Keyvan Samimi: I Will Go to Prison, I Will Return and Continue
Keyvan Samimi, a political activist and member of the board of directors of the Association for the Defense of Freedom of the Press, who has been summoned to serve a three-year prison sentence, said in an interview with the Human Rights Campaign in Iran: “I will go to prison, I will return and continue. I live by my principles and beliefs, and I will follow this path in the future as well.”
Mr. Samimi told the campaign that “Since I am not seeking a political position for myself, and I am more of an idealist than a politician, I act very transparently and I absolutely do not believe in concealment. An example is my Telegram channel where I write about social movements. I know they are sensitive about it and they say your work is sedition, unrest, and incitement to unrest.”
Keyvan Samimi is the editor-in-chief of Iran Tomorrow publication, the responsible editor of the confiscated monthly journal Nameh, and a member of the board of directors of the Association for the Defense of Freedom of the Press. He is 72 years old and has been imprisoned for years before and after the 1979 revolution. Mr. Samimi was arrested on June 13, 2009, and was sentenced by Branch 26 of the Revolutionary Court to six years in prison and lifetime deprivation of political, social, and cultural activities, which the appeals court upheld and changed his deprivation to 15 years. He was released from prison in 2015 after completing his sentence, but was arrested in May 2019 at a gathering on the occasion of International Workers’ Day in Tehran and was sentenced to three years in prison by Branch 26 of the Revolutionary Court. On Thursday, August 21, Mr. Samimi posted an image of his summons on his Telegram channel, stating that he had to go to prison on Monday.
Mr. Samimi said in an interview with the campaign about his arrest and sentence: “The main charge is assembly and conspiracy against national security, and according to them, the unlawful gathering on Workers’ Day which carries two to five years imprisonment, and I have been given three years. The charges of propaganda against the system and insulting the leadership were also during interrogations, where the interrogator would say in such a speech you said such things, and on such a trip to such a city you said such things. That is, they had gathered all my activities after my release from prison in 2015, but during the court proceedings I was acquitted of these two charges.”
He explained: “A kind of fear and self-censorship emerged after 2009 and severe crackdowns and prolonged imprisonments in society and among politicians and activists. When I returned from prison in 2015, I saw this fear in most of my friends and activists. A small number speak their minds, which the government also does not want, and feels the need to silence people or by hanging a sword of Damocles over their heads or imprisoning them, so that it does not become widespread. I write on my Telegram channel about promoting the social movement that I intend, and they are sensitive about this, even though my belief is that the demand-oriented movement is nonviolent, they accuse me of inciting sedition and unrest.”
Mr. Samimi referred to his 50-year history of activism in the political and civil arena of Iran and told the campaign: “I have extensive connections with civil movements, teachers’ activists, labor activists, students, and youth, which is the result of more than 50 years of political work. But since I am not seeking a political position for myself, and I am more of an idealist than a politician, I act very transparently and I absolutely do not believe in concealment. An example is my Telegram channel where I write about social movements. I know they are sensitive about it and say your work is sedition, unrest, and incitement to unrest. But I will continue anyway. I will go to prison, I will return and continue. I live by my principles and beliefs, and I will follow this path in the future. I have reached unity through my beliefs; it is in my being and I do not joke with myself. I do not see political work as a hobby or a secondary job. For about twenty years, my profession and work has been political activism and journalism professionally and full-time, and prison will not stop me.”
Keyvan Samimi referred to his interrogations in Ward 209 of Evin detention center and told the campaign: “In the interrogations of 2009 in Ward 209, they would say you were among the revolutionaries and you made a revolution, and they would put a watermelon under my arm and say if we send you, the court will order six years in prison and we do not want that. In the end, it became those same six years. They made suggestions like an interview, which I did not accept. They said go abroad, we will arrange it for you and at first we will pay for you. I said I will not go abroad and I am here and I will also fight. You say I am a revolutionary, that is your opinion, but I will continue my peaceful struggle.”
Keyvan Samimi wrote on his Telegram channel in response to the summons to serve his prison sentence: “The security forces who want to keep the reins of my legal case in their hands believe that by imprisoning an old nationalist who openly defends demand-oriented social movements, they can create fear and deal a blow to the peaceful protests of the deprived.”
Mr. Samimi wrote: “Pioneering labor organizations have found the right path, and despite the costs, they will strengthen the nonviolent movement, which is the only way to fulfill workers’ rights and social justice. I, as one of the followers of the social movement, may be able to contribute more to strengthening workers’ rights and justice from within prison than I can now.”
Source: Human Rights Campaign
