political prisoners however were routinely sent to Marion directly upon conviction. One inmate had described control unit policies as being based on isolation, separation and controlled movements. There was no exercise equipment, no work, nothing to engage the intellect. Weather permitting, prisoners were allowed outside their cells into a yard once a week for two hours. Marion's contaminated drinking water had caused tumours and other unexplained illnesses among its population; no contact visits were allowed with social visitors and legal visits were monitored by video camera and guards. 17. Political activists had also been subjected to torture and medical treatment had been denied or delayed. The sentences received by political prisoners were longer than those received by non-political offenders convicted of the same crimes. In addition, political prisoners, no matter how exemplary their institutional record, were routinely denied parole. The Bail Reform Act of 1984 had provided for pre-trial detention without bail. Its first application had been in 1984, five days after it became law, to a group of black revolutionaries who had no prior criminal convictions. A Puerto Rican independence activist, Filiberto Ojeda Rios, had been held for four years under that act before being released on bail prior to trial. 18. His organization urged the Commission to appoint a Special Rapporteur to investigate the conditions of confinement of political prisoners in the United States, particularly at the Marion Federal correctional facility. 19. His organization wished also to direct the attention of the Sub-Commission to the situation in Chile where, five months after the installation of a democratic Government, over 260 people of high moral E/CN.4/Sub.2/1990/SR.26 page 4 character who had opposed the military dictatorship, remained incarcerated. At the same time, no members of the State terrorist apparatus had been detained by the new Government, despite the latter's promises to clarify the 
**Analysis**
The text appears to focus on the treatment and conditions of political prisoners in the United States, specifically at the Marion Federal correctional facility, and also touches on the situation in Chile. The issues raised include isolation, lack of exercise and intellectual stimulation, poor living conditions, and denial of parole and medical treatment. This suggests that the category should be related to human rights, justice, or social issues.

**Category**
Humanitarian aid and relief, Health