Joint Statemet - 31st October 2010
In the light of the severity of the human rights situation in Iran, the Iranian authorities’ refusal to cooperate with existing international human rights mechanisms, and their rejection of many specific recommendations from member states under the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) at the Human Rights Council, Amnesty International, Democracy Coalition Project, Human Rights Watch, the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran and the International Federation for Human Rights and its affiliate, the Iranian League for the Defence of Human Rights,call on the United Nations General Assembly to:
· request the UN Secretary-General to issue a more comprehensive report on the human rights situation in Iran;
· request the Secretary-General to report periodically to the Human Rights Council on the human rights situation in Iran;
· urge the UN special procedures mandates to report periodically to the Human Rights Council on the human rights situation in Iran;
· appoint a special envoy of the Secretary General with a mandate to investigate and report on the human rights situation in Iran.
The mass human rights violations that unfolded in Iran after the disputed presidential election of 2009 were a reminder of the precarious nature of fundamental freedoms in the country. The authorities imposed severe additional restrictions on freedom of expression, association and assembly. Peaceful demonstrations were banned and protestors beaten, arbitrarily arrested and in some cases shot. Scores were killed, both in the streets and in custody.
The Iranian authorities subsequently tried hundreds unfairly, including in mass “show trials”, the main aim of which appeared to be to validate their version of events and identify scapegoats. In January 2010, two men convicted after “show trials” were executed for their involvement in demonstrations, despite their having been in custody since before the election. At least seven men and one woman remain on death row for alleged offences related to the election and its aftermath, while others have been sentenced to prison terms of up to 15 years after conviction of vaguely worded “offences” relating to “national security”. Their trials make a mockery of justice.
The trials typically take place after defendants have been held for long periods of detention – often in solitary confinement or incommunicado detention - in centres where torture and other ill-treatment are common. Poor prison conditions, including denial of adequate medical care, have also been used to bring further pressure to bear on those held and their families.
Since the adoption of the last resolution on the human rights situation in Iran, the authorities have banned some political parties; closed down newspapers; targeted human rights organizations; arrested journalists, trade unionists and human rights activists and left detainees without adequate representation as lawyers themselves had their own rights violated through arrest or harassment in an apparently deliberate attempt to undermine the role of defencecounsel.
The authorities succeeded in quashing demonstrations by the end of 2009, but they continue to harass or arrest critics of the government’s human rights record and others who have expressed dissenting views, many of whom have been arbitrarily detained. The authorities have arrested women’s rights activists and sentenced them to prison terms. They have also arrested members of Iran’s ethnic minorities who have advocated for greater respect of their rights, against a backdrop of violent attacks mainly in predominantly Baluch and Kurdish areas. Members of religious minorities, particularly from the unrecognized Baha’i community, Christian converts from Islam, and Sufis have been arrested and sometimes sentenced to long prison terms.
The Iranian authorities have continued to execute more prisoners – mostly by hanging - than any country other than China. Persons belonging to minorities, including foreign nationals - particularly Afghans - figure heavily among those on death row. Many of those executed have been convicted of murder or drug smuggling after deeply flawed trials. The death penalty may also be imposed for “offences” that have no inherent lethal intent – such as “adultery while married”, “sodomy”, “insulting the holy sanctities” and “establishing or membership of a group which aims to harm national security” - in violation of international human rights law.At least six people have been stoned to death for “adultery while married” since 2006. In 2009, Iran executed at least 388 individuals, including at least five juvenile offenders. Between January and October 2010, Iran executed over 220 people, including one who may have been a juvenile offender.
At least 141 juvenile offenders are currently under sentence of death for crimes that they allegedly committed when they were below 18 years of age, in violation of Iran’s treaty obligations under international law.
While the Iranian authorities have acknowledged that after the presidential election some abuses occurred in the Kahrizak detention centre, as well as in the Tehran University dormitories, they dismissed other allegations of torture – including allegations of rape – and of unlawful killings after cursory investigations. Indeed, the evidence suggests that the authorities have no intention of uncovering the truth: they have closed down the offices of persons collecting evidence of violations, and arrested some of them; they have opened a court case against defeated presidential candidate Mehdi Karroubi, who has continued to raise concerns about human rights violations; and they have brought forward persons falsely claiming to be among those listed as having died, in order to discredit evidence collected.
At the same time, the authorities are doing their utmost to prevent outside scrutiny of events, including by refusing to cooperate with international human rights mechanisms of the United Nations, while proclaiming that they are respecting their international obligations.
Iran’s standing invitation issued to all mechanisms in 2002 coincided with the end of the country-specific mandate on Iran at the Human Rights Commission. However, the seven mechanisms which have outstanding requests to visit are being obstructed in their attempts to do so. No special procedure has been permitted to visit since 2005. Indeed, the government expressly refused to accept recommendations calling for visits by some of the mandate-holders made during its Universal Periodic Review process in February 2010.
