UN HUMAN RIGHTS CHIEF CONCERNED BY IRANIAN CRACKDOWN ON HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS
23 November 2010
http://www.unog.ch/unog/website/news_media.nsf/%28httpNewsByYear_en%29/EFA6B9DA913124A4C12577E4002FE981?OpenDocument
GENEVA – United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay on Tuesday expressed renewed concern for the fate of human rights defenders in Iran, particularly Ms. Nasrin Sotoudeh who was on hunger strike for several weeks in Tehran’s Evin Prison.
“As we approach international Human Rights Day* on 10 December, the world will be focusing on situations where human rights activists are not free to organize or speak out,” the High Commissioner said. “I am very concerned that Nasrin Sotoudeh’s case is part of a much broader crackdown, and that the situation of human rights defenders in Iran is growing more and more difficult,” she added.
Ms. Sotoudeh, a prominent human rights lawyer involved in defending many high profile cases, was arrested on 4 September and has reportedly been in solitary confinement since then. She is said to have been charged with national security offences. Following her first court appearance on 15 November, Ms. Sotoudeh reportedly broke the hunger strike she had conducted over a period of several weeks in protest at her detention.
“I urge the Iranian authorities to review her case urgently and expedite her release,” Ms. Pillay said.
Several other people who are currently detained are associated with the Centre for Human Rights Defenders founded by Nobel Laureate, Shirin Ebadi. Mr. Mohamad Saifzadeh, a lawyer and co-founder of the Centre for Human Rights Defenders, was sentenced to nine years in prison and a ten-year ban on practicing law for “forming an association whose aim is to harm national security.” Other members of the Centre for Human Rights Defenders are being prosecuted on similar charges, or have been detained for shorter periods and prevented from travelling abroad.
Most recently, on 13 November 2010, five lawyers were arrested in Tehran on security charges. Although two have reportedly been subsequently released, the other three are believed to be still in custody.
Other organizations whose members have been arrested or convicted in recent months include the Committee for the Defence of Political Prisoners in Iran and the Committee of Human Rights Reporters, as well as individual lawyers representing clients in sensitive cases together with student activists and leaders.
The High Commissioner urged the Iranian authorities to review their cases as well.
“Freedom of speech and freedom of assembly are enshrined in international law,” she said, “most importantly in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which is a binding treaty that Iran has ratified.”
On 1-2 December, OHCHR is scheduled to hold a judicial colloquium in Tehran with more than 30 Iranian judges and prosecutors on issues relating to the right to fair trial and the treatment of detainees. Several international experts and judges will participate in the seminar to share internationally recognized standards and experience on how judiciaries can protect human rights.
“This is an important opportunity for direct engagement with Iranian judges on issues of concern, and to promote international standards in the administration of justice,” the High Commissioner said. “I encourage the Iranian authorities to open up greater space for human rights lawyers and activists who play a vital and constructive role in protecting human rights in all societies. They may express critical views – but criticism is not a crime.”
* The theme for this year’s Human Rights Day on 10 December is “Human rights defenders who act to end discrimination.”
Execution
URGENT ACTION
Kurd’s death sentence to be carried out
Index: MDE 13/104/2010 Iran Date: 19 November 2010
http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/MDE13/104/2010/en/fb8154b9-fdfc-4469-a4f1-ac7b43799608/mde131042010en.html
Hossein Khezri, a member of Iran’s Kurdish minority, is at imminent risk of execution. His death sentence was sent "for implementation" on around 17 November, after the publication of a letter that he wrote from prison describing how he has been tortured.
Hossein Khezri is a 28 or 29-year-old Kurd sentenced to death for “enmity against God”, for membership of the Party for Free Life of Kurdistan, although he says his activities were only political. He wrote a letter from prison to international organizations at the end of October 2010 and it was published on the website of an opposition political party on 6 November. In his letter, he said that he was tortured in detention centres belonging to the Revolutionary Guards in Kermanshah and Oromieh, north-west Iran and also at a Ministry of Intelligence detention facility.He said in his letter, written from Section 12 of Oromieh Prison, “The time of my execution has not been told to me, I do not know if it will be tomorrow, or the day after, or tonight, and I am not allowed visitors and cannot even let any one know that I am still alive.”
Hossein Khezri was arrested in Kermanshah in 2008 and was sentenced to death after his trial in May 2009. His sentence was upheld on 8 August 2009. He said he was tortured and asked for an investigation, but his request was denied in March 2010. On 11 April 2010, he was moved from Oromieh Central Prison to an unknown location, which raised fears at the time that his execution might be imminent.
