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Is prison cold turkey a human right abuse?
Former Member
Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
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So, what do you think? Do you think that people who've broken the law (and for the sake of arguement, can we keep drug laws and whether or not they're reasonable and fair separate?) should be weaned off or just cut off?
So, what do you think? Do you think that people who've broken the law (and for the sake of arguement, can we keep drug laws and whether or not they're reasonable and fair separate?) should be weaned off or just cut off?
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I'm not suggesting that they should be given junk all the time during prison, but there are things they could have given during the initial 72 hours or so.
They probably should have offered something, at least a substitute drug, I don't know why they didn't, but oh well.
Do you have less sympathy for them because its heroin or because they are prisoners?
But its not an issue of whether they give up or not, its an issue of whether they get temporary help with a self inflicted medical condition (same as say alcoholism). All I suspect they wanted was help for the first few days, this is easy enough for the prison to provide and although wont exactly make it easy for the person coming off the heroin will make it easier.
I guess the upshot of this is that if we with-hold something that makes something easier, is it a human rights abuse? Is it their human right to receive help to make a cure more comfortable?
I'm not really sure. The idea that they get money for breaking the law bothers me though.
If drug addicts in prison are forced to go cold turkey that's not a human rights abuse. To acknowledge that it is insults actual victims of real human rights abuses - such as those tormented in Iraq under Saddam's regime.
Has anybody ever died of heroin withdrawal?
This kind of absurdity wouldn't happen anywhere else, Britain really is screwed up at times.
However, they are under arrest and locked in a prison, the point of which is to both rehabilitate (supposedly) and to punish. Having drugs witheld is clearly part of the punishment, like having sex witheld by been locked in prison (sex with women i mean of course) and 24 hour tv, internet, alcohol access like they would have out of prison. Drugs are just another comfort of the outside world they would have cut off, but as i say, the addicts should be treated in the early stages.
Wow, you really are a humane little puppy aren't you?
you know they can buy smack in prisons more easily and cheaply than on streets
I just don't think it is worthy of this amount of attention. Admitadley, it isn't nice, and it might force them to source it illegaly in the prison, but I don't think it is worth the courts time.
Dis, people have died from withdrawl. They sometimes kill themselves. Although, I doubt that would bother you at all.
Ha typical, totally misses the point and still somehow to bring Sadam into it which has no relevance at all. Kudos to you.
And people wonder why so many ex-inmates re-offend... :rolleyes:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6143810.stm
I am confused by this post...have i missed a post it was replying to that would put it into context please?
You disgust me. To approve of people not being given legally prescribed medication and forcing them to endure unnecessary suffering is just petty callousness. To then bring in Iraq is beneath contempt. What makes you think that human rights only refers to torture in a foreign country? There is a good case to argue that forced withdrawal from an opiod dependency is cruel and unusual punishment to say the least.
Whereas I can perhaps understand someone who says compensation is not the best response (IMO disciplinary action against those responsible would certainly be appropriate), forcing somebody into cold turkey is nothing short of despicable. You might as well endorse punishment beatings and mistreatment by prison officers.
Prisoners are human beings. And they have some rights. Perhaps if we focused more on the underlining reasons for drug abuse and crime, offer more help and less jail to drug addicts, and treat those who do get jailed humanely and in a dignified manner perhaps there would be a lot less crime and misery all around.
Nonsense. Methadone is a legally prescribed and recognised treatment for opiod dependency. It is not a "comfort". It is a medication used to treat addiction - a recognised medical and emotional syndrome. And I'm not even going into the use of opioids as (self) medication for certain mental health problems.
Because you're on about having drugs withheld? You do know that methadone is a drug don't you?
Well, I don't know the legal definition under the Human Rights Act. However withholding medication seems fairly abusive to me.
Lets remove the prison aspect of the argument for a second. What if this was outside? They have no money thus no herion. Do they go to a doctor and ask for help with methadone prescriptions,etc..? Nah. They go out on the rob. Or sell something.
This has just opened a massive hole for abuse as people will now start sueing left right and centre for other addictions. Nicotine & alchohol being the two obvious ones that spring to mind.
Given that you can smoke in prison I doubt there is going to be an issue with nicotine. However, I assume they provide treatment for hardcore alcoholics when they get to prison, given they could die during the withdrawl of that.
By the same token, if a prisoner tries to kill or harm themselves, should they get treatment? That's self inflicted harm same as the addiction.
This is largely to do with the prescribing of methadone, in that addicts dont want it. If you prescribed heroin then they wouldnt be out stealing and you wouldnt need to send them to jail, a money saver all round really.
And the addicts are supposed to do what exactly while waiting?