The Special Rapporteurs on torture, the independence of judges and lawyers, freedom of opinion and expression and human rights defenders, as well as the Independent Expert on minority issues, have all made requests to visit but have received no response. Meanwhile, the Special Rapporteurs on extrajudicial, summary and arbitrary executions and on freedom of religion and belief, as well as the Working Group on enforced and involuntary disappearances, have agreements in principle to visit, but the Iranian authorities have not proposed any dates.
While recognizing that Iran has submitted all outstanding reports to relevant treaty bodies, and had its human rights record considered during the UPR process and by the UN Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination in August 2010, these mechanisms are not equipped to address adequately a human rights crisis like the one which continues to unfold in Iran.
During the UPR review at the UN Human Rights Council, the government not only gave a grossly distorted account of the situation in the country; it rejected key specific recommendations on freedom of expression, association and assembly, which it denounced as politically motivated, while accepting other more generic recommendations.
In light of this track record, any Iranian initiative ostensibly aimed at increasing cooperation with human rights mechanisms, such as the invitation to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the prospective resumption of EU-Iran human rights dialogue, must not deflect attention from the need for international demands for demonstrable improvements on the ground.
As member states of the United Nations are gathered for the 65th session of the General Assembly, they have once again been presented with compelling evidence of human rights violations in Iran collected by the United Nations’ Secretary General, as presented in his 2010 report submitted in accordance with General Assembly resolution 64/1761. Such evidence requires a robust response by the international community to respond to the failure of the Iranian authorities to address such serious human rights concerns and their obstruction of international scrutiny. Concerted action is needed to enable the people of Iran to gain greater access to the full spectrum of their internationally-recognized human rights.
Execution
Multiple Reports of Secret Group Executions in Vakilabad Prison
Hundreds on death row in Mashad
(25 October 2010) Iran’s Judiciary should immediately institute a moratorium on all executions at Vakilabad Prison in Mashad and provide a transparent response to allegations of excessive numbers of executions at the facility, said the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran today.
The Campaign continues to receive credible reports from former Vakilabad prisoners about repeated, unannounced group executions of inmates. Reliable sources indicate that numerous executions have taken place inside Vakilabad over the last year and more than 600 inmates remain on death row.
Authorities reportedly executed ten inmates in Vakilabad as recently as Tuesday, 12 October. The numbers of executions publicly announced by the authorities are considerably lower than the actual numbers. Amnesty International reports that at least 388 executions took place in Iran in 2009.
“These reports of Mashad executions indicate that Iran is executing even more people–dramatically more– than now estimated,” said Aaron Rhodes, a spokesperson for the Campaign.
“Especially given the Iranian government’s lack of transparency concerning executions, the Judiciary needs to provide a full account of what is happening inside Vakilabad’s death row,” he added.
Authorities do not release statistics on the implementation of death sentences, the names of the hundreds of convicts executed each year, or the crimes for which they were found guilty. Several former Vakilabad inmates reported that officials tried to limit information about group executions from leaving the prison.
“Families, lawyers, and prisoners themselves not only do not receive any written ruling pertaining to the execution, they have no idea when the executions will be carried out, let alone [having the family] present during the executions,” one former Vakilabad prisoner told the Campaign about executions at the facility. “The bodies are delivered the next day, after the families have paid the cost of the rope [used in the hanging],” he added.
“When [officials] want to perform the executions, prison telephones are cut off at around 4:00 p.m. so that no one can report the news to the outside world. The yards are evacuated, and [almost] all prisoners are moved inside the ward,” the former prisoner. “At this time everyone knows that it’s time for the executions. No one knows whose turn it is until the names are read on a loud speaker by [prison and judiciary officials] and [officials] and guards remove the prisoners from the ward.”
“We are concerned that if these executions are in fact taking place in Mashad, then are other prisons executing in secret also?” asked Rhodes.
The Campaign’s sources reported that within the prison there are “cell representatives,” prisoners themselves, permitted by officials to attend these pre-execution procedures. “That’s how after the executions are carried out, names and numbers of prisoners are revealed and most prisoners find out about them.”
One former prisoner described a group execution in late October 2009. “I was in Ward 6-1, so I could see the number of people executed (46) with my own two eyes. I saw their ritual religious cleansing, and them writing their wills. After these procedures, they were transferred to the location where they were executed.”
According to multiple accounts, the majority of inmates on Vakilabad’s death row were convicted for narcotics-related crimes. Some reported that they were tortured and forced to make confessions, but that trial judges ignored their claims of physical coercion.
Ahmad Ghabel, a religious scholar and critic of the government, was detained at Vakilabad prison. “The statistics I kept with myself during those three months was more than fifty people [were executed],” Ghabel told the Campaign. “When I say more than fifty, it is because I do not wish to misstate the number by even one person. If I take note of what other prisoners reported as well, adding them, perhaps the numbers would be more than this.”
“It seems to me that in order to avoid a huge international uproar about the issue, [Vakilabad prison officials] do this in silence and don’t make any announcements about the executions,” Ghabel added.