There are around 17 other Kurds sentenced to death for political reasons in Iran, including a 28-year-old woman, Zeynab Jalalian. Her lawyer met with the Tehran Prosecutor in July 2010 and has said that he hopes her death sentence may be overturned. However, as of early November 2010, he had not received any written confirmation of this and Zeynab Jalalian told him in a phone call on 2 October 2010 that she still faced a death sentence.
PLEASE WRITE IMMEDIATELY in Persian, Arabic, English, French or your own language:
Urging the Iranian authorities not to execute Hossein Khezri and Zeynab Jalalian;
Calling on them to commute their death sentences and to retry them in fair proceedings in line with international law and to disregard any evidence obtained under torture or other ill-treatment:
Stating that Amnesty International recognizes the right and responsibility of governments to bring to justice, in conformity with international standards for fair trial, those suspected of criminal offences, but opposes the death penalty as the ultimate cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment.
URGENT ACTION
Iranian Footballer’s Wife’s Execution Scheduled
UA: 243/10 Index: MDE 13/105/2010 Iran Date: 23 November 2010
http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/MDE13/105/2010/en/f96798f1-7cc4-499c-8826-f73bf5201b82/mde131052010en.html
Iranian media reported that footballer's wife, Khadijeh Jahed, may be executed on 1 December. She is sentenced to death for the alleged murder of her husband's permanent wife.
Khadijeh Jahed, known as "Shahla", who had contracted a temporary marriage with Nasser Mohammad-Khani, a former striker for the Iranian national football team, was convicted of stabbing to death her husband’s permanent wife. According to a 6 November 2010 report by Fars news agency, an unnamed judiciary official said that her death sentence has been sent to the Office for the Implementation of Sentences in Tehran. A 16 November 2010 report in the newspaper Vatan-e Emrooz said her execution has been set for 1 December 2010 if she is not pardoned by the victim’s family. Her lawyer, Abdolsamad Khorramshahi, has told the Iranian Students’ News Agency that he has not yet been notified of the date for her execution, which in law must be communicated at least 48 hours beforehand.
Shahla Jahed was initially sentenced to death by Branch 1154 of Tehran General Court in June 2004. She withdrew her “confession” of murder in court. Her sentence was upheld by Branch 15 of the Supreme Court. Shahla Jahed’s lawyer requested a review of the execution order in view of the fact that Shahla Jahed's case had not been properly investigated. In November 2005, the then Head of the Judiciary ordered a stay of execution so that the case could be re-examined. However, the death sentence was upheld in September 2006. In early 2008, the Head of the Judiciary in Iran overturned the verdict and ordered a fresh investigation, citing “procedural flaws”. However, Shahla Jahed was again sentenced to death in February 2009 by Branch 1147 of the General Court. On 13 September 2010, Shahla Jahed wrote to the current Head of the Judiciary, Ayatollah Sadegh Larijani, asking for a final decision in her case. According to Fars, he has signed the order for her execution to go ahead.
In Iran, a convicted murderer has no right to seek pardon or commutation from the state, in violation of Article 6(4) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to which Iran is a state party. The family of a murder victim has the right either to insist on execution, or to pardon the killer and receive financial compensation (diyeh).
PLEASE WRITE IMMEDIATELY in Persian, Arabic, English, French or your own language:
Expressing concern that she may have been coerced into making a “confession” during her interrogation;
Acknowledging that governments have a responsibility to bring to justice those suspected of criminal offences; but stating your unconditional opposition to the death penalty, as the ultimate cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment and violation of the right to life.
One man was hanged in the central Iranian town of Kashan
http://www.iranhr.net/spip.php?article1888
Iran Human Rights, November 23, 2010: One man was hanged in the central Iranian town of Kashan, reported the Iranian local daily "nesfe Jahan" today.
The man who was identified as "Mahmood N." (24 years old), was convicted of keeping 500 grams of crack, and sentenced to death by the revolutionary court of Kashan, according to the report.
The execution took place inside the prison.
The charges mentioned above have not been confirmed by independent sources.
One man was hanged in Isfahan (central Iran)
http://www.iranhr.net/spip.php?article1890
Iran Human Rights, November 27, 2010: One man was hanged in the prison of Isfahan, central Iran, according to the reports received today.
According to the official web site of the Iranian judiciary in Isfahan, the man who was identified as "Hossein M.", was convicted of rape , while two other man were sentenced to 74 lashes, up to 18 years in prison for immoral acts and helping the main convict. the man was hanged in the central prison of Isfahan said the report.
The charges have not been confirmed by independent sources.
Iran hangs rapist: report
November 28, 2010
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hbK8EpXRTt6unEO2LSP0hmqrjjYg?docId=CNG.455c7dbd53102b145e0c1ae0f4794258.781
TEHRAN — Iran has hanged in prison a man convicted of raping several women in the central city of Isfahan, ISNA news agency reported on Saturday.
