The death of 54 year old Zahra Kazemi, a photojournalist in Iran, shocked
the journalistic and media world this year. After being arrested in June 2003
for taking photos of a protest in front of a prison, the Canadian-Iranian
woman was subjected to vicious beatings at the hands of her captors, rendering
her unconscious. No medical attention was given to her. Slipping into a coma,
Zahra Kazemi died three days later after developing a brain haemorrhage from
the beatings.
While this event may surprise some people, this lack of medical care is
by no means the only case of deaths in custody in this turbulent time. In
2003 Amnesty International reported that 42 countries had possible or confirmed
extrajudicial executions or unlawful killings. Further, 33 countries
worldwide had people "disappear" or remain missing from previous
years.
It is easy to believe that this sort of thing only happens in third-world
countries. After all, the rest of the world is above this, and are more accountable,
right? Not so fast. A look at the following list of countries shows that while
the list does contain mostly third-world or developing countries, they are
joined by more prominent countries, such as Russia, Mexico, and the United
States. The axiom often quoted in the field of human rights regarding prisoners
is: “Prisoners are sent to prison AS punishment, and not FOR punishment.”
What rights do the people of these countries have regarding healthcare and
well being in custody of their country? In 1948 the General Assembly of the
United Nations adopted and proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
In this declaration the United Nations declared: “Whereas recognition
of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members
of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the
world..."
