Psychiatrists Express New Fears for Al Jazeera Journalist Sami al Haj
11.09.07
- UK and US doctors join Reprieve’s call for mental health treatment
- Severe deterioration in mental state diagnosed
- Reprieve urges immediate release as Sami al Haj marks his 247th day of hunger- strike and abuse in Guantánamo
Reprieve has today released statements from two leading psychiatrists diagnosing a serious decline in the mental condition of Guantanamo Bay prisoner Sami al Haj. The reports by noted Texan psychiatrist Dr. Dan Creson and British psychiatrist Dr. Hugh Rickards call for urgent and immediate treatment for Mr. al Haj.
Reprieve lawyers have represented Mr. al Haj since 2005. Reprieve provides frontline investigation and legal representation for prisoners in Guantanamo Bay.
Dr. Creson’s report suggests that Sami al Haj is suffering from severe depression and may be deteriorating to the point of imminent death:
“The … diagnosis best fitting the clinical picture that emerges … is Major Depression with psychotic features. It is also clear that his depressed affect bears little resemblance to depressive states one sees in the ordinary clinical practice of Psychiatry. He, in my opinion, fits into a sub-category of severe depression often seen in complex emergencies where an individual has given up all hope; where nothing remains relevant to survival. Such individuals have been called “passive suicides” by some humanitarian aid workers.”
The report continues:
“Similar states have been noted among women in long, on-going wars (e.g. Darfur) who, in the midst of rape, slow starvation, and abject humiliation did what ever they could to survive and save their children; then, suddenly, something happened in their psyche, and, without warning, they would just sit down with their small children beneath the first small area of available shade and with no apparent emotion wait for death”
Dr. Creson believes that Mr. al Haj’s treatment in Guantanamo may have contributed to his condition:
“Mr Al Haj has the symptoms necessary for a diagnosis of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, but it does seem a bit premature to use the term “Post” when the trauma is on going… Forced feeding is, in my opinion, always traumatic, even when it is done with respect and kindness. Indeed, the general ambiance of disrespect and planned humiliation are psychological traumas that contribute to depression and hopelessness.”
He goes on to say:
“The marked change in attitude that was noted and the description of Mr al Haj’s current behaviour suggests to me that Mr al Haj no longer has the ability to cope with his relentlessly traumatic environment and is in the process of withdrawing into himself; in effect, he is becoming a case of passive suicide. His cognitive changes, e.g. paranoia, are symptomatic of his depression, but probably also worsen as his physical deterioration increases. As his environment becomes more painful and less humane, with each new punitive act he is forced to endure, he will lose even whatever remaining will to live that he now retains.”
Reprieve legal director, Clive Stafford Smith and al Haj’s attorney said:
“The U.S. military is rightly afraid of a fifth prisoner dying in their custody. But they wrongly respond by treating prisoners worse. Blankets and clothes are removed in case they are used to commit suicide. The harshest methods of forced feeding are deployed – Sami has suffered the feeding tube being forced down into his lungs by mistake several times.
“Sami al Haj has good reason to be severely depressed. He has been on hunger strike for 247 days. He has been held without charges for almost six years. The only solution is for him to be immediately released.”
In his report, Dr. Hugh Rickards concluded that:
“The level of his [Mr al Haj’s] mental suffering appears so acute that it is my duty as a medical practitioner put this in writing to ensure appropriate assessment and treatment.”
~ Ends~
For further information or interviews, please call the Reprieve press office on 020 7131 3609.
Notes to Editors
About Sami Al Haj
Sami Muhyideen al Hajj is a Sudanese journalist who has been detained by the US since January 7, 2002. He was seized whilst working as a cameraman on assignment for Al Jazeera, reporting the Afghanistan War. He has a 7 year old son, Moghammed, who he last saw when he was 1 year old. Sami was originally seized because the US thought that he had filmed a Bin Laden interview. Their intelligence was wrong: Sami had never filmed a Bin Laden interview, something the US acknowledged when they failed to pursue this allegation. In well over 100 interrogation sessions, all but 5 have been devoted to the topic of his employers, Al-Jazeera.
About Reprieve
Reprieve provides frontline investigation and legal representation to prisoners denied justice by powerful governments across the world, from death row to Guantánamo Bay.
We represent people facing the death penalty, with a focus on the USA and cases where British nationals are involved. And we fight for prisoners denied justice in the name of the “War on Terror,” such as those held without charge or trial in Guantánamo Bay and the countless secret prisons beyond. None of these prisoners can afford to pay for representation.
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