of getting the ministry’s reaction in the spirit of their right to respond to our findings. Due to the reporter’s insistence, the Ministry of Interior referred us to the prison authority department of the Ministry of Justice. In early July 2022, contacts were made with the Ministry’s media representative through email and a fax to grant us an interview. But to date, no response has been received.
Copy of the correspondence with the Ministry of Justice
The Secretary-General of “the Organization Against Torture” in Tunisia Mundhir Al-
Charni confirmed that Abdel Salam is not the first to die in detention in Tunisia, and he
presented some examples in a statement to Al-Diwan FM. He noted that in early 2021, a young
man named Ahmad Bin Amara from Sidi Hussein Al- Sijoumi area in Tunis died due to violence, and four security men were charged in his murder. Another young man, Shukri Mouftah from Al-Mida region of Nabeul Governorate died in early 2022, due to excessive violence used by security officers when he was detained. He was hospitalized for two months before passing away as a result of the severe injuries he had sustained, and one of the National Guard members was summoned and charged with assault.
Al-Charni stressed that suspicious death cases in security centres usually raise questions about
torture and violence, and this requires conducting thorough, serious and quick investigations on all levels. The accuracy of medical reports in determining the cause of death in all these cases has to be re-examined as well.
Al-Charni called on the state to take action to address the issue of impunity and to hold security officers who deliberately assault inmates or detainees and violate their rights accountable. He believes this would deter abuses and the escalation of violations, especially against a prisoner or a detainee who is vulnerable.
The head of the Tunisian Human Rights League in Sfax Noman Mezyid proposed the expansion of the preliminary investigation period and setting up a time limits so that such period is not long. This therefore could reduce the exposure of detainees to verbal and physical abuses. Moreover, it is important that a lawyer be present in all stages to witness the interrogation process. This is in addition to developing training programs for officers of the law, in charge of interrogating detainees in order to avoid violations.
Strategy document
Abdel Salam Al-Zayanne died due to the abuse of his rights as a detainee, or due to the negligence of the security forces or the lack of capacities in the Tunisian security and prison services. This amplifies the importance of forensic reports which prove that in most cases the deaths recorded in some detention centres in Tunisia also resulted from violence, torture of simply medical negligence. This shows that the course of accountability and limiting impunity is still faltering in Tunisia, which requires plans to reform and develop the procedures followed in security centres and prison authorities in Tunisia, so these institutions can prove that they are transparent and committed to international standards and treaties with regard to human rights.
The right to life is fundamental, and the law must protect this right and ensure that it is respected by all authorities so that no one loses his life arbitrarily.