After his release in June, Ghabel spoke publicly about these secret executions. On 8 September 2010, Ghabel was summoned to the Revolutionary Courts of Fariman and detained. Ghabel’s wife told the Campaign that they believe authorities detained him in response to his statements regarding executions in Vakilabad prison.
In March 2010, during Iran’s Universal Periodic Review at the United Nations Human Rights Council, several UN member states, including Brazil, Germany and Slovakia, advocated Iran impose a general moratorium on the death penalty. In December 2010, the United Nations General Assembly Resolution 64/176 expressed concern about “the continuing high incidence and increase in the rate of executions carried out in the absence of internationally recognized safeguards” and called upon Iran to abolish public executions, juvenile execution, and executions by stoning.
Iran executes the second highest number of individuals annually of any nation, after China, and has the highest per capita rate of executions. The numbers of executions has risen dramatically under Ahmadinejad’s administration. In 2005, when he took office, Iran executed 86 prisoners and this number rose to at least 388 in 2009.
Execution of Iranian Pastor Temporarily Delayed
CBNNews.com
Monday, October 25, 2010
Sources say the execution of a Christian pastor in Iran for "thought crimes" has been temporarily delayed.
Pastor Yousef Nadarkhani was convicted of apostasy, which carries the death sentence in Iran. Authorities had scheduled his execution for Oct. 24. Sources say Iranian authorities are delaying the execution in order to put more pressure on the pastor to turn away from Christ.
According to Iranian law, once the written verdict is delivered, there will be 20 days to appeal to the Islamic Republic's Supreme Court.
Iranian security officials have informed the courts to temporarily delay the pastor's execution until further notice, the Assist News Service reported.
Meanwhile, Nadarkhani is being kept in a security prison in Lakan, Iran, which is just south of his hometown of Rasht. His wife was also sentenced to life in prison.
Nadarkhani leads one of the largest Protestant communities in Iran and has been targeted for converting Muslims to Christ.
He was arrested last October after protesting against the decision of local authorities to enforce the reading of the Koran to Christian children.
Jason DeMars of the website presenttruthmn.com quoted an Iranian mullah, or cleric, who said: "The circles for promotion of Christianity, Baha'ism, Wahhabism, Sufism should be eliminated with the efforts of the Law Enforcement Force as per God's wish. The most significant psychological disease is created by these meetings and circles. They are corrupt and the biggest disrupters of the country's security."
DeMars reports that supporters of the pastor are continuing in prayer for Nadarkhani to have strength to endure this pressure and suffering and that he would soon be delivered from the hand of his enemies.
Christians and human rights activists are also petitioning the Iranian government for the couple's release.
Iran: The Satanic Execution
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
An Iranian newspaper on Tuesday is reporting that a man who was found guilty of carrying out "satanic" and "immoral" acts has been hanged a man in the southwestern city of Ahvaz.
According to Quds Daily newspaper the man, only identified by his initials M.S, was executed in the city's prison on Saturday.
This brings the total number of executions in Iran to at least 137 so far this year.
An AFP count based on media reports puts the 2009 total at, at least 270 people.
Iran is one of the leading countries that carry out the death penalty each year, along with China, Saudi Arabia and the United States.
According to the Islamic republic the death penalty is essential in maintaining public security and is applied only after exhaustive judicial proceedings.
They did not elaborate on what this constituted in the case of a man charged with "satanic" and "immoral" acts, nor which acts - in respect of those charges - warrent capital punishment.
Crimes that are punishable by execution include: murder, rape, kidnapping, pedophilia, armed robbery, espionage, drug trafficking and terrorism.
Iran has attracted a lot of media attention and criticism due to claims of stoning and executions carried out on minors, despite having signed the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which forbids executing child offenders for crimes committed under the age of 18.
However, Iranian judiciary spokesman fiercely deny that Iran executes juvenile criminals or stones people to death, describing it as "propaganda against Iranian state"
Sapa-AFP-N
According to Quds Daily newspaper the man, only identified by his initials M.S, was executed in the city's prison on Saturday.
This brings the total number of executions in Iran to at least 137 so far this year.
An AFP count based on media reports puts the 2009 total at, at least 270 people.
Iran is one of the leading countries that carry out the death penalty each year, along with China, Saudi Arabia and the United States.
According to the Islamic republic the death penalty is essential in maintaining public security and is applied only after exhaustive judicial proceedings.
They did not elaborate on what this constituted in the case of a man charged with "satanic" and "immoral" acts, nor which acts - in respect of those charges - warrent capital punishment.
Crimes that are punishable by execution include: murder, rape, kidnapping, pedophilia, armed robbery, espionage, drug trafficking and terrorism.
Iran has attracted a lot of media attention and criticism due to claims of stoning and executions carried out on minors, despite having signed the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which forbids executing child offenders for crimes committed under the age of 18.
