CAIRO: A number of political prisoners initiated legal action demanding khulwa shareya - short reunions with their wives during their jail term - stirring up an issue that has been dormant on the agenda of lawmakers for years. The subject made headlines in the local Akhbar Al Hawadith tabloid which claimed that despite the fact that conjugal rights have been part and parcel of penal laws in many Arab countries including Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan and Morocco, Egypt lags behind when it comes to similar legislation. Citing the opinion of legal consultants, security officials and psychiatrists, the tabloid argued that to be denied such visits for years not only harms the prisoner, but also his wife who is forced to bear the brunt of loneliness and deprivation for no guilt of her own. Egypt houses 44 jails, 10 of which were built between 2000 and 2001. Some 45,000 inmates, of which 15,000 are political prisoners, occupy these jails. One of the main obstacles to conjugal visits is purely technical: It would be very difficult for the concerned authorities make it available for such large number of inmates. Another argument against it is that if political prisoners do win the case, it would only be a matter of time before other inmates make similar demands. Lawyer Montasser Al-Zayat was quoted as saying "it is a misconception that conjugal visits are a luxury to prisoners who are supposed to receive unmitigated punishments. He explained that to rob someone of his freedom is sufficient punishment that should not be aggravated by depriving him of basic rights. The penal laws that give prisoners the rights of education and healthcare, for instance, should also start addressing this necessity, noted the tabloid, consolidating its argument with quotes from Sharia experts. These experts stressed the importance of khulwa, saying that this lack of sexual union is an additional punishment to the prisoner and a source of agony for the wife. To prohibit khulwa, they argued, would also encourage homosexuality and other types of delinquency of which many prisons are notorious. In countries that allow conjugal visits, prisoners are offered the use of a flat located within the jail's premises for half a day. General Fouad Alam, a former interior ministry official, said that the ministry should consider allowing inmates to visit their wives outside prison to avoid the obstacle of providing space to such large numbers. He added, however, that a wife has the right to a divorce if her husband receives a three-year sentence and so to enforce khulwa could harm women who do not wish to have relations with a jailed husband. The eyes of human rights advocates are all on the outcome of this court case, which has been their cause celebre in the past few weeks.
