Prison Conditions

On 28th November 2011 Gloria and Chiwar Joseph Musa were both arrested by Haringey Police (rather than the court’s “tip staff”) and taken to Savile Row Police Station. After a hearing in haringey (!) Magistrates Court they were NOT given bail and taken to HMP Holloway and HMP Pentonville respectively.

Following a number of visits, these letters were written by two of their McKenzie Friends:

Nick Leader
Governor
HMP Pentonville
Caledonian Rd
London N7 8TT

10 December 2011

Dear Sir

Re: Chiwar Musa (Nigeria), B Wing, No. A2793cj

Yesterday Friday 9th December I and Belinda McKenzie visited Mr Musa at Pentonville Prison for the first time since his incarceration on remand, following his and wife Gloria Musa’s hearings at Haringey Magistrates Court on 30th November and 7th December respectively. We are friends and McKenzie friends in court hearings of Mr & Mrs Musa.

We are most concerned at the treatment Mr Musa is receiving whilst resident at Pentonville. I had booked the visit yesterday, however when we arrived the staff had no recollection of my adding Belinda, therefore she was not allowed to see Chiwar, to our and his great disappointment. In fact, we had already booked a visit on Tuesday 6 December, 4 days previously, only to then be told there is no visiting on the first Tuesday of the month.

Our concerns are:

Chiwar still has no clothes except what was issued to him on Day 1 of his incarceration. Yet yesterday, after a 1-hour wait while I tried to hand in clothes for him in the appropriate department of the prison, I was told I couldn’t as he had already received clothes from a visitor the day before. When I then met Chiwar face-to-face he said he had received no clothes whatsoever during his 12 days at the prison, either from inside or from outside. On entry all his clothes had been taken from him and he had been issued with prison clothes, even though he is on remand and is allowed to wear his own clothes;

Chiwar has not been receiving any emails from us. I have sent him 2, and others have sent him emails too, that he has not received. At 30p per email sent we demand to know why our money has been taken when nothing in return has been given?

Chiwar told me all postal mail in and out has been disallowed for him. Why is this?

Chiwar told me he is allowed no phone calls out – again, why is this? He is very much allowed them according to the book;

There have been other instances of victimisation and targeting by the prison staff towards Chiwar Musa, very similar to the treatment his wife Gloria Musa has been enduring whilst simultaneously a remand prisoner in Holloway Women’s prison, in that prison warders have told other prisoners that he has mental problems therefore he is to be avoided. This is of course against his human rights and totally inhumane as he has no history of mental illness whatsoever. We fear the stage is being set to have both Chiwar and Gloria sectioned, in order to reinforce this scenario of mental insanity and make it easier to control them absolutely, so that the people who have stolen their 6 children from them and are attempting to brand them as child-abusers can keep the children indefinitely.

We request your immediate intervention in this situation which is against the rules for prisoners on remand, as well as against ethics and human rights. Chiwar Musa has not yet been sentenced and is in any case innocent of the charges against him, as will be proven. Therefore we demand that he receives the same rights and treatment as other prisoners on remand in UK prisons.

Yours faithfully

Julia Killick
Governor
HMP Holloway
Holloway
Islington
London N7 0NO

10 December 2011

Dear Governor

Re: Gloria Musa (Nigeria), A4 Unit, No. A2767cj

On Saturday 3rd December John Graham and I visited Gloria Musa at Holloway Prison for the first time since her incarceration on remand, following her and husband Chiwar Musa’s hearing at Haringey Magistrates Court on 30th November. We visited her again on Tuesday 6th December. We are friends and McKenzie friends in court hearings of Mr & Mrs Musa.

We are most concerned at the treatment Gloria is receiving whilst resident at Holloway. Our concerns are:

Gloria has a severe problem with her leg, having been treated roughly by the police both in June 2010 in the maternity unit when her 6th child was removed from her at 4 am the day following her birth, then in September 2011 whilst the couple were being detained in Tottenham Police station. Gloria was stripped naked and again rough-handled, since when she has been in continuous pain and hardly able to walk. Because of recent negative experiences at the hands of the UK medical service and police she has been too frightened to seek treatment the injured leg/knee, although the severity and long duration of the condition indicate there could be something structurally wrong, requiring surgical intervention. Accordingly, at our first visit to Gloria in Holloway we lodged a formal complaint (using the prison complaint form) that her painful knee is being completely ignored by prison staff and requested for her to see a doctor immediately. On returning to the prison on Tuesday 6th December we were appalled to find that absolutely nothing had yet been done, and that the same tatty bandage put on by Gloria herself was still binding the knee! When on 7th December Gloria and her husband attended Haringey Magistrates Court she entered the dock wincing on a stick and could hardly stand. The judge kindly told her she could sit down. Why has Gloria not received medical attention, despite our complaint? We urgently require your answer to that question, and request that matters be put right forthwith;

Gloria is being held in a single cell which is not heated, with a draught coming in through a cracked window-pane. We have now supplied her with warm clothes however she continues to suffer from cold;

The prison warders have told other prisoners that Gloria has mental problems therefore she is to be avoided. She cannot therefore associate with her fellow-prisoners. This is against her human rights and totally inhumane as she has no history of mental illness whatsoever. We fear the stage is being set to have both Gloria and her husband Chiwar, likewise on remand at Pentonville and receiving much the same treatment, sectioned, in order to reinforce this scenario of mental insanity and make it easier to control them absolutely. In this way those who have stolen the couple’s 6 children from them and are attempting to brand them as child-abusers can keep the children indefinitely.

We request your immediate intervention in this situation which is against the rules for prisoners on remand, as well as against ethics and human rights. Gloria Musa has not yet been sentenced and is in any case innocent of the charges against her, as will be proven. We demand she receives the same rights and treatment as other prisoners on remand in UK prisons.

Above all, we request immediate medical attention for her injured leg and pain.

Yours faithfully

Cc: Nick Hardwick, Chief Inspector of Prisons; Crispin Blunt MP, Minister for Prisons & Probation; Don Marcus (Solicitor); Christopher Booker (Sunday Telegraph)

Sent by recorded delivery