IRANUPDATE
Volume 6, Issue 4 | March 20, 2018
CHRI's update on the latest human rights developments in Iran
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Spotlight
A message from CHRI's Executive Director Hadi Ghaemi
Today marks the beginning of the New Year in Iran—“Nowruz” or “new day” in English. Looking back, it’s easy to see that last year marked the start of a new era of civil disobedience in the Islamic Republic. Women removed their headscarves in public and waved them like flags in silent protest against the compulsory hijab, farmers turned their backs in unison against their Friday prayer leader to protest disastrous environmental policies, and labor rights activists appropriated a common Islamic greeting, “peace be upon you,” by shouting “peace be upon the oppressor” at demonstrations.
Not only did we witness different methods of protest, we also saw different segments of society demanding to be heard, with women, workers and young people at the forefront. Things are changing in Iran but the country’s leaders have refused to take note, opting instead for security forces to suppress the people’s voices. President Rouhani should mark the second year of his final term in office by acting on the people’s demands for basic rights and freedoms. The people of Iran have shown they won’t be silenced. It’s time for the country’s leaders to start listening.
Event
This Thursday (March 21) attend a post-screening discussion in New York with CHRI's Executive Director Hadi Ghaemi on a stunning new film by Sara Nodjoumi and Till Schauder about an Iranian musician sentenced to death in the Islamic Republic. Panel participants include co-producer Sara Nodjoumi, the deputy executive director of Resettlement & Legal Services of Artistic Freedom Initiative (AFI), Reza Mazaheri, and the senior writer for the Wall Street Journal, Farnaz Fassihi.
Items of Note
NYT Op-Ed: Iranians Do New Year's Better
“This spring, when you hear birds chirping and smell the scent of blooming flowers, think of Nowruz and of Iranians,” writes Iranian-American comedian Maz Jobrani in the New York Times opinion section. “But if you get seasonal allergies, don’t blame us. We’ve suffered enough.”
CNN's Christiane Amanpour Interviews Seyed-Emami Brothers
Their father was jailed and died in an Iranian prison. They say their mother was barred from leaving the country. Now out of Iran, Ramin and Mehran Seyed-Emami tell CNN that they are fighting to get their mother out and learn what happened to their father in Tehran's Evin prison.
CBC: Wife of Iranian-Canadian Professor Who Died in Tehran Prison Detained En Route to Canada
"My mother has already gone through so much in the past couple of weeks since my father's death. The emotional distress we've been going through is just insane," Ramin Seyed-Emami told the CBC’s Michelle Ghoussoub.
Press Releases
Iran: End Persecution of Families Seeking Truth and Justice For Detainees Who Died in Detention
March 18—The Iranian authorities should end their cruel campaign of harassment and intimidation against the families of detainees who have died in detention under suspicious circumstances, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and Justice for Iran said in a joint statement.
Iran Should Stop Persecuting BBC Journalists and Threatening Their Families
March 12—The UN should take immediate action on an appeal by the British Broadcasting Service (BBC) urging the Human Rights Council to protect journalists from an escalating campaign of intimidation and harassment by Iranian security forces.
46 NGOs Urge UN to Renew Mandate of Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights Situation in Iran
March 12—Ahead of the 37th session of the UN Human Rights Council, 46 Iranian and international NGOs sent a letter to all diplomatic missions based in Geneva urging them to vote for the renewal of the mandate of the special rapporteur on the human rights situation in Iran.
Ongoing Harassment: Wife of Iranian-Canadian Who Died in Iran’s Evin Prison “Banned” From Leaving Country
March 8—Iran should immediately allow the wife of Iranian-Canadian academic and environmentalist Kavous Seyed-Emami to leave Iran as she wishes and stop intimidating and harassing the Seyed-Emami family.
Life of Iranian-American in Evin Prison is in Danger, Says Family
March 1—The son of Iranian-American Karan Vafadari, who is imprisoned in Tehran’s Evin Prison, said his stepmother, Afarin Neyssari, fears for her husband’s life after officials claimed without any evidence that two previous detainee deaths in January 2018 were suicides.
