‘Detention without trial for long periods is contrary to the basic notions of English Law.’ But Labour’s authoritarian attacks on freedom of speech and the right to protest continue as local MP ignores plight of constituent
Held without trial: Teuta Hoxha is one of the pro-Palestine hunger strikers in British jails
Teuta Hoxha, from Croydon, is one of eight people being held in prison on remand without trial because of their support for Palestine, and who have now been on hunger strike for more than a month in protest.
The situation is regarded as the biggest mass prisoner hunger strike in the British prison system since the members of the IRA refused food in the early 1980s, a protest which led to the death of MP Bobby Sands.
One of the pro-Palestine hunger strikers, Qesser Zuhrah had to be rushed by ambulance to hospital yesterday from HM Prison Bronzefield in Surrey because she had become perilously weak. Zuhrah, who is just 20 years old, was on Day 46 of her hunger strike, which she and her colleagues have undertaken because they have been jailed for more than a year without trial, on charges that they strongly deny.
Hoxha is on Day 40 of her hunger strike.
The hunger strikers are accused of being part of a Palestine Action group that took part in an August 2024 raid on the Bristol HQ of arms manufacturer Elbit, who supply weapons to the Israeli government.
More than £1million of damage was caused to Elbit’s research centre at Filton.
The protesters were all arrested before the Labour government banned Palestine Action under anti-terror legislation.
Point of principle: the plight of the hunger strikers has been taken up by civil rights lawyers
Hoxha was arrested in a dawn raid by counter-terrorism police in November 2024. She has been jailed for more than a year without standing trial for her alleged crimes. She is now held at HMP Peterborough.
Terrorism charges brought against Hoxha have subsequently been dropped by the authorities, yet she remains incarcerated without being found guilty of any crime. It had been expected that some of the group might have their day in court this month, but trial dates have been pushed back. Hoxha has been given a trial date of April next year – almost 18 months after her arrest.
This is Hoxha’s second period of hunger strike. She refused food in August in protest of the prison’s violations of her rights, such as the cancellation of her recreational and educational activities, the withholding of her mail and her removal from a job in the prison library.
She also reported mistreatment by prison wardens, who she says “constantly referred to her as ‘a terrorist'”.
That first hunger strike ended after 28 days, when Hoxha had some of her privileges restored.
Hoxha’s plight is similar to her fellow hunger strikers, some of whom have been refused medical attention and have been blocked from communications outside the prison. The government has also been accused of ignoring them.
Jolyon Maughan, of the Good Law Project, said, “These are people who have not been convicted of anything. They are being left to die – all without even facing trial.
“The government is refusing to meet with Palestine Action activists to discuss how their lives might be saved.”
More than 50 MPs have so far signed an Early Day Motion about the plight of the hunger strikers: “That this House expresses its extreme concern that six prisoners associated with Palestine Action have felt that they had no other recourse to protest against their prison conditions but to launch a hunger strike; and calls upon the Secretary of State for Justice to intervene urgently to ensure their treatment is humane and their human rights are upheld.”
One example of how Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Justice Secretary David Lammy and their Labour parliamentary colleagues have tried to ignore the plight of the Palestine hunger strikers happened in Croydon yesterday.
Hoxha is understood to be a constituent of Sarah Jones, the MP for Croydon West and a junior minister in Starmer’s government.
No one at home: Sarah Jones MP’s constitency office was unstaffed yesterday
A delegation from the Croydon Trades Union Council sought to visit the MP in her constituency office, which is on the third floor of the Whitgift Centre. They had a letter that they wanted to deliver, calling on Jones to look into the case of her constituent, Hoxha, and to support the Early Day Motion, or EDM.
This was December 17 – seven days before Christmas. The campaigners were obviously concerned that this urgent matter should not be allowed to drag on into the New Year.
But when the Croydon trades unionists arrived at the Labour MP’s office, it was closed.
They rang the office intercom, but got no answer. There were no notices to say when the office might next be open. Phone calls to MP Jones’s constituency office went straight to answerphone.
There was not even a letterbox in the MP’s office door for the delegation to leave their urgent letter.
The letter says: “We understand that government ministers do not normally sign EDMs. If this applies to you, in this case we ask that you nevertheless make representations to David Lammy supporting the content of the EDM.
“It is reported that one of the hunger strikers, Teuta Hoxha (known as ‘T’) is a constituent of yours. Teuta has been imprisoned without trial since November 2024. One of her demands is that she and her co-accused be released on bail pending any trial.
“This must surely be reasonable – detention without trial for long periods is contrary to the basic notions of English Law since Magna Carta.”
In the end, the delegation of Teuta Hoxha’s supporters, and supporters of the core principles of English Law, had to find their way back out of the Whitgift Centre, and send a version of their letter to MP Jones via email.
Thus far, they have not received the courtesy of a reply from their MP.
And EDM 2386? It has been sponsored and signed by MPs from the Labour and Conservative parties, by LibDems and Greens, by members of Your Party, as well as the SDLP, Scottish Nationalists and Plaid Cymru.
But none of Croydon’s four MPs have signed the motion.
Read more: ‘It was Jeremy Corbyn who won the election for me’ says Jones
Read more: Labour councillor’s Friends of Israel pose starts selection row
Read more: Our four MPs are doing nothing to try to stop carnage in Gaza
Read more: Kind words but no action: how Croydon MP responds on Gaza
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Dreadful. I don’t know what the penalties might be if found guilty but 18 months on remand would equate to a sentence of 3 years with remission. Surely if they were given bail and absconded a good proportion of any sentence would have been served lessening any angst of society.
It’s nothing to do with justice and everything to do with oppression and silencing dissent
Labelling people who peacefully protest about genocide in Gaza while aiding and abetting the terrorist IDF in committing war crimes are reasons why neither Labour nor the Conservatives will get any support from me next May
Lets face facts to be proven guilty and be charged for any offence is our justice system but free speech will be up held in this country for what ever reason or religious beliefs and not offensive to others the labour government as lost its integrity and fairness & justice and to hold any one for 18 months is degusting without charge is a betrayal of human rights she should be released straight away with out question can we lock up any body in labour government without trial ?
Thanks for the like 👍
All MPs who won’t speak up for these innocent people should hang their heads in shame
The former human rights lawyer refused to answer urgent questions in Parliament yesterday on the improper treatment of the hunger strikers. Where is the humanity in Starmer’s Labour Party?
A total disgrace and explicit double standards.
The price one has to pay for speaking out against the Genocide and standing up for the innocents.
What has happened to the moral fabric of Labour? Big money suppressing dissent.
Unfortunately, the majority of Labour MPs are evidently interested in keeping their whip and preserving prospect of their promotion instead of speaking out.
I will never forgot, nor vote for Labour under Starmer. He is toast anyway come the next general election.
“In the end, the delegation of Teuta Hoxha’s supporters, and supporters of the core principles of English Law, had to find their way back out of the Whitgift Centre”
I find it’s best to borrow a ball of twine of Ariadne before venturing in
.
Disgusting. A special provision for Israeli Genocidal actions. Anyone dares to criticise is either cancelled, faces legal withhunt or locked up. Every excuse is used to legally bar the questioning of the ongoing Genocide in Gaza. Is this the Britain that we want? No Freedom of speech, arbitary detention without trials, subservient to a Genocide state because Trevor Chinn and other pro Zionist, pro Genocidal labour party donors have bought out the cabinet?
The tradional labour values are a relic of the past. Starmer and others have blood on their hands for condoning and supporting a Genocide.