A Japanese prison that banned an inmate from wearing his glasses because they made him "
look threatening
" has been the target of a lawyers' association which called the decision a violation of human rights.
Tsukigata prison in the Hokkaido region of northern Japan had prevented the inmate from bringing his half-rimmed eyeglasses - with a silver bar on top and no visible frames underneath - while he was serving his sentence, said the Sapporo Bar Association, which sent a protest to the establishment.
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The prison banned the wearing of these glasses because they "
gave the man a threatening look
" which could "
intimidate
" other prisoners and "
trigger unruly behavior such as fighting and bullying
", this group added. of lawyers.
Contacted by AFP, a prison official defended the decision.
“
We believe that there is nothing illegal or unfair in the way we have handled the situation
,” he said, declining to be identified due to internal politics. establishment.
Suffered from “severe headaches”
The prisoner - a man in his 40s who has since been released - lived without glasses for months while serving his sentence for a traffic violation, according to the lawyers' official protest filed in June .
His eyesight was so bad that he ended up “
bumping into other inmates
” and he also suffered from “
severe headaches
”.
Sapporo Bar Vice President Ayako Ito told AFP this week that for people with limited eyesight, glasses can be likened to "
a part of the body
".
"
For example, prisoners have the right to spend their days reading, but being deprived of glasses makes it difficult, which violates their rights to maintain a minimum level of culture
", guaranteed by the Japanese Constitution, did she say.
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Tsukigata prison had already been called to order by the same association of lawyers in 2020 after having rejected the request of another prisoner to use his own Bvlgari glasses which he considered "
too ostentatious
".
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