The man, only identified as Hossein M., was found guilty of raping several women after offering them a ride and then threatening to kill them, the report said, quoting Isfahan's judiciary.
It did not say when the hanging took place.
The latest hanging brings the number of executions in Iran to at least 145 so far this year, according to an AFP count based on media reports. At least 270 people were executed in 2009.
Iran is one of the leading countries that carry out the death penalty each year, along with China, Saudi Arabia and the United States.
The Islamic republic says the death penalty is essential to maintain public security and is applied only after exhaustive judicial proceedings.
Murder, rape, armed robbery, drug trafficking and adultery are all punishable by death in Iran.
Torture
Convicted thief's hand amputated in Iran
Nov 23, 2010, 11:32 GMT
http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/middleeast/news/article_1600941.php/Convicted-thief-s-hand-amputated-in-Iran
Tehran - One hand of a convicted thief was cut off in the north-eastern Iranian city of Mashad, Fars news agency reported Tuesday.
The amputation took place on Monday inside Mashad prison in front of other convicted thieves, the report said.
The unidentified thief had been convicted several times and his amputation was done as a deterrent, local prison officials told Fars.
According to Islamic law, amputation is the punishment for those convicted of repeated thefts.
Iran's judiciary said that amputations would continue in order to protect lives and property and serve as a lesson for other thieves.
Last month, a man had had a hand cut off for repeated thefts, including stealing chocolate from a shop in the capital Tehran.
Arbitrary Arrests
Arbitrary arrest of five human rights lawyers
19 November 2010
http://www.fidh.org/Arbitrary-arrest-of-five-human-rights-lawyers
The Observatory has been informed by the Iranian League for the Defense of Human Rights of the arbitrary arrest of five human rights lawyers.
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint programme of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), requests your urgent intervention in the following situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Description of the situation:
According to the information received, Ms. Sara (Hajar) Sabaghian, Ms. Maryam Karbasi and Ms. Maryam Kianersi, three women lawyers active in the defense of journalists, bloggers, young people and in the defense of women sentenced to death, were arrested on November 13 at Tehran airport as they were coming back from a trip to Turkey.
Their arrest for “activities against State security” was confirmed by the Tehran Revolutionary Prosecutor, who added that two other lawyers had also been arrested “in relation with the three women”, without giving further details. Their names were later revealed (Ms. Rosa Gharatchorlou and Mr. Mohamad Hossein Hayeri).
On November 18, Ms. Rosa Gharatchorlou and Ms. Maryam Karbasi were released and no information could be obtained as to whether charges were pending against them. The three others reportedly remained detained in Evin prison as of issuing this urgent appeal.
The Observatory denounces these arrests and arbitrary detentions, which are representative of the increasing wave of harassment against a number of Iranian human rights lawyers, including against Mr. Mohammad Oliaifar, member of the Defenders of Human Rights Centre (DHRC) detained since May 2010[1], and against Ms. Nasrin Sotoudeh, prominent human rights lawyer, known for defending juveniles facing death penalty, prisoners of conscience, human rights activists and children victims of abuse, in detention since September 4 on accusations of “propaganda against the State” and “collusion and gathering with the aim of acting against national security”[2].
…..
21 November, 2010
http://www.rahana.org/en/?p=8078
RAHANA: Civil Rights activists Behrouz Lajevard and Firouz Maleki have been detained by the security forces in Salmas. According to the Kurdistan Human Rights Watch, the families of the activists stated that 2 weeks has passed since their detention and we are unaware of their whereabouts.
Iran government has constantly put Kurdish activist under pressure and sentenced many of them to death for false crimes.
20 November, 2010
http://www.rahana.org/en/?p=8073
RAHANA: Baha’i citizen Adel Fanaian has been detained on Sunday November 14th at his workplace.
According to the RAHANA reporter, security officials raided his workplace and transferred him to the Semnan Intelligence Ministry after searching the place.
His arrest comes after the temporary release if Rofia Bidaghi, another Baha’i citizen. Fanaian served a 6 month prison sentence last year but he was detained once again for unknown reasons.
Currently, 3 female Baha’i citizens and 3 male citizens are in prison. Siamak Ighani, Behnam Motoarefi and Adel Fanaian are in Semnan Prison. Sahba Rezvani, Manijeh Monzavian and Sousan Tabayanian have been transferred to the Evin prison in order to serve their sentence. A number of other Semnan Baha’i citizens are awaiting their sentence. They have been charged with anti-regime propaganda through Baha’i propaganda.
27 November, 2010
http://www.rahana.org/en/?p=8101
Student activist and former secretary of Muslim Student Association at the Hamedan Bou Ali Sina University was detained by the Intelligence Ministry authorities and transferred to an undisclosed location.
