“He has a blood clot in his leg and yet they refuse to take
proper care of him,” Mirror was told.
“Regardless of what anyone thinks of Bakr, he has done a lot
for poor people in this country.
“He is in Remand Yard, not a convicted prisoner.”
Muslims on the outside are also being mobilised to support the hunger
strike.
“We are starting on Friday 16 and our brothers on the outside
must be involved,” he continued.
“We want to send a message to the prisons staff, since we
strongly believe there is a plan for the imam to die in jail and
we will not allow that to happen.”
Imam Abu Bakr, who is facing charges related to murder and terrorism,
has been in prison since last November and has had all his applications
for bail turned down.
Mirror was told that the imam is on the third floor in an isolated
cell in the Maximum Security Prison, Arouca.
“Imagine when they are bringing him out for air, they have
him in handcuffs,” he went on
“That’s unfair because the imam is sick, he can’t
run away, he can’t fight up with prisons officers.
“He’s not a man afraid of the law; in fact, he respects
the law, and it is the oppressors he has problems with.”
Supporters of the imam who led the failed 1990 coup attempt said
they will no longer sit idly by and do nothing while their leader
suffers in jail.
“We have been quiet but there is much concern out here about
his health.
“Our backs are against the wall and we just can’t take
it anymore.
“Right now we are at boiling point and anything could happen.”
He ended by saying: “The imam deserves special medical care
and he must get it now or else …” |
