A seminar on the reality of prisons and needs in the current situation was held at the Ministry of the Interior and Municipalities, with the patronage and presence of the custodian Minister of the Interior and Municipalities, Judge Bassam Mawlawi. General of the Internal Security Forces, Major General Imad Othman and a number of interested officers and representatives of embassies: Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egyptian, American, French, German, Norwegian and League of Arab States, and representatives universities, the Ministry of Health and a number of relevant international organizations and associations.
Molloy
Minister Mawlawi gave a speech in which he said: “It has not been more than seven months since the forum that was held in this particular room, where I have pledged in front of you and your colleagues to keep the parliamentary elections on time. Indeed, as I promised, these elections were held democratically, without incident. In terms of security or administration, despite the enormous skepticism and difficulties in terms of human resources, the financial and monetary situation, the decline in capacity and the blackout from the Electricité du Liban, where the ministry has prepared a plan to ensure this to all electoral centers in collaboration with the municipalities.
Once again, we seek with you today, friends of the Ministry, to work to meet the urgent needs of Lebanese prisons, which face the challenges of overcrowding and their inmates are suffering, due to a lack of material resources, from a sharp decline in medical services and hospital due to the limited amounts set aside for this in the budget and the collapse in the value of the Lebanese pound against the dollar. .
Molloy added: “The ministry considers the development of the prison system and places of detention and the construction of new prisons a priority at the political and strategic level, and to this end is working realistically to re-evaluate the strategic plan developed in this regard, which provides for the establishment of three new prisons, in the absence of the necessary resources and financial decline. Currently the Ministry considers it necessary to take the necessary tactical measures to contain the crisis in order to prevent the situation from deteriorating. These measures need your support and assistance. “
At the legislative level to reduce overcrowding, I have presented a proposal to reduce the year of detention to six months, which I hope the House of Representatives will approve as soon as possible. Furthermore, with all of us recognizing and affirming the independence of the judiciary, I invite you, ladies and gentlemen, to speed up the decision on requests for release and to speed up the processes, despite the difficult circumstances they are going through, and to find judicial solutions. ” Order of Lawyers to reactivate the operating room set up during the Corona emergency to activate the releases.
Molloy continued: “The suffering of inmates in our prisons is exacerbated by the crisis, adding to the overcrowding the suffering of medical care and hospitalization, as well as the urgent need to maintain buildings, market mechanisms and ambulances. In light of the ongoing power outages. , the need to guarantee independent and sustainable sources of energy to power prisons “.
Our meeting today is not just a legal and human rights issue, but a question of morality and conscience. It is entrusted to us, and it is our duty to do everything possible to make it happen, and my promise is categorical.The General Directorate of the Domestic Security Forces, led by Major General Imad Othman, has not failed to provide the best living conditions possible for inmates, so he prioritized them over his elements in terms of medical care and hospitalization.
This suffering is not limited to the detainees only, but also affects the officers and members of the Directorate General of the Internal Security Forces who sacrifice themselves for service, with exceptional patriotic sense, in demanding working conditions and in light of the deterioration of their situation. economic and the decline in the purchase value of their salaries. By providing support to Lebanon, we make our meeting an opportunity to join efforts in order to satisfy the official efforts of the Lebanese state with your support, according to the image that is suits each of you.
And Mawlawi added: “Neglecting this problem can lead to increased resentment of detainees towards the state and a decline in trust in it and in the judicial system in Lebanon, and the social and psychological consequences this could have on detainees and their families, leaving deep wounds in the conscience of the nation ”.
Prison security is the security of the homeland, and here it is necessary to emphasize the will of the government and its president to maintain civil security and peace in Lebanon, and to note the success of the security services, despite the deterioration of their material conditions, who are no longer hidden from anyone, who render their services to the homeland and citizens with honesty, morality and the honor of sacrifice. The issue of maintaining security will be on the table of the Central Internal Security Council, which will hold a session tomorrow, under my chairmanship, in this chamber to develop sustainable plans in this context.
Mawlawi concluded: “Lebanon is going through a crisis from which it will emerge with the faith and patience of its citizens, and the love and loyalty of its Arab brothers. It is they who have always been by its side and have faced the attempt. to isolate it from its Arab milieu. Arab Lebanon will not betray its constitution and will not turn against its history. This irrefutable identity of Lebanon, which makes it take steps to rebuild trust with its natural environment, resembles the aspirations of its children who are currently abandoning it due to the restricted living conditions in it Lebanon must live up to the aspirations of the people of the country.
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Then Colonel Ghassan Othman, advisor to the Minister of the Interior for penitentiary affairs, gave a presentation on the reality of prisons and urgent needs.
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