RAHANA: Siavash Hatami is a student activist and the former secretary of Muslim Student Association at the Hamedan Bou Ali Sina University who was arrested following last year’s post-election protests and later released on bail.
According to DaneshjouNews, he was transferred to the Shahid Beheshti University in Tehran by the Bou Ali Sina University officials upon the request of the security forces.
According to sources close to him, he was arrested by the Intelligence Ministry authorities in the middle of one of his exams in Shahid Beheshti University. The authorities then took him to his house and confiscated his computer and personal belongings after searching his house. He has then been transferred to an undisclosed location and the Intelligence Ministry authorities have told his family that “asking several questions” is the reason for his arrest.
It is important to note that in the past several weeks, Ali Gholizadeh, Alireza Kiani, Mohsen Barzegar and Mohamamd Heidarzadeh, four members of Tahkim Vahdat (Office for Consolidating Unity) have been arrested. It is speculated that they have been detained since Student Day is approaching and the arrests have been made in order to scare the students.
28 November, 2010
http://www.rahana.org/en/?p=8117Two Baha’i citizens have been arrested while in a religious ceremony.
RAHANA: Two Baha’i citizens were arrested on November 22nd in a religious ceremony after the security forces raided the place.
According to the RAHANA reporter, Majid Agha-Safari and Seraj Kian were arrested by the security forces while participating in a religious ceremony.
Majid Agha-Safari first contacted his family in Thursday.
Prisoners of Conscience
One Person Dies in Suicide Attempts at Gohardasht Prison
November 22, 2010
http://persian2english.com/?p=16775
According to Human Rights and Democracy Activists in Iran (HRDAI), on Friday night, as a result of overwhelming pressure, two prisoners in ward 2 of Gohardasht ‘Rajai Shahr’ prison (in the city of Karaj) attempted suicide. Due to lack of timely medical care and the failure to transport them to the prison hospital on time, one of the prisoners died.
The two prisoners attempted suicide while living under overwhelming pressures, torture, and medieval conditions in prison. They hoped that death would help them escape their dreadful situation.
57 year old Khan Ali Taran, who was confined to section 6 of ward 2 in Gohardasht prison attempted suicide which resulted in his death. The other prisoner, who was recently arrested and incarcerated in section 2 of ward 2 in Gohardasht prison also attempted suicide, yet survived. He is currently held in the prison hospital and his condition is listed as critical.
HRDAI condemns the existing medieval conditions in the so-called “Supreme Leader” Ali Khamenei’s prisons and urges the UN High Commissioner and other defenders of civil liberties to take immediate action to end such dreadful conditions.
Wednesday, 24 November 2010
http://iranliberty.org.uk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1432:double-occupancy-of-iranian-prisons&catid=17:human-rights&Itemid=59
The Iranian regime’s judiciary minister has revealed that the number of prisoners in Iran is more than double the normal capacity.
According to the state-run website Khabar Online on Monday, Morteza Bakhtiari, who is also a former interrogator, said, “The capacity of the country’s prisons is 85,000 people, but currently, there are over 200,000 prisoners.”
“There will be temporary camps set up to reduce this number in half,” he added.
Of course the actual number of prisoners in Iran is much higher than the figure released by authorities and many prisoners are kept in subhuman conditions in secret prisons across the country run by paramilitary Basij units.
Release Ailing, 80-year-old Former Foreign Minister
26th November 2010
http://www.iranhumanrights.org/2010/11/release-ebrahim-yazdi/
Detained since 1 October, Ebrahim Yazdi Still Not Informed About Charges
(26 November 2010) The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran called for the immediate release for medical treatment of Ebrahim Yazdi, who has been in detention since 1 October, but has yet to be informed of the charges against him.
The Islamic Republic’s first Foreign Minister, Yazdi was arrested on 1 October in a private home in Isfahan for allegedly participating in “illegal prayer” when attending the memorial service for the daughter of a friend. He was subsequently moved to section 209 of Tehran’s Evin prison, which is operated by Iran’s Intelligence Ministry.
Yazdi is recovering from bladder cancer surgery as well as heart surgery, and his family believes his life is in danger because of the physical and psychological strains of prison, where Yazdi has been deprived of medical care and lives in unsanitary conditions. His wife was allowed to visit him only after he had been jailed for 40 days.
“After Yazdi’s arbitrary arrest, illegal detention and denial of due process and medical care, he needs to be released immediately into the care of medical authorities and his family, and informed of the charges against him so that a proper defense may be prepared,” said Hadi Ghaemi, the spokesperson for the Campaign.
At 80 years of age, the head of the Freedom Movement of Iran is the country’s “oldest political prisoner,” according to his family. Since the onset of political unrest following tainted presidential elections in June 2009, he has been arrested three times, once when he was in an intensive care hospital ward. During one of his imprisonments, he spent 50 days in solitary confinement.