However, Iranian judiciary spokesman fiercely deny that Iran executes juvenile criminals or stones people to death, describing it as "propaganda against Iranian state"
Sapa-AFP-N
Death penalty issued for four individuals
27 October, 2010
Human Rights News Agency of Iran – RAHANA
Four men are sentenced to death by the Penal Court for rape in Ramsar
Four men are sentenced to death by the Penal Court for rape in Ramsar
Ramsar Chief Justice announced the death sentence of 4 accused of rape.
According to Aftab News, Ali Mashayekhan added: “The death sentence of 4 young men accused of rape in the month of Ramadan was handed down by the Penal Court.
He added: “A rape complaint brought forth by a twenty one year old young woman in the month of Ramadan that took place in Javaherdeh road in Ramsar put in motion the case against 4 young men, the accused were immediately identified and arrested. After several hearings in regards to the charge the four were sentenced to death.
Mashayekhan added: “This sentence will be carried out once upheld by the Supreme Court.”
According to Aftab News, Ali Mashayekhan added: “The death sentence of 4 young men accused of rape in the month of Ramadan was handed down by the Penal Court.
He added: “A rape complaint brought forth by a twenty one year old young woman in the month of Ramadan that took place in Javaherdeh road in Ramsar put in motion the case against 4 young men, the accused were immediately identified and arrested. After several hearings in regards to the charge the four were sentenced to death.
Mashayekhan added: “This sentence will be carried out once upheld by the Supreme Court.”
5 are executed on charges of drug distribution
27 October, 2010
Human Rights News Agency of Iran – RAHANA
Jafari Dolatabadi reported the execution of 5 individuals charged with distribution of drugs under the “Serious Fight” Against Narcotics Campaign.
Jafari Dolatabadi reported the execution of 5 individuals charged with distribution of drugs under the “Serious Fight” Against Narcotics Campaign.
The Tehran prosecutor reported that 5 individuals have been executed in the last three days and acknowledged that this policy will continue, he did however not mention the time or place of these executions.
According to ISNA, Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi added: “This judgment must be carried out, it has been recommended that all who have received the death penalty should have their sentence carried out.”
Dolatabadi also claimed that the “Serious Fight” Against Narcotics Campaign has already had a positive impact in its short time and it is notable that many are already remorseful.
According to ISNA, Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi added: “This judgment must be carried out, it has been recommended that all who have received the death penalty should have their sentence carried out.”
Dolatabadi also claimed that the “Serious Fight” Against Narcotics Campaign has already had a positive impact in its short time and it is notable that many are already remorseful.
Iranian Rights Group Says Secret Executions Increasing
October 28, 2010
The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran (ICHRI) says the number of unannounced executions at the Vakilabad prison in the eastern Iranian city of Mashhad has increased, RFE/RL's Radio Farda reports.
The U.S.-based organization said in a statement on October 26 there are more than 600 inmates on death row at Mashhad.
ICHRI Executive Director Hadi Ghaemi told Radio Farda on October 26 that a large number of executions have been carried out secretly in Mashhad in recent months. He added that the executions are carried out summarily and without notifying the prisoners' families or lawyers.
Ghaemi said that according to Iranian law, after a death sentence is confirmed by the Supreme Court the convicted person's lawyers and family must be informed.
He added that when a court ruling is sent to the Office for the Enforcement of Sentences, the prisoner's family should be informed of the time of the execution in order to visit the prisoner and even attend the execution.
But Ghaemi claimed such procedures are often not followed by prison officials at Mashhad's Vakilabad prison.
"The officials only contact the family the day after the execution to tell them to come to the jail in order to pay the cost of the rope [with which the prisoner was hanged] and to receive the body," he said.
Ghaemi added that the ICHRI has received credible reports about the secret executions from within the prison.
"One of the people who talked about the executions was Ahmad Ghabel, who was rearrested after publishing those reports," Ghaemi said.
A religious scholar, Ghabel was first arrested in December on his way to the funeral of senior dissident cleric Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri. He spent
six months in jail in Vakilabad before being released on bail, then was rearrested last month in Mashhad.
Ghabel's wife told Radio Farda then that her husband had said one of the reasons for his detention was his statements about the executions at the prison.
The U.S.-based organization said in a statement on October 26 there are more than 600 inmates on death row at Mashhad.
ICHRI Executive Director Hadi Ghaemi told Radio Farda on October 26 that a large number of executions have been carried out secretly in Mashhad in recent months. He added that the executions are carried out summarily and without notifying the prisoners' families or lawyers.
Ghaemi said that according to Iranian law, after a death sentence is confirmed by the Supreme Court the convicted person's lawyers and family must be informed.
He added that when a court ruling is sent to the Office for the Enforcement of Sentences, the prisoner's family should be informed of the time of the execution in order to visit the prisoner and even attend the execution.
But Ghaemi claimed such procedures are often not followed by prison officials at Mashhad's Vakilabad prison.
"The officials only contact the family the day after the execution to tell them to come to the jail in order to pay the cost of the rope [with which the prisoner was hanged] and to receive the body," he said.
