Dehghan told the Campaign that she was able to retrieve only three of the many items taken from her home during Soltani’s arrest, but the other items remain in the custody of Intelligence Ministry forces.

“We are concerned, as Mr. Soltani has not called home in five days. He suffers from digestive track illness and this worries us. In his last contact, my husband said that he is inside Ward 209 of Evin Prison along with 10 or 12 other prisoners. He contacted us three times the first week and now we are shocked that he has not contacted us even once in five days. His lawyer went to prison and asked around, but the authorities told him that he has no problems and is well. But we are worried,” said Dehghan. “The prison authorities told him that his objection to his detention has been forwarded to the court and now we have to wait for the court’s opinion, to see whether this objection is overruled or he will be released on bail,” she added.

Abdolfattah Soltani has represented many political and human rights activists and their families such as Akbar Ganji, Zahra Kazemi, Zahra Baniyaghoub, Haleh Esfandiari, several Nationalist-Religious figures and Iranian union activists. He has been arrested several times. He was arrested in 2005 and was acquitted of all charges seven months later. He was arrested again in 2009 after the presidential election, and served two months in prison.

Massoumeh Dehghan, Abdolfattah Soltani’s wife, is a retired teacher who has never engaged in any political activities. She was arrested on 5 July after appearing before Evin Prison Court following a summons she had received three days earlier. She spent five days in a solitary cell and was later released on bail of $30,000. Her charge was accepting the “illegal” Nuremberg International Human Rights Prize. In 2009, when Soltani was awarded the Nuremberg International Human Rights Prize, Dehghan received the award on Soltani’s behalf because he was banned from foreign travel. Dehghan received a summons stating her charge following her arrest  to appear before Branch 15 of Tehran Revolutionary Court on 8 November.

“Four men went to my husband’s legal offices. The offices were closed at the time, so they broke the lock and entered. After inspecting the premises, they went to the Revolutionary Court and arrested my husband, who was at the courts to review the case file of one of his clients. They then came to our home with my husband and inspected our entire house. They took CDs, papers, and documents. They took an unopened Shahram Nazeri music CD, which clearly indicated what was inside. They even took some video CDs of family gatherings and our children’s celebrations,” said Dehghan.

“I told the forces: ‘At least show me what you are taking with you.’ But they said: ‘You are not allowed to see.’ I asked them: ‘What are Mr. Soltani’s charges?’ They said: ‘Mr. Soltani himself knows his charges and he knows that we are allowed to search [the home].’ They took several bags full of CDs, documents, and papers belonging to myself, my children, and my husband, and said I should go to Evin Prison Court to get them back.”

“They came at 1:30 p.m. and they left the home at 4:00 p.m. along with Mr. Soltani and the things they were taking. Then they went back to my husband’s legal offices. This time the office was open and the secretary opened the door for them. They took the computers and the case files with them,” Dehghan added. “I don’t know what his charges are or where they took him.”

Abdolfattah Soltani has represented several political and human rights activists, including Akbar Ghanji, Zahra Kazemi, Zahra Baniyaghoub, and Haleh Esfandiari. He was earlier arrested in 2009 and released after two months.

Campaign:  You spoke with Mr. Ganji after his release.  What did he share with you about his detention period?

Kouhyar Goudrarzi, Behnam, and another one of their friends were arrested illegally at Behnam’s house on 31 July. Behnam had gone to buy bread and just as he entered the home, plainclothes forces who were hiding ambushed him and entered the house behind him by force. During the illegal and forceful entry into the home, they treated Behnam very forcefully. They were arrested by those plainclothes forces and were transferred to solitary cells inside Ward 240 of Evin Prison. Behnam himself told me these details after his release.

Behnam did not have any political or student activities in his past, but he was interrogated every morning and afternoon inside Ward 240 of Evin Prison. And he was under increasing pressure from security forces and interrogators [who pushed him] for confessions against himself and Kouhyar Goudarzi. The interrogators questioned him about his personal affairs and his private life and tried to put him under pressure to confess against Kouhyar, but they did not succeed.

Campaign:  How did his time in prison affect him?

Given that he was not politically active, he was not mentally prepared for arrest and solitary confinement, stressful interrogations with blindfolds and under psychological pressure, and white torture. These events had a huge impact on him and caused severe depression and isolation for him during the days after he was released from prison. After his release from Wards 240 and 209, he was so frightened, he even feared his own shadow and never went anywhere alone.

Campaign:  Was he abused during his detention?  What was the reason for his arrest?  Or what did he think it was?