Yazdi is among the leading reform voices in Iran, beginning with his resignation as Foreign Minister in 1979 following his attempt to resolve the crisis over the seizure of American hostages in the United States Embassy. He subsequently served in Parliament, but was eventually barred from further political service.
Nobel Peace Laureate Shirin Ebadi, who has defended Yazdi on numerous occasions when he has been summoned and charged by the government, appealed to United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon to intervene with Iranian authorities for the release of Dr. Yazdi in a letter published on 23 November and signed by seven other notable Iranian public personalities.
Over 500 Iranian prisoners of conscience remain incarcerated following post-election protests. Most, like Yazdi, have been deprived of due process rights and prison conditions that meet minimum standards.
On 18 November 2010, the Third Committee of the UN General Assembly passed a draft resolution on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, which called Iran to account for, among other things: “Continued harassment, intimidation and persecution, including by arbitrary arrest, detention or disappearance, as well as violent repression of, inter alia, political opponents, human rights defenders, lawyers, journalists and other
media representatives, Internet providers, Internet users, bloggers, clerics, academics, students and labour leaders from all sectors of Iranian society, noting in particular the continued harassment and detention of staff members of the Defenders of Human Rights Centre…”
The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran called upon the Islamic Republic of Iran to meet its international human rights obligations by releasing Yazdi and all prisoners of conscience.
27 November, 2010
http://www.rahana.org/en/?p=8107
Ashura detainee Peyman Karimi-Azad was transferred to the solitary confinement unit of Ward 240 from Ward 350 while he was in critical condition.
RAHANA: In the past a few months, Karmi-Azad has been in critical condition to the extent that he has been transferred to the prison clinic and Taleghani Hospital several times.
According to JARS, last night he was transferred to the solitary confinement unit of Ward 240 as punishment since the clinic personnel were angry.
Peyman has to refer to the clinic constantly due to his low blood pressure and his need for 108 unit insulin injection. Since he did not receive the necessary medical attention, he had objected to the inappropriate behavior of the clinic personnel. Consequently, a number of clinic personnel had beaten him while he was in critical condition and transferred him to solitary confinement after filing a complaint against him.
There are great concerns as to his condition since he has threatened to go on hunger strike and stop taking his medication following his transfer to solitary confinement.
He is one of the 17 prisoners of Ward 350 who had been transferred to solitary confinement a while ago after objecting to the insulting behavior of the prison authorities and the prison visit ban for some prisoners.
27 November, 2010
http://www.rahana.org/en/?p=8111
During a phone conversation, Ali Gholizadeh, a detained member of the Office for Consolidating Unity (Advar Tahkim), who is held in Ward 209, has stated that while a bail has been set for him, his detainment is unlawful and he has not been interrogated.
RAHANA: During a phone conversation from ward 209 of Evin Prison, Ali Gholizadeh stated that he has been held in solitary confinement for the past 2 weeks without being interrogated.
According to DaneshjouNews, Gholizadeh stated that a $50,000 bail has been set for him and that his detention is unlawful. He further mentioned that he has not been interrogated.
He also said that he has been transferred to the prison clinic once due to his poor physical condition but did not disclose any further details. During his first telephone contact, he had also said that he was suffering from physical problems while in Mashhad which were induced by “stress”.
There are concerns as to the condition of Gholizadeh and 3 other members of Office for Consolidating Unity, Alireza Kian, Mohsen Barzegar, and Mohammad Heidarzadeh. The authorities refuse to allow them to visit their families.
Ghabel On Trial For Revealing Vakilabad Executions Amidst Lack Of Accountability by Judiciary
27th November 2010
http://www.iranhumanrights.org/2010/11/ghabel-on-trial-for-revealing-vakilabad-executions-amidst-lack-of-accountability-by-judiciary/
While judicial authorities refuse to provide any information pertaining to Mashad executions, Ahmad Ghabel, a theological researcher and prisoner of conscience, has to be accountable for speaking about the executions. Hadi Ghabel’s wife told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran that Ghabel asked the Branch 5 judge at Mashad Courts during the third session of his trial not to order his transfer from the prison for the next trial session. Ghabel stated the reason for the request the fact that he had been disrespected by prison authorities during the body search as he was transferred from prison to court. The charge against the prisoner of conscience and whistle blower in the case of group executions at Mashad’s Vakilabad Prison is “interviewing with news websites.”
“Unfortunately, they would not even let me into the Courts building. I had to wait outside by the entrance from 9:00 a.m. when they brought my husband in until 12:20 when the session was adjourned and they finally allowed me to enter. We could only talk for five minutes. I got the rest of the information from him on the phone,” Marzieh Pasdar told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran about her husband’s trial session.