Ghaemi added that the ICHRI has received credible reports about the secret executions from within the prison.
"One of the people who talked about the executions was Ahmad Ghabel, who was rearrested after publishing those reports," Ghaemi said.
A religious scholar, Ghabel was first arrested in December on his way to the funeral of senior dissident cleric Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri. He spent
six months in jail in Vakilabad before being released on bail, then was rearrested last month in Mashhad.
Ghabel's wife told Radio Farda then that her husband had said one of the reasons for his detention was his statements about the executions at the prison.
Torture
The sentence of ‘Cutting the Hand’ is a source of great Honor for us
27 October, 2010
Human Rights News Agency of Iran – RAHANA
The First Deputy of the Judiciary considers the sentence of amputation, ‘Cutting the Hand’, a source of great honor and pride for the Justice system.
The First Deputy of the Judiciary considers the sentence of amputation, ‘Cutting the Hand’, a source of great honor and pride for the Justice system.
The First Deputy of the Judiciary, in regards to the sentence of amputation in the case of the thief in Yazd, said: ” This sentence was carried out in accordance to the Laws of God as well as the Laws of the Land and it will be carried out in the future if seen fit in accordance to the law.
According to news sources, Ebrahim Raeesi in a sideline of meetings with the chiefs of police, in regards to the amputation sentence recently carried out against a thief in Yazd said: ” All penalties permissible under the law will be carried out, however the individual punishments may vary in accordance to the case at hand and its prosecution.
He added: ” If the sentence is handed down by the presiding judge, then the sentence must be carried out, the amputation penalty has existed before and is not of recent times.
First Deputy of the Judiciary stating that the amputation penalty is in accordance with the Laws of God, said: “This Law of God is of great honor for us” and added, “Penalty for theft is determined in accordance to the case law and the facts that are proven to the presiding judge.
According to news sources, Ebrahim Raeesi in a sideline of meetings with the chiefs of police, in regards to the amputation sentence recently carried out against a thief in Yazd said: ” All penalties permissible under the law will be carried out, however the individual punishments may vary in accordance to the case at hand and its prosecution.
He added: ” If the sentence is handed down by the presiding judge, then the sentence must be carried out, the amputation penalty has existed before and is not of recent times.
First Deputy of the Judiciary stating that the amputation penalty is in accordance with the Laws of God, said: “This Law of God is of great honor for us” and added, “Penalty for theft is determined in accordance to the case law and the facts that are proven to the presiding judge.
Son and lawyer of condemned woman tortured in Iran
Fri, Oct 29, 2010
Tehran, Oct 29 (IANS/AKI) The son and lawyer of a woman sentenced to death in Iran for adultery and helping kill her husband have been tortured in prison, said human rights groups.
According to a statement on the International Committee Against Stoning (ICAS) website, Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani's son Sajjad Ghaderzade and lawyer Javid Hutan Kian have been tortured since being arrested earlier this month.
'According to information obtained (on) stoning and executions, Sajjad, the son of Sakineh and Houtan Kian, her lawyer, are subjected to pressure and severe torture in a prison of Tabriz,' the statement said.
Ghaderzade and Kian were arrested earlier this month. The two German journalists conducting their interview were also detained.
Following international pressure, Iranian authorities suspended the stoning sentence against Ashtiani. But there are fears she could be executed by hanging.
Arbitrary Arrests
Journalist Mohammadreza Moghiseh Arrested Again
26 October, 2010
Mohammadreza Moghiseh, a member of the committee formed after the election to follow up on the post-election detainees and victims, has been arrested and transferred to an undisclosed location.
RAHANA: Mohammadreza Moghiseh who was released on a $500,000 bail in February, was arrested again on Sunday October 24th after the Intelligence Ministry interrogators raided his house and workplace.
According to JARS, he has been transferred to an unknown location. Moghiseh is a journalist, editor in chief of the Bist-Saleha magazine, and a member of the committee formed after the election to follow up on the post-election detainees and victims. He was arrested on October 14th and subsequently sentenced to 6 years in prison.
39 are detained in October with political allegations
27 October, 2010
Human Rights News Agency of Iran – RAHANA
Amongst these are the names of 14 political activists, 6 Kurdish citizens activists, 4 women and 3 students.
Amongst these are the names of 14 political activists, 6 Kurdish citizens activists, 4 women and 3 students.
In the last month, 39 individuals have been detained with political charges, amongst them are four women who were arrested during the raid by the Security Forces on the house of one of the Grieving Mothers.
According to RAHANA, there are also nine leaders of the Freedom Movement (Nehzat Azadi) who were arrested in a funeral in Esfehan.
Two German citizens, reporters of a popular weekly German news magazine, Bild Am Sonntag, who were trying to hold an interview with the Son of Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, the prisoner sentenced to stoning, were also detained.
