US prisoners on Tuesday declared a nationwide strike demanding changes to correctional institutions including living conditions, pathways to parole and voting rights restoration.
The US incarceration rate is the world’s highest: about 2.2 million people were behind bars at the end of 2016, a figure the American Civil Liberties Union says represents approximately one-fifth of the global population of prisoners.
The strike – set to continue through September 9, according to organisers – was called in response to a deadly riot in April at a maximum-security prison in South Carolina, Lee Correctional Institution.
“Seven comrades lost their lives during a senseless uprising that could have been avoided had the prison not been so overcrowded from the greed wrought by mass incarceration, and a lack of respect for human life that is embedded in our nation’s penal ideology,” the group of incarcerated prison rights advocates leading the strike said.
“These men and women are demanding humane living conditions, access to rehabilitation, sentencing reform and the end of modern day slavery,” the group, known as Jailhouse Lawyers Speak, said in a statement.
Organisers throughout the United States advised inmates to engage in peaceful sit-ins, hunger strikes and work stoppages.
Low remuneration for prisoners put to work at jobs like cooking and cleaning is high on the list of grievances released by organizers, who dubbed the practice ‘slavery’.
Udi Ofer, who leads the ACLU Campaign for Smart Justice, praised the strikers and backed their 10 demands, particularly the right to vote for felons and prisoners.
Felon enfranchisement laws vary state by state, but in many places inmates lose voting rights for a period while incarcerated, and sometimes after release as well.
“Our country is stronger when people most marginalised and directly impacted by unjust policies raise their voices in protest and demand a different future,” Mr Ofer said in a statement. “The courageous people who are bringing focused attention to America’s system of mass incarceration through the Nationwide Prison Strike deserve our admiration.”
“We urge corrections officials not to respond with retaliation,” he added.
“Peaceful demonstrations challenging unjust conditions and practices do not merit placing participants into solitary confinement or adding time to their sentences.”
In 2016, inmates responded to a similar call to action, with prisoners striking in states including Florida, Alabama, Texas and South Carolina.
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2nd row
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Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
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9th row
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Director : Steffi Niederzoll
Starring: Reyhaneh Jabbari, Shole Pakravan, Zar Amir Ebrahimi
Rating: 4/5
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Fitness problems in men's tennis
Andy Murray - hip
Novak Djokovic - elbow
Roger Federer - back
Stan Wawrinka - knee
Kei Nishikori - wrist
Marin Cilic - adductor
Could We Be More
Artist: Kokoroko
Label: Brownswood Recordings
Rating: 3.5/5
Company Profile
Company name: Cargoz
Date started: January 2022
Founders: Premlal Pullisserry and Lijo Antony
Based: Dubai
Number of staff: 30
Investment stage: Seed
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Tax authority targets shisha levy evasion
The Federal Tax Authority will track shisha imports with electronic markers to protect customers and ensure levies have been paid.
Khalid Ali Al Bustani, director of the tax authority, on Sunday said the move is to "prevent tax evasion and support the authority’s tax collection efforts".
The scheme’s first phase, which came into effect on 1st January, 2019, covers all types of imported and domestically produced and distributed cigarettes. As of May 1, importing any type of cigarettes without the digital marks will be prohibited.
He said the latest phase will see imported and locally produced shisha tobacco tracked by the final quarter of this year.
"The FTA also maintains ongoing communication with concerned companies, to help them adapt their systems to meet our requirements and coordinate between all parties involved," he said.
As with cigarettes, shisha was hit with a 100 per cent tax in October 2017, though manufacturers and cafes absorbed some of the costs to prevent prices doubling.