“He said that most of his charges are about “propagating lies,” and the material he was quoted to have told the websites, including revelations about Mashad Prison executions and other statements he had made. But apparently, other statements quoted from “a prisoner,” also published on the websites, have been attributed to him, too. In this case he defended himself by saying that ‘I am only responsible for material directly quoted from me,’” said Marzieh Pasdar about Ahmad Ghabel’s statements.
“Another one of Ghabel’s charges is ‘insulting the Founder of the Islamic Republic’ [referring to Imam Khomeini]. He did not accept this charge in court. He said that in none of his statements has he insulted the Leader. During that first session, the judge asked him to provide proof for his statements. We searched and found the CD of all the questions asked [of Ahmad Ghabel] and his answers, the ones the court was asking about, and sent it to court through his lawyer, along with its transcript,” Ahmad Ghabel’s wife continued.
“He told me that due to the inappropriate behavior of prison authorities during his body searches as he left and re-entered the prison, which has caused him grievances, he has asked the court judge not to bring him to court during the next session and to issue his ruling in his absence, and that he would then defend himself in writing. Ghabel had objected to this treatment before, but it appears that [his objections] have had no effect,” the prisoner of conscience’s wife added.
Ahmad Ghabel’s wife described his physical and psychological state during her short meeting with him as fair. “He wasn’t bad, thank God his spirits were good. Of course he takes medicine, because last time, as soon as he was released from prison, he got sick and had to be put under treatment; but the pills brought his heart condition under control,” she said.
Ahmad Ghabel is a political critic who has written several critical letters to the Supreme Leader of Iran. Last December, he was arrested as he was on his way to attend the Grand Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri’s funeral. Head of Branch 5 of Mashad Revolutionary Courts ordered his release on bail of $50,000 on 11 June after Ghabel had remained in prison for 170 days. However, he was returned to prison in September after he spoke of group executions inside Mashad’s Vakilabad Prison.
20 Days and No News on 6 Arrested Supporters of Jailed Secular Cleric
November 28, 2010
http://persian2english.com/?p=16956
Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA)- There has been no news on Ayatollah Boroujerdi and six of his supporters for 20 days now. The supporters were arrested on November 8, 2010 and transferred to an undisclosed location. [All six] support Boroujerdi’s views on separation of religion and state. [Boroujerdi was arrested on October 8, 2006]
Based on the information obtained by HRANA, no information is available on the whereabouts and [conditions] of these prisoners of conscience.
Ayatollah Boroujerdi is a jailed secular cleric who, according to reports, was in a critical physical state due to suspicious injections that left parts of his body paralyzed. He also lost much of his eyesight to the point that he was not able to distinguish between [nearby] objects.
It seems that the goal of arresting and transferring these prisoners is to place additional pressure on Ayatollah Boroujerdi to write a letter of repentance.
Violation of Freedom of Expression
Iran shuts down reformist weekly - ISNA
Mon Nov 22, 2010
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSHOS25841620101122
TEHRAN Nov 22 (Reuters) -
Iran has closed down a reformist weekly in the latest crackdown on pro-reform publications more than a year after a disputed presidential election, Iran's student news agency ISNA reported on Monday.
"Based on a decision by the press supervisory board Chelcheragh has been banned for publishing articles contradictory to public morals," ISNA said.
Chelcheragh, popular among young people for its articles on culture, art, satire and cartoons, had previously received two warnings from the authorities, ISNA said.
When asked by Reuters why the weekly had been shut down, an employee of Chelcheragh who did not give his name said: "We are not in a position to speak".
Chelcheragh's closure came two months after Iran banned two newspapers for insulting political and religious figures.
Iran has shut down a number of publications since its disputed June 2009 presidential election which plunged the country into its most serious domestic turmoil in three decades.
The opposition says the election was rigged to secure President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's re-election but the authorities deny the charge, saying the vote was the "healthiest" since the country's 1979 Islamic revolution.
Thousands of people, including senior reformers, were detained after the poll for fomenting unrest. Most of them have since been freed, but more than 80 people have been jailed for up to 15 years and five have been sentenced to death.
Last month, Iranian authorities said they would close down publications that carry news of the opposition movement.
Press freedom violations recounted in real time (from 1st July 2010)
Published on 23 November 2010
http://en.rsf.org/iran-press-freedom-violations-recounted-04-11-2010,37863.html
23 November 2010 - Reformist weekly suspended in Iran
Iran’s most popular weekly among young people, Chehel cheragh (40 chandeliers), was suspended yesterday by the Press authorisation and Surveillance Commission which comes under the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Orientation. The commission did not specify the reason for the ban in its media statement. But in its latest edition, Chehel cheragh carried an interview with the grand master of Iranian traditional music, Mohammad Reza Shajariyan, who has often made plain his support for the opposition movement, detested by the regime.