To download a pdf list of the detainees go to
According to RAHANA, there are also nine leaders of the Freedom Movement (Nehzat Azadi) who were arrested in a funeral in Esfehan.
Two German citizens, reporters of a popular weekly German news magazine, Bild Am Sonntag, who were trying to hold an interview with the Son of Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, the prisoner sentenced to stoning, were also detained.
To download a pdf list of the detainees go to
Mehdi Nezamoleslami Detained
29 October, 2010
Mehdi Nezamaoleslami, The son of a former Parliament member, has been detained by the security forces.
RAHANA: Mehdi Nezamoleslami, the son of the deceased Boroujerd representative in the 6th Parliament was detained last night and transferred to an undisclosed location.
According to JARS, several people were guests at Nezamoleslami’s house when they were all arrested by the security forces.
According to the report, except for Nezamaoleslami, all the other detainees have been released. There has been no information as to the reason for his arrest.
Shafigh Hadavi Arrested by Security Forces
29 October, 2010
Mohammad Amin Hadavi’s son, Shafigh Hadavi, was detained by the Intelligence Ministry agents in Tuesday October 26th.
RAHANA: Shafigh Hadavi is a 27 year old mining engineer and is pursuing his Masters in Management. He was arrested by the security forces before defending his thesis this week.
According to JARS, he is the son of Mohammad Amin Hadavi, an economic activist and a former member of Tehran Chamber of Commerce. Mohammad Amin Hadavi was arrested on Friday, October 15th at the Imam Khomeini Airport. Mohammad Amin Hadavi is the son of Mehdi Hadavi, the first Prosecutor after the Revolution and Shafigh is Mahdi’s grandson.
Shafigh’s house was searched after his father’s arrest. He was also interrogated at the Intelligence Ministry for 2 hours on October 16th. When he had asked the interrogators to see the warrant, the agents had twisted his ear while telling him that “this is the warrant! Do you still want a warrant?”
In their second telephone contact, the authorities had told Shafigh to appear at the Intelligence Ministry alone because they wanted to tell him some details that his grandfather and uncles should not be aware of. The authorities then searched their office in the presence of Shafigh.
It is important to note that Mehdi Hadavi who is 85 has gone to the Intelligence Ministry to inquire about his son but there has been not received a response. They had promised him to release his son on bail but his grandson was also arrested without a warrant.
Even though 12 days has passed since Mohammad Amin’s arrest, he has not contacted his family and there is no information as to the reason for his arrest. Yesterday, Tehran Prosecutor Abbas Jafari-Dolatabadi stated that his arrest was due to security charges and he cannot explain anything for now.
Two Employees of Sanandaj Parliament Representative Arrested
29 October, 2010
Two employees of the Parliament representative from Sanandaj were arrested while distributing excerpts from official newspapers to university students.
RAHANA: Two employees of the Parliament representative from Sanandaj were arrested by unknown individuals.
According to the Mokrian News Agency, parliament representative Abdoljabbar Karami confirmed the report and stated that the two employees of the Public Relations Unit were arrested while distributing parts of official newspapers to students.
He added that the employees of his office had distributed one of his interviews by the name of “Science Minister’s Illusion” which had been published in many local and state publications.
There has been no information in regards to their condition and the possible charges.
Prisoners of Conscience
10 to 15 year incarcerations for fifteen charged with espionage
27 October, 2010
Human Rights News Agency of Iran – RAHANA
Tehran prosecutor’s office announced that fifteen individuals were sentenced to 10 to 15 years imprisonment for espionage.
Tehran prosecutor’s office announced that fifteen individuals were sentenced to 10 to 15 years imprisonment for espionage.
Jafari Dolatabadi gave report of seven cases of espionage in the judicial system and claimed: “In these cases, a group of Iranians inside the country have in their travels, outside the country, communicated with foreign services and received monitory compensation for exchange of information.
According to Mehr News, he continued by accusing one of the detainees with ‘communicating with the Mujahidin Khalgh’ and added: “Out of respect and to preserve the dignity of their families, the names of the 15 will not be officially reported, but all are currently serving 10 to 15 year sentences.”
According to Mehr News, he continued by accusing one of the detainees with ‘communicating with the Mujahidin Khalgh’ and added: “Out of respect and to preserve the dignity of their families, the names of the 15 will not be officially reported, but all are currently serving 10 to 15 year sentences.”
Rajaei Shahr Political Prisoner Mohammad Mansouri Transferred to Solitary Confinement
29 October, 2010
Mohammad Ali Mansouri, a political prisoner at Rajaei Shahr Prison, has been transferred to an unknown location after the security forces raided the prison.
RAHANA: On Tuesday, the security forces raided the Gohardasht Prison and transferred Mohamamd Ali Manosuri to an unknown location after searching the prisoners.
According to the reports received by RAHANA, there is a possibility that he has been transferred to the solitary confinement unit of Ward 1 of the Gohardasht Prison and there are concerns that he may be under pressure and torture.