Behnam did not tell me anything about his physical torture or being beaten during his interrogations. However, the white torture and psychological pressure and detention in a small solitary cell can be a lot more psychologically destructive than physical torture. Without a doubt, government authorities are responsible for his death, because by illegally detaining him they caused his severe depression. The reason for Behnam’s arrest was merely his friendship with Kouhyar Goudarzi. He was informed of his charge as “acting against national security through contact with Kouhyar Goudarzi” at the Second Branch of Evin Prison Court.

Campaign:  Did you know him before his arrest?  Was he depressed?  Does his family know what pills he took and at what time and how? Were they able to get him to a hospital? Or did they see him once he had already passed away?

I have known Behnam for years. He was a jovial fellow with a great sense of humor. He did not have any kind of depression or mental disorder prior to his arrest and it is not clear what they did to him in solitary cells and interrogation rooms to cause him such depression. His depression after his release was so bad that when he went to see a psychiatrist with his family the psychiatrist authorized him to go under treatment inside a clinic. I don’t know what kind of pills he used. His family got home at around 3:00 a.m. on Friday morning and found him dead and were unable to do anything for him. The last contact the family had with him was at 11:30 p.m. on Thursday night. He attempted suicide at about 12:00 midnight. After police forces appeared at the scene, they disrespected the family and the corpse, and did not even help to transfer the body downstairs from the fourth floor. His father and brother had to carry the body down four flights of stairs in their residential complex.

Campaign:  What did he say about Kouhyar?  Did they see each other there?

After being transferred to Ward 240, Behnam and Kouhyar were kept in solitary cells and did not have any information about each other. Behnam told me that he only heard the sound of Kouhyar’s interrogations several times, when he was discussing the law with his interrogators, calling their actions against the [Islamic Republic's] Constitution. And once, also, while the two were transferred to the Evin Prison Court, he saw Kouhyar in the Evin Prison compound.

Campaign:  What conditions is the family in right now?

The family is extremely saddened by this event. Behnam was the youngest child in the family. He was only 22. This tragedy is a big shock to them. His parents had come to Tehran from Mashad to try to release him from prison. Behnam was released, but now his parents have to take his body instead of him to Mashad.

According to JARAS website, Behnam Ganji’s body has been transferred to his home city of Mahsad, and his funeral was held there on Sunday.

“My son’s conditions are critical. He fasted for 31 days [for Ramadan] and instead of breaking his fast at night, he started a hunger strike two nights ago. I learned that he has been moved to solitary since yesterday afternoon, though he was in a coma,” said Hassan Zahabian. “Ashkan is on a hunger strike to object to this condition and the state of limbo pertaining to his case.  He has served half of his sentence and he is now legally eligible for a conditional pardon.”

“Please carry my voice to the Head of the Judiciary–the life of a young man in Mazandaran Province is in danger. My question of the Head of the Judiciary is why couldn’t he release one political prisoner in the vast Mazandaran Province [among the recently released prisoners]? As a political prisoner, should my son be placed with hardened criminals, thieves, and murderers? We maintained silence despite all of these concerns, but I can see that our silence will lead to my child’s death. What is my son’s crime that makes him guilty again? For what crime? If it was for the [2009 presidential] election, he has already served his sentence. Why was he sentenced to prison again?”continued Hassan Zahabian.

“I went to the prison several times and told them that my son was sick. They said we have doctors here. My son threw up blood yesterday. The last time I saw him was on Sunday. He has lost so much weight. The authorities are only throwing me from one side to another like a football. I tell the Prosecutor’s Office, they tell me to go to the Intelligence Office. I go there, they say to go to the case judge. The judge says that medical furlough is not in my hands. We don’t know whom to tell about this.’

ِRegarding his son being banned from pursuing his studies, Hassan Zahabian stated, “What is my son’s crime?  He was banned from continuing his education, banned from social activities. He is routinely sent to prison. Why don’t you cancel his birth certificate and tell him to go die? This is not life for a young man. They say we must act honestly and amicably, but what part of this behavior is related to honesty and amicability?”

Asked whether his son is abused inside prison or not, he said: “He was mistreated during the first days, but because I pursued the matter and filed a grievance and spoke with the Prosecutor, his situation has improved. Even so, each time I ask him about his conditions, he says he can’t talk about it. He said ‘there are no problems, and you mustn’t say anything, either.’ I don’t really know what happens inside the ward. Judging from his paleness and looks, it is clear that he is under pressure. He just said ‘Dad, I am willing to return to the solitary ward of Sari Intelligence Office again, but not to be here one more day.’  He says ‘I mind my own business and do not speak with anyone,’ because he has no one to talk to in prison. He says ‘I shouldn’t be in this prison; I have to be next to other political prisoners.’”

