VZCZCXRO8392
PP RUEHBC RUEHDA RUEHDE RUEHIHL RUEHKUK
DE RUEHGB #1667 1540258
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 020258Z JUN 08
FM AMEMBASSY BAGHDAD
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 7617
INFO RUCNRAQ/IRAQ COLLECTIVE
UNCLAS BAGHDAD 001667
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM PGOV PREL IZ
SUBJECT: PRT SALAH AD DIN: TIKRIT JAIL CONDITIONS NEED
URGENT IMPROVEMENT
1. (U) This is a PRT Salah ad Din reporting cable.
2. (SBU) SUMMARY: Severe overcrowding and lack of hygiene
in Salah ad Din (SaD) jails require urgent action. PRT Rule
of Law (RoL) coordinator is making this a priority, in
cooperation with Iraqi authorities. END SUMMARY.
3. (SBU) PRT Rule of Law (RoL) staff have witnessed
first-hand gross overcrowding and lack of hygiene in Salah ad
Din jails, particularly the Iraqi-administered Tikrit
Terrorist Jail (TTJ). Inmates have less than one square
meter per person (they sleep on carpets that are rolled up
during the day), there is one shower for over 110 inmates,
latrines are inadequate in quality and quantity, and inmates
get a medical visit only once a month. On the positive side,
females and minors are not/not commingled with adult males,
and as far as we can tell, inmates are not abused by jailers,
though they are subject to abuse by interrogators.
4. (SBU) The PRT understands that land has been set aside
for a new 1,000-bed jail. Three billion Iraqi Dinars (over
USD2.5 million) have been allocated for construction in the
2008 budget and the province intends to request another three
billion ID in the 2009 budget. However, ground has not been
broken on this project, and there is no expectation that it
will be ready before end 2009 at the earliest.
5. (SBU) RoL Coordinator is seeking immediate improvements
by urging Iraqi authorities to provide portable toilets,
expand the TTJ by erecting tenting outdoors, institute inmate
screening and classification as part of the intake process,
and enhance medical screening and treatment. The RoL
Coordinator is also attempting to bring a Department of
Justice International Criminal Investigative Training
Assistance (DOJ/ICITAP) corrections program to the Iraqi
police jailers in SaD in an effort to establish progressive
procedures and change the corrections culture.
BUTENIS