Arash Sadeghi, a student activist, was sentenced to 5 years imprisonment by the Appeals Court. This interview was given to RoozOnline with much difficulty for Arash, given the recent passing of his mother and the fact that his family holds him responsible for her death.
In an interview with RoozOnline, Arash Sadeghi, a member of the Islamic Association at Allameh Tabatabai University and an active participant in Mousavi’s 2009 presidential campaign, talked about the early morning raid by security officers that led to the heart attack and ultimate death of his mother. Sadeghi, who was arrested three times after the rigged presidential elections last year, is now free on bail also spoke of the charges against him and the conditions of his incarceration.
Fereshteh Ghazi: Mr. Sadeghi it has been reported that your mother suffered a heart attack as a result of the early morning raid of her residence. Can you please describe what exactly happened?
Arash Sadeghi: Yes, security forces came to our house in the early morning hours on November 10th, 2010. It was at around 4:00 to 4:30am when they arrived. When no one answered the door, they broke the windows and used the key that was inside the lock to open the door and enter the house. Once inside they shouted, wreaked havoc and inspected the house. When they broke the windows and entered the house, my mother suffered a heart attack and fell out of her bed. She passed away after spending four days in the hospital.
Fereshteh Ghazi: Where you not home?
Arash Sadeghi: My grandmother and grandfather are both very old. They are no longer able to take care of themselves. I often go to their house in order to take care of their affairs. On the night in question, I was also at my grandmother’s house. My sister who was visiting from the province was with my mother. It was in the middle of the night, towards morning that my sister called to say that my mother was unconscious and that because my father is a member of the military, she had been transferred to Baghiye Allah Hospital. I went to the hospital as soon as I heard the news. My mother passed away four days after she was admitted to this hospital.
Fereshteh Ghazi: Did your mother have a heart condition?
Arash Sadeghi: No my mother had no previous problems with her heart. She had been sick for 5 years and her body was weak, but her condition had nothing to do with her heart. She had developed osteoporosis that led to a broken left hip. She was admitted to the hospital for treatment and had in fact recently been released from the hospital when this incident occurred.
Fereshteh Ghazi: Why were security officers present at your house at such an odd hour?
Arash Sadeghi: I don’t really know. The truth is, every time they’ve summoned me, I have gone immediately. Not once have I neglected responding to their summons. They didn’t even contact me by phone. I don’t understand why they arrived at such an unseemly hour and broke the windows to enter the house. I don’t understand why they were so loud, why they shouted and created such fear…
Fereshteh Ghazi: Did they provide your family with a court order?
Arash Sadeghi: No, they did not even show their identification cards so we would know which department they were from.
Fereshteh Ghazi: Mr. Sadeghi, did they come after you again after this incident? How about you? Did you approach the Court?
Arash Sadeghi: No. No one showed up. I didn’t go to court either because I was preoccupied with my mother’s condition. The only thing I’ve managed to do during this time is to contact my lawyer, Mr. Alizade Tabatabai asking him to draft a letter of complaint so that we can pursue legal action against the raid by security officers that led to my mother’s death.
Fereshteh Ghazi: The appeals court confirmed your final sentence yesterday, can you provide us with more information regarding this matter?
Arash Sadeghi: I was initially sentenced to 6 years in prison on charges of “collusion and conspiracy against the regime” and “propaganda against the regime”. The 54th branch of the Appeals Court has repealed the charge of propaganda against the regime, changing my sentence to 5 years in prison for collusion and conspiracy against the regime.
Fereshteh Ghazi: What legal evidence did they present for these charges and your sentence?
Arash Sadeghi: A lot of things were cited in my case file but there was no legal evidence. They mentioned for example the demonstrations on the 16th of Azar [Student Day], but I was not even present at the University on that particular day. Other accusations included organizing student associations at Allameh Tabatabai University, publishing statements and having relationships with student activists abroad. At the time of my arrest I was under extreme pressure to confess to involvement in such activities.
Fereshteh Ghazi: You were arrested after the presidential elections and you spent approximately 1 year in prison. Can you explain the circumstances of your arrest and the pressure put upon you while you were in prison?
Arash Sadeghi: I was arrested on July 9th, 2009 and I spent 53 days in Evin’s Ward 2A. During these 53 days my family had no news of me what so ever. I was not even allowed to make a phone call. I was later released on bail but rearrested in January. The second time around I spent 15 days in prison and was released on $96,000 USD bail. My trial took place on the April 4th, 2010 and branch 28th of the Revolutionary Court overturned my release and I was arrested for a third time. This time I was released on $480,0000 USD bail. I endured a lot of pressure during my incarceration. I was beaten so severely that my shoulder was twice dislocated and my teeth were broken. The beatings, slapping around and kicking were bearable, what was most difficult to endure was when they removed the hair on my body. The worst thing they did to me was to remove the hair on my face, arms and chest. For this reason, my face was scarred. They used to blindfold us and punch and kick us severely in the face. As a result of these beatings my eye was bleeding once and I couldn’t see for a long time. They first mentioned the charge of “Mohareb” (enemy of God) after my initial arrest. They said that I had to confess that I was connected with the Monafeghin* and that I was in contacting my friends abroad. They wanted me to confess on television. They were trying to prove that a member of Mousavi’s 2009 presidential election campaign was connected to MKO. When I refused to cooperate, they threatened to arrest my mother, make sure my father lost his job, and insulted my sister. Later they wanted me to confess to orchestrating the demonstrations at the university and writing all publications and statements on behalf of the students, etc.
Fereshteh Ghazi: What do you intend to do now that your sentence has been upheld by the appeals court?
Arash Sadeghi: I intend to file a complaint regarding what happened to my mother. Given my current circumstances I ask God that my sentence be finalized so that I can be arrested as soon as possible. My father, my sister, and my entire family hold me responsible for my mother’s death. Our house has become a living hell. I miss my mother and I am tormented by the fact that she is no longer with us. The psychological pressure has had a very hard toll on me. The truth is, I can’t wait for my sentence to be finalized so that I can return to prison. My father says: “You killed your mother and I don’t want you in this house.” As a result, I try to stay away from home, impatiently awaiting my return to prison.
Editor’s Notes:
* Monafeghin [hypocrites] is the term coined by the Islamic Republic of Iran to refer to the Mujahedin Khalgh (PMOI), a large exiled group in opposition to the Iranian regime. Since Iran’s 2009 post-election uprising, numerous Iranian citizens detained illegally were issued the baseless charge of Moharebeh [waging war against God] which accuses them of links to groups in opposition to the Iranian regime; which in most cases the group made reference to is the PMOI. The Moharebeh charge can carry the sentence of execution or a long prison term.
http://en.irangreenvoice.com/article/2010/nov/19/2468
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