45 European MPs Call on EU Foreign Policy Chief to Support Release Hijab Protesters
February 28— Forty-five MEPs have sent an open letter to EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini urging her to call on Iran to immediately release the women who have been arrested for participating in the recent anti-compulsory-hijab protests in Iran.
Articles
Political Prisoners Denied Medical Treatment: “Sometimes I Think They Want to Kill My Girl”
Imprisoned civil rights activists Atena Daemi and Golrokh Iraee Ebrahimi are being denied medical care in an Iranian prison known for its inhumane living conditions, the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) has learned. Daemi's mother told CHRI the treatment is deliberate.
Sentenced to Prison For His Political Views, Sadegh Zibakalam Decries Censorship in Iran
Sentenced to 18 months in prison and banned from “making speeches, writing articles, giving interviews or having a presence on social media” for two years, Iranian political analyst Sadegh Zibakalam plans to appeal the politically motivated conviction.
Death of Man Accused of Filming Protests in Iran Marks Fifth Detainee Death in Two Months
Officials claimed Taleb Basati, 26, died of a stroke but his death certificate only says “head injury and trauma” according to a friend. As in all the other cases, the Iranian authorities have accused Basati of wrongdoing without providing substantiating evidence.
Detained Human Rights Lawyer Forced to Choose Counsel From Judiciary’s Approved “List”
Mohammad Najafi, a human rights lawyer who is facing years in prison in Iran for arguing that his client was killed while in police custody, has been denied access to counsel of his choice based on a controversial legal clause.
Iranian Lawyers: Judiciary’s Mandatory List of Approved Counsel Sets “Dangerous Precedent”
Prominent human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh told the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) that lists of approved lawyers and the Note to Article 48 “violate suspects’ rights because they strip them of their right to choose their own lawyer.”
Revolutionary Guards Violently Arrest Teachers’ Rights Activist in Front of High School Students
Teacher and trade union activist Mohammad Habibi was beaten and arrested by agents of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in front of his students at Andisheh Technical High School in the city of Shahriar on March 3, 2018.
Family of Man Who Died in Detention to Sue Judicial Authorities For Burying Him Without Permission
“The family is very sad and I’m waiting for them to recover a little in order to discuss what we need to do next,” their attorney told CHRI. “I really don’t know why the authorities act this way with citizens and put pressure on the families.”
Prominent Iranian Human Rights Lawyer to Appeal Hijab Protester’s Prison Sentence
“What Narges did was appear in public without the hijab, that much is true,” Nasrin Sotoudeh told the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI). “But in court, she was tried for ‘encouraging corruption,’ as if she ran a house of prostitution.”
Shirin Ebadi: Iranian Law “Deliberately Silent” on the Hijab to Leave Room for Harsh Sentencing
Iranian law is deliberating vague about the hijab to leave room for harsh sentencing against those who refuse to cover themselves according to Islamic tradition, Iranian Nobel Peace Laureate and human rights lawyer Shirin Ebadi told CHRI.
Iran Considers Lifting Its Nine-Year Ban on Twitter
“The issue regarding un-filtering Twitter is being followed up by the minister of telecommunications who has presented it to the SCC with a positive view,” said Saeed Mahdiyoun, the deputy director in charge of drafting regulations for Iran’s Supreme Cyberspace Council. He also called Twitter a good "tool" for reaching foreign audiences.
Conservative Iranian Officials Outraged That Little Girls Were Allowed to Dance at Women’s Day Event
Iran’s ultra-conservative prosecutor general has demanded that the organizers of a Women’s Day event in the capital city be punished for allowing little girls to dance on a stage. His demand was echoed by religious hardliners around the country.
Seyed-Emami Family: Iran is “Trying to Prevent Us From Rebuilding Our Lives”
“To separate my mother from her two sons at such a time is cruel and inhumane. Today is International Women’s Day, where we should be honoring women and mothers,” wrote Ramin and Mehran Seyed-Emami in a statement obtained by CHRI.
 Baha’i Leader Spent 10 Years in Prison, Authorities Produced No Evidence of Wrongdoing Throughout
“They want to take away our Baha’i faith and identity in any way they can. Any state built on a single ideology tries to bring people under its control and diminish minorities to second and third class citizens. This problem exists. It has hit us like a plague.”
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