In extensive correspondence with Ministry of Justice’s Long Term and High Security Prisons Group and NHS oxlea, including FOIA, Niki Konstantinidis challenges the covid data that District Judge Vanessa Baraitser used in her decision not to grant bail to Julian Assange on 6/1/21. She writes to Mr Harding from the LTHSG:
“I wish to highlight the Belmarsh prison statistics that appear to be false and misleading. Please provide a daily breakdown of covid-positive cases and all information how and when testing is performed as well as on what portion of the population.
District Judge Baraitser specifically accepted the figure of 3 COVID cases in Belmarsh given officially to the US Prosecution by the prison authorities. Bail was refused.
Given the information provided to journalist John McEvoy by the Ministry of Justice, showing 52 covid cases in Belmarsh prison as at 23 November 2020 as well as information provided to me from the NHS referring to 81 Covid-19 cases for 2020 in relation to the detainee population, (NHS FOI 6341 Response (2))
and MOJ’s LTHSPG (Belmarsh Prison Conditions FOI 201217022) stating: ‘I can confirm that as of 30 November 2020, 68 prisoners had tested positive for Covid- 19 at HMP Belmarsh’,
as well as evidence tendered by Mr Fitzgerald QC that 59 prisoners had tested positive in December 2020, how did Belmarsh produce evidence that there were only 3 positive tests for Covid in Belmarsh by the date of the bail application according to an email sent by the prison authorities to the US Prosecution at 10.49pm 5 January 2021?
In other words, if Belmarsh claims that within 43 days (or 1 month, 13 days) the number of people testing positive for Covid-19 in Belmarsh prison, went from 52, to 59 to 68 to 3…how is that miraculous curve possible? How is it possible that District Judge Baraitser finds Belmarsh prison safe for Mr Assange in light of the information provided by the MoJ that ‘HMP Belmarsh has recently been moved back to Stage 4, as have all prisons located in Tier 4 areas’?”
Please continue to write to your Members of Parliament highlighting the many discrepancies that Niki Konstantinidis has highlighted here and let us know the reply you get, which we can publish here.
Banner outside Belmarsh Prison – Saturday 9/01/2021
Listen to Niki’s call to George Galloways MOATS (1hr 1min 42sec)
In solidarity #FreeAssange
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Well done belmarsh
You have found the magic cure for covid.
Perhaps if they put the entire population in prison ?
Oh hang on !
This is good and very important work by both Niki and Emmy. I pay respect to Niki especially for challenging the prison authorities’ number of Covid infected prisoners in Belmarsh at the time the bail was rejected (6 Jan 2021). Julian should not have been returned to Belmarsh for any reason. It is cruel and inhumane. I ask this information is shared with Julian’s defense team who are planning to appeal the bail decision.
Yes Jamie, agreed 100% and I had come here to say exactly these things. <3
Good work Emmy!