Background

Ashkan Zahabian was arrested on 16 June 2009 and sentenced to six months on prison on charges of “disrupting order,” “inciting people to demonstrate,” and “organizing Mazandaran University protests.” He was arrested for the second time on 5 November 2009 on charges of “acting against national security through forming the Islamic Associations organization in Northern Iran.” According to a source, if Zahabian was summoned to commence his prison term, he shouldn’t have been transferred to the Intelligence Office, but rather should have been taken to prison. Zahabian was a student campaigner at the campaign headquarters of Mehdi Karroubi in the city of Babol. During post-election arrests, he was severely beaten by security forces and in one instance was unconscious for three days. He was imprisoned for a total of 8 weeks.

In 2008, Zahabian was suspended for one academic term because of his student activism. Only four days after the disputed election of 2009, he was arrested by the Ministry of Intelligence. Plainclothes forces known as Ansar-e Hezbollah severely beat him during his arrest. During Student’s Day protests on 4 November 2009, he was arrested for the second time. A Revolutionary Court in Babol sentenced him to six months in prison in his absence. In February 2009, while still suspended, he was banned from continuing his education based on an Intelligence Ministry decision, and was expelled from university just one term shy of graduating.

Maryam Amini, Naeem Najafi, Jamal Khani and Sina Bijanpour were freed on a bail of $50,000 (50 million toman), and were all charged with “propaganda against the regime.” Each of them spent a month in solitary confinement in the Kermanshah Intelligence Office Detention Center, and they were recently transferred to Kermanshah’s Dizelabad and Women’s Prisons.

The detentions of Sajjad Jahanfar, Ezzedin Heydari, Farhad Vakilinia and Maziar Mohammadi have been extended for a month, and they remain at Kermanshah Intelligence Office Detention Center. However, their families have expressed hope that they will be freed by Eid al-Fitr, the holiday marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan.

Jahanfar, a young Kurdish writer and researcher, has authored several literary works including the seven-volume “Stories of the Medea Land” and other works in Kurdish language. The other detainees are members of the Banan Literary Society and contributors to the cultural website Tagh-e-Vossan.

Mohammad Seifzadeh, who was detained by the Orumiyeh Intelligence Office for “illegal exit” in mid-April 2011, wrote a letter to former President Khatami, the text of which was published on several opposition websites yesterday. In his letter, Seifzadeh spoke of widespread violations of legal rights within Iran’s Judiciary system and warns that illegal authorities will soon fill the Iranian prisons, not only preventing the former president’s promises from realization, but imposing worse conditions on the people, the political elite, the political parties, and journalists of the country.

He also stated that every government that has a good judicial system and free newspapers and political parties does not experience revolutions and deterioration, pointing out that: “If we had had a good Judiciary in the old [Shah's] regime, the revolution would not have occurred, as revolutions happen when the disenfranchised people cannot find an organization that would redeem their rights. As a judge and attorney with a long experience, I have to act fairly and say that the Judiciary [under the Shah] was not that bad. But now the former Head of the Judiciary says that the justice system was given to him in ruins, and he passed on an even more ruined system to the current Head of the Judiciary.

Golzar also spoke to the Campaign about Seifzadeh’s physical and mental state. “Until Monday of last week, every time we saw him his mental state was very good, thank God. But he needed special examinations for his liver and I asked the Prosecutor to allow him to be examined at a specialist hospital. Last week he authorized this and [Seifzadeh] was examined. This Saturday he is also going to get an MRI for his head and back. He suffers from a disk problem and he has also been experiencing problems with his head for a while.”

After two months of interrogations at Orumiyeh Intelligence Office Detention Center, Seifzadeh was transferred to Evin Prison where he spent one month in solitary confinement. He is currently in General Ward 350 of Evin Prison. Seifzadeh is a founding member of the Defenders of Human Rights Center. On 30 October 2010, he was sentenced to 9 years in prison and a 10 year ban on his legal practice on the charge of “actions against national security” by participating in establishing the Defenders of Human Rights Center. His case is still awaiting appeal.

“Other than the tumor, he suffers from severe arthritis in his neck and legs. He likes to read, so he has asked his family for a desk and a chair, as he is no longer able to sit on the floor to read. His family prepared the desk and table, but prison authorities have not yet delivered the furniture to Mr. Samimi,” said the source.

