political prisoner

political prisoner, a person who is imprisoned because that person’s actions or beliefs are contrary to those of his or her government. This is the most general sense of a term that can be difficult to define. In practice, political prisoners often cannot be distinguished from other types of prisoners.

Definitional issues

Defining the term political prisoner in a strictly legal sense is, at present, a task that is simply not possible. The problem of defining the term is related to several factors, and lacking a standard legal definition, the term has been employed in a variety of differing contexts. In a 1961 letter that served as a catalyst for the establishment of the international human rights organization Amnesty International, Peter Benenson coined the term prisoner of conscience to describe two Portuguese students who had been sentenced to seven-year prison terms for their alleged “crime”—making a simple toast to freedom in spite of the dictatorial government of António de Oliveira Salazar that was in power at the time. Since then, the terms political prisoner and prisoner of conscience have been used interchangeably, although most agree that the latter expressly refers to dissident prisoners who neither condone nor advocate personal violence.

What all conceptualizations and working definitions of the term political prisoner have in common is their acknowledgment of the importance of power relations, specifically between dissidents and agents of governmental authority or ruling elites. Political prisoners stand as symbolic representations of attempted challenges to the status quo. Whatever ideological context that challenge is embedded within—be it racial, economic, political, or religious—a standard definition of political crimes (and hence political prisoners) must differentiate them from the activities and behaviours of common criminals. Some scholars have proposed criteria by which political prisoners can be differentiated from common criminals: the former are involved in some type of group struggle against ruling elites, whereas the latter’s activities typically involve an element of satisfying self-interests. Despite a lack of legal clarity, historical and contemporary examples of political prisoners underscore the fact that individuals have been penalized by legal systems and imprisoned by political regimes not for their violation of codified laws but for their thoughts and ideas that have fundamentally challenged existing power relations.

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It appears unlikely that any ground will be gained in the near future with respect to codifying a standard legal definition of political prisoners for the following reasons. First, a legal definition is hindered by the logical notion that one is ascribed the status of being a political prisoner only after capture; prior to that, potential political prisoners may be considered dissidents, revolutionaries, social reformers, or radical thinkers, depending upon the nature of their activities and how their activities are interpreted. Second, a political trial is neither necessary nor sufficient in producing a political prisoner, as there are numerous examples of political prisoners interned without trial or even without charges to respond to. Third, the nature of the behaviour that leads to political imprisonment is indefinable, as authorities have often justified internment as necessary to protecting state security without providing clarification as to how the behaviour of the political prisoner presented a challenge to the maintenance of such. To make matters worse, in some instances political prisoners have been interned for mere suspicion of activity deemed questionable by ruling elites. Fourth, government denial is characteristic of political imprisonment, much to the detriment of post hoc legal codification. The political prisoner often exists in a legal quagmire without access to representation within a state apparatus that expressly denies his or her existence, where cruel and inhumane methods of punishment and internment can proceed without any realistic hope of protective oversight or intervention.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Helsinki Accords

The mere existence of contemporary political prisoners highlights the fact that states holding them are acting in disaccord with several major international humanitarian agreements. Most relevant is the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in December 1948. Although not legally binding, the declaration was intended to serve as “a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations.” Several articles are of particular relevance to the issue of political prisoners. Article 5 states that “no one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.” Because political prisoners are often held under conditions of secrecy, without independent oversight or restraint, their reported treatment has been deplorable.

To follow suit, Article 6 of the Universal Declaration states that “everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law.” Political prisoners are often held on trumped-up charges or no charges at all, effectively denied this right. In addition, related to the issue of political prisoners are cases of forced “disappearances,” where those opposed to ruling elites have been made to physically and legally vanish without governmental acknowledgment of their detention. A practice that historians believe began with the Nazi regime, “disappeared” persons are denied even the right to legally exist and be labeled a political prisoner.

In similar fashion, Article 9 of the Universal Declaration states that “no one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.” Although most countries recognize the offenses of treason and sedition, these categories of offenses do not capture the essence of political crimes that fall under the rubric of voicing opinions contrary to those of ruling elites. Given the lack of a standard legal definition of political crimes in most countries, political prisoners are often faced with either answering to charges that are manufactured to fit the situation or being held without cause, depending on the sociolegal structure of the government or regime in power.

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Of particular relevance to political prisoners is Article 18, which guarantees the right to “freedom of thought, conscience and religion.” As has been noted, one of the hallmarks of historical and contemporary examples of political prisoners is the challenge they represent to the status quo. The free expression of contrary and dissenting opinion is not a legitimate rationale for internment, despite vague and clichéd state concerns for national security.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights influenced the human rights provisions of the subsequent Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe; the provisions are commonly referred to as the Helsinki Accords. The pact, signed in 1975 by 35 countries, holds that participating states “will respect human rights and fundamental freedoms, including the freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief, for all without distinction to race, sex, language or religion.” Some of the major signatories to the pact have been charged by human rights organizations with holding political prisoners, interned for little more than exercising their right to differ ideologically with those in power.