The last time the ministry’s official censorship arm ordered such a ban was on 27 September this year, when the daily Andisheh-ye No (New Thought) was permanently closed down. The newspaper had already been suspended on 21 December 2009 after it published articles about Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri, the reformist grand ayatollah who died on 20 December 2009, in the holy city of Qom, 60 kilometres south of the capital Tehran, at the age of 87. The Ministry of Culture and Islamic Orientation had issued a decree the previous day forbidding all newspaper editors from mentioning the ayatollah.
4 November 2010 - An arrest and a release
Journalist Nazanin Khosravani, a contributor to several pro-reform newspapers including Bahar, Karghozaran and Sarmayeh, was arrested at her home by intelligence ministry officials on 2 November. Her family has received no news of her since then and still does not know why she is being held. Henghameh Shahidi, the editor of the blog Paineveste, was released provisionally on bail on 28 October on medical grounds. She has a heart ailment and must undergo an operation without delay.
Arrested on 25 February when she responded to an intelligence ministry summons, she was transferred to Evin prison and, two days later, was sentenced by a Tehran court on appeal to six years in prison and a fine of 50,000 tomans.
Shahidi was previously arrested on 29 June 2009, spending 50 days in solitary confinement in Section 209 of Evin prison. A Tehran revolutionary court released her on 2 November 2009 on bail of 9 million tomans (8,000 euros). ….
For Immediate Release:
October 27, 2010
For Further information, contact:
Kathleen Currie
(202) 567-2608
KCurrie@iwmf.org http://www.iwmf.org/archive/articletype/articleview/articleid/1279/international-womens-media-foundation-condemns-appellate-court-sentence-against-iranian-journalist-jila-baniyaghoob.aspx
Washington, D.C. – The International Women’s Media Foundation (IWMF) strongly condemns the decision of an appellate court in Tehran that sentenced journalist Jila Baniyaghoob to one year in jail and a 30-year ban from journalism.
“We are outraged and appalled at this miscarriage of justice,” said IWMF Executive Director Liza Gross.
According to the website
negahi.com, only one other journalist has been so severely punished in the history of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Baniyaghoob’s attorney, Farideh Gheyrat, argued that Baniyaghoob has twice been found innocent of similar charges, that her professional demeanor of reporting fairly on people and events has not changed and that she did not commit offenses against the Islamic Republic of Iran. She called the verdict unjust.
Baniyaghoob won a 2009 Courage in Journalism Award from the IWMF for her bravery in reporting the news from Iran. She was unable to accept the award in person because she was arrested following protests during presidential elections in 2009. Some 40 journalists were arrested along with Baniyaghoob. They include her husband, Bahman Ahmadi Amoyee, who is serving a five-year sentence in Tehran’s Evin Prison, Ward 350.
Baniyaghoob was arrested a week after the elections and sent to Evin prison. She was charged with propaganda against the Islamic regime because of her reports on the election and the protests that followed. She was released on bail in August 2009. In July, the Revolutionary Court in Teheran sentenced her to one year in jail and banned her from practicing journalism for 30 years. She appealed. This new verdict by the appellate court upholds her sentence.
Violation of Women’s Rights
URGENT ACTION
UN Calls For Release Of Human Rights Lawyer
Further information on UA: 197/10 Index: MDE 13/106/2010 IRAN Date: 24 November 2010
http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/MDE13/106/2010/en/fb140a87-fd46-40bf-9162-0a1cd791304f/mde131062010en.html
On 23 November the UN human rights chief called for the release of Iranian human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh. This followed the first trial session on 15 November. She has now been held for 80 days, following her arbitrary arrest on 4 September 2010. Amnesty International considers her to be a prisoner of conscience, held solely in connection with her work as a lawyer.
On 23 November 2010, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay expressed concern for Nasrin Sotoudeh. She called her case part of a much broader crackdown on human rights defenders . Navi Pillay urged the Iranian authorities to review her case urgently and expedite her release.
At the 15 November trial session Nasrin Sotoudeh faced charges of acting against national security; gathering and colluding to disturb national security; and co-operation with a human rights body, the Centre for Human Rights Defenders (CHRD). She was permitted to see her husband face-to-face, albeit in a crowded room full of officials. It lasted around 15 minutes and he found his wife thin and frail. She had ended a month-long hunger strike on 26 October, but resumed it on 31 October, extending it to a ‘dry’ hunger strike, refusing also water. Her husband urged her to end the hunger strike, which she did. The first time he was permitted to see her following her arrest was five days before that, sitting opposite his wife behind the glass in Evin Prison’s visiting area, where they spoke via a telephone. He, along with other family members and the head of the Tehran Bar Association were not, however, allowed in the court. A session for 24 November was cancelled due to high levels of pollution in Tehran.
