Doctors ask court to decide whether refugee on hunger strike can be forcibly fed
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Doctors have asked a court to decide whether a refugee on hunger strike can be forcibly fed. The man, who cannot be named for legal reasons and is referred to in court documents as “A”, went on hunger strike to demand that the UK Border Agency returns his passport.
But there are concerns that he may have limited mental capacity so the Court of Protection has been asked to decide whether doctors should end the hunger strike.
The Court of Protection deals with those who lack the ability to make key decisions about their life because of limited mental or physical capacity. Most hearings are held in private but cases where “serious medical treatment” is needed are frequently open to the press with the identities of patients obscured to protect their privacy.
The case centres around the thorny issue of whether the man has enough capacity to decide whether he can starve himself in protest at how he is being treated by the British authorities. A person with full capacity could not be forcibly fed by doctors if their wish to go on hunger strike was made freely.
An unnamed NHS Trust, however, wants to administer “artificial nutrition and hydration” to the man. A preliminary hearing took place this week but the court will meet for a substantive hearing on 30 January.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments