Three men suspected of ties to al Qaeda have access to some modern conveniences at the maximum-security prison in Kingston where they are being held, according to a newspaper report.
The confidential draft study, which was leaked to The Globe and Mail, revealed that the three men have access to a cable TV, a microwave oven, fitness equipment, and a washer and dryer.
Citing a draft study prepared by a House of Commons committee on immigration, the paper says the three men live in a portable trailer that is divided into cells.
The men can open windows with a view to a concrete yard.
When MPs visited the prison unit in October, they found that the men can talk by phone with their families for one hour, and with their lawyers for as long as they want.
The report also says medical facilities are available at the prison and that a nurse checks on the detainees daily during hunger strikes, The Globe reported.
Three months ago, the men initiated a hunger strike to protest their conditions at the controversial prison unit, which human-rights activists have dubbed Guantanamo North.
Now the men are drinking water, juice and, sometimes, clear broth.
They claim they are mistreated by guards and receive poor medical treatment.
Among the men's complaints:
- They want to get a bigger yard and some grass
- They also complain the chairs in the common room are uncomfortable
- They say the bright security lights shine into their cells at night
- They say that their living quarters creak "with every movement" and that when one person rolls over, they all hear it
The study, which will be presented to the House of Commons in its revised version, also says officials have granted some of their requests.
For example, the detainees -- who are all Muslim -- can see their families in the presence of a female guard, which allows their wives to remove their veils during the visit.
Despite some improvements, the detainees argue that their conditions are unacceptable.
In a memo to MPs, which was reproduced partly in the draft study, they describe their living quarters as a "small portable unit, which creaks with every movement. All night, whenever one person rolls over, we all hear it."
The draft study also quotes allegations of abuse, but it does not substantiate the claims.
On Thursday, the same House committee that wrote the draft study decided against questioning the five guards alleged to have abused the detainees.