He was detained on September 2, 2009. For the first 3 months of his detention, he was held under psychological and physical pressure in solitary confinement and was banned from telephone calls or prison visits with his family.
His trial was held after 10 months and he was tried for Moharebeh (waging war against God). After one year of imprisonment, he was sentenced to 17 years in prison and exile to the Rajaei Shahr Prison.
Mohammad Amin Hadavi Detained
24 October, 2010
Mohammad Amin Hadavi, an author of economics books, has been in detention since October 15th and has been transferred to an undisclosed location.
RAHANA: Mohammad Amin Hadavi who is the author of many publications and articles on economic issues, has been arrested.
According to Kaleme, Hadavi is the son of the first Prosecutor after the Revolution. He was arrested on October 15th and was transferred to an undisclosed location. His family has no information as to his condition or his whereabouts.
Human Rights Activist Koohyar Goodarzi Threatened and Interrogated in his 11th Month of Detention
26 October, 2010
Reports indicate that human rights activist Koohyar Goodarzi has been interrogated and threatened with a new indictment in his 11th month of detention.
RAHANA: While less than 2 months remain until the release of human rights activist Koohyar Goodarzi, he has recently been interrogated and threatened with a new indictment.
According to the Committee of Human Rights Reporters, he has been held in the Evin Prison since his arrest on December 30, 2009. He was sentenced to one year in prison by the lower court. He is an expelled Aerospace Engineering student of Sharif University of Technology and has gone on hunger strike twice during his detention in the Evin Prison.
Ashura Detainee Navid Kamran Returned to Evin Prison
29 October, 2010
After the Appeals Court upheld the lower court’s verdict for Ashura detainee Navid Kamran which sentenced him to 33 months in prison and 75 lashes, he began serving his sentence in the Evin Prison on Wednesday, October 27th.
RAHANA: The Appeals Court had upheld the 33 month imprisonment sentence and the 75 lashes for Ashura detainee Seyyed Navid Kamran last week.
According to JARS, Judge Pirabbas, the presiding judge of the 26th branch of the Revolutionary Court, had issued the verdict. Kamran was informed of the court’s decision after being summoned to the Shahid Moghaddas Prosecutor’s Office a few days ago.
He was charged with conspiracy and participating in gatherings in order to commit crimes against national security, and disturbing the public order. During last year’s presidential elections, Kamran was an activist for the website of “Association of Mousavi Supporters.” The group’s name was later changed to the “Association of Green Movement Supporters.”
Court Officials to Families of Ali Saremi and Reza Sharifi Boukani: “Why Are they Still Alive?”
October 30, 2010
Reza Sharifi Boukani (left) and Mohammad Ali Saremi (right)
If you burn my body and sew it to a pole, Can you steal love for the motherland from my soul?
- Ali Saremi, political prisoner
- Ali Saremi, political prisoner
The families of political prisoners Ali Saremi and Reza Sharifi Boukani who have referred to the Revolutionary Court in Tehran several times inquiring on the status of their loved ones’ case files have not [to date] received a convincing response; instead, they were faced with rude reactions from the authorities. Court officials responded to the families by asking, “Why are they still alive? Their sentences should have been implemented by now.” The families were escorted out of the court.
Saremi and Boukani are both held in ward 4 of Rajai Shahr prison in Karaj, Iran. During the last few days, Intelligence agents attacked prisoners in ward 4 and confiscated some personal items belonging to the political prisoners, including the personal writings of Saremi and Boukani. These two political prisoners were then limited from accessing the public area of the prison, which consequently has caused their families to become more concerned.
63 year old Mohammad Ali Saremi was arrested in September 2007 for speaking at the memorial event in Khavaran cemetery for victims of the 1988 prison massacres. After enduring 26 months of solitary confinement, interrogations, and torture in Evin prison, a death sentence was delivered to him in prison on December 29, 2009 by branch 15 of the Revolutionary Court.
Saremi was transferred to Rajai Shahr prison on August 29, 2010. He was interrogated for disclosing intolerable prison conditions [to the public] and protesting against the lack of due process in regards to his death sentence.
Mahin Saremi, Ali Saremi’s wife, told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, “Once we also went to see our son at Camp Ashraf [in Iraq] in 2005. A short time after our return we were arrested and my husband spent a year in prison. A few months later he was arrested on charges of participating in ceremonies commemorating the 19th anniversary of the mass executions of political prisoners in 1988. But I don’t know why he suddenly received the death sentence last year after the elections.”
Reza Sharifi Boukani is charged with “espionage” and “Moharebeh” (waging war against God). He was arrested by Intelligence agents on May 5, 2010 in Tehran. He remains detained in Rajai Shahr prison. He has been interrogated and tortured to make a false televised confession. Boukani is a Kurdish political prisoner.
Violation of Freedom of Expression
Cracking down remorselessly, Tehran shows its true face
Published on 28 October 2010
Developments in the past two weeks confirm that the Iranian government is continuing its relentless crackdown on the media. A journalist was arrested for the second time in a year and courts imposed or upheld jail sentences on two women journalists whose journalist husbands are already in prison.