Nasrin Sotoudeh has represented clients ranging from juvenile offenders facing the death penalty to Nobel Peace Laureate Shirin Ebadi and prior to her arrest spoke openly of the challenges she faced as a lawyer in Iran. International standards for fair trial are routinely flouted in Iran’s courts.
PLEASE WRITE IMMEDIATELY in Persian, English, or your own language:
Calling for the immediate and unconditional release of Nasrin Sotoudeh, held solely for her peaceful exercise of her rights to freedom of expression and association, including her work as a lawyer;
Calling on the Iranian authorities to ensure that she is protected from torture or other ill-treatment while held, and she is granted immediate and regular access to her family including her husband, and her lawyer;
Urging the Iranian authorities to act on the UN’s call to review her case urgently and expedite her release in advance of a UN-backed judicial seminar to be held in Tehran on 1-2 December, addressing fair trial issues and the treatment of detainees.
Journalist Hengameh Shahidi hospitalised following hunger strike
November 24, 2010
http://en.irangreenvoice.com/article/2010/nov/24/2480
GVF -- A source close to political prisoner currently on hunger strike, Hengameh Shahidi, has told the International Campaign for Human Rights that following a deterioration of her health, the prominent journalist has been hospitalised in Evin prison clinic.
Hengameh Shahidi was released on 28 October after being granted a medical leave of absence. However, on 15 November she was returned to Evin prison after the medical leave of absence was not extended despite undergoing medical treatment. She was not told why her leave was interrupted or in fact why she had to return to prison. Shahidi began her hunger strike immediately after returning to prison, which subsequently led to a worsening of her already poor health condition.
“When the family of this political prisoner went to visit [her] this morning, after waiting for more than four hours, they weren’t able to see her due to a deterioration in her condition and her being hospitalised in the [prison] clinic,” the source told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran. According to the source, Shahidi has been unable to contact her family due to restrictions on phone calls from the Methadone ward (for narcotics related offenses) where she is currently being held.
Shahidi is a former adviser to opposition leader and 2009 presidential candidate Mahdi Karoubi. She is also a prominent pro-reform journalist and blogger having contributed to reformist newspapers such as Etemade Melli. She was arrested on 30 June 2009, just days after the massive election fraud that resulted in Ahmadinejad’s return to office for another consecutive term.
Shahidi has been sentenced to six years prison.
Violation of Minorities’ Rights
Friday, November 26, 2010 (6:28 am)
http://www.worthynews.com/9786-iran-court-pastor-to-be-executed-by-hanging
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent
TEHRAN, IRAN (
Worthy News)-- A detained pastor of a major network of Christian house churches in Iran will be executed by hanging for "apostasy", or abandoning Islam, according to translated court documents seen by Worthy News Wednesday, November 24.
The 11th Chamber of The Assize Court of the province of Gilan said Iranian pastor Yousef Nadarkhani had proved his "apostasy" by "organizing evangelistic meetings and inviting others to Christianity, establishing a house church, baptizing people, expressing his faith to others and, denying Islamic values."
Nadarkhani is "an apostate [and] will be executed by being hung...Somehow his soul is taken from him," the court wrote.
The written verdict was "officially officially handed out" Tuesday, November 23, said a source of Nadarkhani's evangelical Church of Iran network speaking on condition of anonymity.
Lawyers Naser Sarbazi from Tehran and Abbas Salmanpour from Gilan's capital Rasht, who already learned about the verdict earlier this month, are appealing the sentence, Worthy News learned.
…..
Violation of Labor’s Rights
Three Iranian Labor Activists Jailed
November 19, 2010
http://www.rferl.org/content/Three_Iranian_Labor_Activists_Jailed_/2224415.html
Three members of the Haft-Tappeh sugarcane factory union in southern Iran have been sentenced to six months in jail, RFE/RL'S Radio Farda reports.
The sentences were handed down on November 18 by the Court of Appeal in the southwestern city of Ahwaz.
Behrouz Nikoufard, Alireza Saeed, and Behrouz Molazadeh were convicted of showing disrespect to the supreme leader. It was not immediately clear what had given rise to the charge.
Meanwhile, union head Reza Rakhshan has come under increased scrutiny and judicial pressure after writing an article on the occasion of the anniversary of the formation of the labor union.
The Ahwaz Appeal Court acquitted Rakhshan on unclear charges but warned him that he should expect a two-year jail sentence once his case comes up for review.
The 3,000-member labor union, which has organized a number of protests and sit-ins, is under increasing scrutiny by the authorities.