Kayvan Samimi, Editor-in-Chief of the banned newspaper Nameh, member of the Society in Defense of Press Freedom, and member of the Committee to Pursue Arbitrary Arrests and The Right To Education Committee, was arrested at his home on 13 June 2009, just one day after the disputed presidential election. He was sentenced to six years in prison at Branch 26 of Tehran Revolutionary Court. He was transferred to Rajaee Shahr Prison in December 2009 along with several other political prisoners. Samimi has gone on multiple hunger strikes in prison.

“Last week, Mr. Ejei said that the actresses will be released. I read the names of Pegah Ahangarani and my wife, Marzieh Vafamehr, as the ones to be released. Two days after Mr. Ejei’s statements, Ms. Ahangarani and [Director Mahnaz] Mohammadi were released, but my wife was not. The Judge in my wife’s case sent her case to court. I believe sending the case to court was the only legal means he could have used to prevent carrying out Mr. Ejei’s order. Now I await two things: one, I wait for the Prosecutor General’s opinion about the situation of my wife’s case, and the other, my wife’s trial date.  If they are going to put my wife on trial, they should determine its time as soon as possible. I am worried that it might take too long to schedule the trial and for her to remain inside the prison like this.”

“To the extent within my power, I go to people [to ask for help]. If this were for me, I would never go to seek anybody’s help, just as I have never done in my life, but this time, this is for another individual who could benefit from my help, my wife. With the backlog I see in courts, however, I don’t believe her trial will be held anytime soon. This means that she will have to remain in prison for a long time,” said Taghvai.

“It is a bitter tale why our artists should end up in prison for their profession; this is so painful. An actor cannot say I would do this in a film, or I wouldn’t do that in a film. [If they did,] nobody would give them work anymore. This film has a producer and a director. If there is a problem, they should be accountable. Why should my wife be punished for them? These arrests have a bad reflection both inside and outside the country. Right now, members of the Cinema House are worried that these events might keep happening. Over the past few days, Rakhshan Banietemad, Parviz Parastouee, and Amin Tarokh went and spoke with the Judge in Marzieh’s case, but it was useless,” added Taghvai.

“If the UN is going to send a Special Rapporteur to Iran, I would like to ask to include the names of all prisons and prisoners on his list, so that he may visit them, because they must be defended. When I went to prison to visit my wife, I saw really painful things.”

Asked whether he knew why despite the Prosecutor General’s statements his wife remains in prison, Taghvai said: “I believe the Judge in this case is acting arbitrarily, because he didn’t even agree to setting a bail. Now they claim that the reason Marzieh is not released is because of my interviews with foreign radio and television stations. But I started my interviews 16 days after his decision. Many people from the press knew that my wife had been arrested, but they respected my wish for not publicizing it and didn’t report it. I talked only when Judge Haji Mohammadi extended my wife’s temporary detention orders. I mean, I realized that my silence only accelerated his actions.”

“One morning, I woke up to learn that my wife’s detention news had been published in a lot of national and foreign media. There were problems with the way the news was published, and there were statements there that were not true. I had to talk to clarify matters. One of the statements was that the film did not have production and screening licenses and that it had been produced underground. All this was wrong. How can a film be made underground when most of its filming took place on Tehran streets?! How can they film the movie on Tehran streets for 15 days without a license?! What did they show the police when they were stopped?! Regarding the screening license, this was not a cinematic film and was not qualified to be shown in movie theaters, so of course it didn’t have a screening license! This is a 60-minute student/experimental film. I don’t know how the film’s CD was smuggled into Iran.”

Regarding the conditions of Gharchak Prison, where his wife is being held, Taghvai said: “It is a prison after all. It is not a five-star hotel. My wife says it would have been better if she was sent to Evin. But I don’t think so. Of course, I hope that Evin would be better than the Gharchak Prison as I have seen it.”

The three detained individuals are Jamal Khani, poet, Farhad Vakilinia, teacher, and Naeem Najafi, a student, all of whom have been active in the field of Kurdish literature and culture. Khani, Vakilinia, and Najafi are members of the Baanan Society in Gilnanegharb and managed a website named “Taagh-e Vosaan.”

The reasons for the arrests and detention and the three individuals’ charges are unknown. It is reported that during the same week, security forces went to the homes of three other Kurdish activists in Gilanegharb, but were unable to arrest the individuals.

According to this source, another Kurdish citizen, Jahangir (Soran) Kasnazani, who was on active duty for his compulsory military service, was arrested by security forces in early July.  He has not contacted his family since his arrest and there is no information about his detention location.

Both Alavi Jani and Kasnazani are graduates of Zanjan University. Judicial authorities have refrained from providing any information about these arrests and the reasons for their continued detention.