Two of these developments took place on 22 October, just two days after Reporters Without Borders released its annual press freedom index, in which Iran was ranked 175th out of 178 countries.
One was a raid by intelligence ministry officials on the home of Mohammad Reza Moghisseh, the editor of Biste Saleha and a contributor to various other pro-reform media, who was taken away to an unknown location.
A member of a committee that has been monitoring arrests and human rights violations since the disputed June 2009 presidential election, Moghisseh was previously arrested on 14 October 2009 and spent 150 days in solitary confinement in Tehran’s Evin prison. Sentenced to six years in prison by a Tehran revolutionary court, he was released on bail on 1 March pending the outcome of his appeal.
The other development on 22 October was a Tehran appeal court decision to uphold the sentence of one year in prison followed by a 30-year ban on working as a journalist which a Tehran revolutionary court imposed earlier this year on blogger and reporter Jila Bani Yaghoob. She had been notified of the revolutionary court’s sentence on 8 June.
Yaghoob and her husband, Bahaman Ahamadi Amoee, were arrested on 20 June 2009 along with around 20 other journalists during the demonstrations that followed the presidential election held eight days earlier. She was released on 24 August 2009 but her husband remained in detention and was given a five-year jail sentence.
Yaghoob’s “We are journalists” blog was a winner in the “Reporters Without Borders Freedom of Expression” category in this year’s international “Best of the Blogs” competition that Deutsche Welle organized in Berlin from 13 to 15 April.
The other woman journalist, Mahssa Amrabadi, was sentenced to a year in prison by a Tehran revolutionary court on 14 October. Arrested on 14 June 2009, two days after the presidential election, she was released on 22 August 2009 on bail of 200 million toman (165,000 euros).
Her journalist husband, Masoud Bastani of the daily Farhikhteghan, is in Rajaishahr prison. Arrested on 4 July 2009, he was tried along many other journalists in the Stalinist-style mass trials that the government began organizing in Tehran in August 2009. A revolutionary court sentenced him to six years in prison on 1 November 2009.
Journalist Hider Karimi of Sina, a weekly that has been closed since December 2009, was meanwhile released on 21 October on bail of 220 million toman (151,000 euros) after four months in prison. He was arrested on 9 June when intelligence ministry officials in plain clothes raided his home in the northwestern city of Khoy.
Violation of Women’s Rights
Hengameh Shahidi Temporary Released for Medical Treatment
October 28, 2010
Hemgameh Shahidi, who was re-arrested on February 25, 2010, was temporarily released from Evin prison to receive medical treatment.
Hengameh Shahidi was first arrested on June 30, 2009. She was initially asked to post $600 thousand USD bail, however on October 24, 2009, her bail was denied and the court charged her with gathering and colluding with the intent to harm the state, propaganda against the regime and insulting the President. Shahidi’s bail was later reduced to $90 thousand USD and she was released from prison on November 1, 2009.
The presiding judge of branch 26 of the Revolutionary Court sentenced Shahidi to one year in prison for propaganda against the regime, five years for colluding with the intent to harm the state, and 91 days for insulting the president. The sentence was later reduced to six year in prison by branch 54 of the Appeals Court.
Human Rights Activist Parisa Kakaei Sentenced to 6 Years in Prison
29 October, 2010
The 26th branch of the Revolutionary Court presided by Judge Pirabbasi has sentenced Parisa Kakaei to 6 years in prison.
RAHANA: She has been sentenced to 5 years in prison for the charge of participating in gatherings and conspiracy to disturb national security and 1 year of imprisonment for anti-regime propaganda.
According to the Committee of Human Rights Reporters, her trial was held on October 18th.
Parisa Kakaei was detained on January 1st after being summoned to the Intelligence Ministry and was released on February 17th from the Evin Prison.
Violation of Minorities’ Rights
Two Mashhad Baha’i Citizens Began Serving 5 Year Prison Sentence
24 October, 2010
Two Mashhad Baha’i Citizens Jalayer Vahdat and Sima Eshraghi have been transferred to the Vakilabad Prison in order to serve their 5 year prison sentence.
RAHANA: The two Mashhad Baha’i citizens were taken into custody after appearing at the Vakilabad Prison in order to begin serving their 5 year prison sentence.
According to the RAHANA reporter, Jalayer Vahdat and Sima Eshraghi were previously held in solitary confinement for 2 months before being temporary released on a $150,000 bail. They were transferred to the Vakilabad Prison in order to begin serving their jail terms.
They have been convicted of anti-regime propaganda, acting against national security and blasphemy.
Currently, Davar Nabilzadeh, Nahid Ghadiri, Nasrin Ghadiri, Rozita Vaseghi, Hooman Bakhtavar, Kaviz Nouzdahi and Sima Rajabian are the other Baha’i citizens who are serving their 2-5 year prison terms for similar charges.
No comments:
Post a Comment