A/HRC/13/39/Add.4 prison, a South African Commission visited the prisoners and the physical abuse subsequently stopped. During the first months in prison, he had been handcuffed behind his back so that he needed help to go to the toilet. He had marks on both his wrists and said that the handcuffs had been so tight that they had cut through his flesh to the bone. He had also been forced to bath naked outside of the prison building where women and children would come to collect water. Sometimes he was left for a month without the opportunity to bath or was forced to bath with his clothes on. For the past four years he has been forced to wear chains 24 hours a day (allowing to stretch his feet only about 30 cm apart), which have left marks on his ankles, and he complained about swollen feet. According to the forensic expert, this description was confirmed by the medical evidence. He said that, with the tacit agreement of the prison guards, the prisoners in the high security section were now able to loosen their handcuffs or even take them off. Since November 2005, he has been detained in the newly built high security section in strict solitary confinement and without being allowed to leave his cell. He complained about a general stiffness of his body due to the lack of physical exercise. He added that the years of solitary confinement had distressing effects on him, and that there were times when he didn’t know anymore what to do. He said he was provided with insufficient medical treatment even in cases of serious illness and usually had to wait for several days to see a doctor. According to him, the South African embassy had promised him to provide medication but there was no one to inform the embassy in case the prisoners fall ill. With respect to the prison food, he said the general meals included four pieces of bred and a cup of milk for breakfast, and a main meal at around 3 p.m., including rice and meat, but no vegetables, and tap water for drinking. He reported that he was not allowed to receive family visits and has not been in contact with his wife for two years. He was last visited by the South African embassy in May 2008, when he was delivered the copies of letters by his wife that dated back to 2005 and 2006. He said he was not allowed to make phone calls. Mohamed Salam, a Lebanese businessman resident in Equatorial Guinea, arrested on 29 March 2008, convicted for the same offences as Simon Mann and sentenced to 18 years in prison, had been detained at Black Beach Prison since April 2008. He was held together with other detainees on the ground floor of the left building and reported that in general he received a special treatment: he explained that he received special food from a restaurant, free anti-malaria medication and was allowed to receive visits every week. In general, he reported that more medication was a question of money. Detainees were reportedly allowed to be in the courtyard all day. Alcohol and drugs were prohibited. Disciplinary measures used included beatings with plastic pipes and detention in disciplinary single cells for one week. Prior to his detention in Black Beach he was held in police custody at the Central Police Station where he also benefited from a special treatment and was accommodated in the office of the Deputy Commissioner equipped with a couch and air conditioner. His driver brought him food every day. He witnessed lots of beatings in waiting room and cells and said most of the ill-treatment was fuelled by alcohol. Nick du Toit, aged 52, South African citizen and former army officer was arrested on 9 March 2004 and convicted on 26 November 2004 to 34 years of imprisonment in relation to the attempted coup in March 2008 together with Simon Mann and other South Africans. Nick du Toit alleged that he made his confession under torture. During the first six weeks of his detention at Black Beach Prison he was handcuffed the hands behind his back. Subsequently, he was detained for four months in the old complex of Black Beach Prison in a very small cell with his feet and hands tied together so that he could not move at all. The leg irons were only removed when he had to go to the toilet. Although the leg irons were taken off after four months, he remained handcuffed for about one year, while detained in a bigger cell with more space, and together with other people. 28