Seven Teacher Union Activists Sentenced to Combined 41 Years in Prison and Over 200 Lashes

Seven union activists from Khorasan Shomali educators have been sentenced to more than 41 years in prison and over 200 lashes in two separate cases by the Revolutionary Court and the Criminal Court of Bojnord District.

According to the Iran Human Rights website, the seven teacher union activists named Mohammad Reza Ramezanzadeh, Hossein Ramezanpour, Hamid Reza Rajaei, Ali Forutan, Mostafa Rabati, Saeid Haghprast, and Hassan Johari were sentenced on Wednesday, January 29, by Branch 102 of Criminal Court 2 in Bojnord District and also by the Revolutionary Court of Bojnord District to a combined total of 41 years and 8 months in prison, 222 lashes, and a fine of 3 million tomans.

The charges against them included “acting against national security through forming an illegal group with the aim of undermining the country’s security,” “propaganda activity against the system,” “disturbing public opinion through cyberspace,” “insulting officials,” and “spreading lies.”

According to the report and based on the ruling issued by the Revolutionary Court regarding charges of acting against national security through forming an illegal group with the aim of undermining the country’s security and propaganda activity against the system, Mohammad Reza Ramezanzadeh, head of the board of directors of the Khorasan Shomali Teachers’ Union, was sentenced to 13 years in prison, 74 lashes, and deprivation from membership in professional, political, and group activities; Hossein Ramezanpour, a member of the board of directors of the Khorasan Shomali Teachers’ Union, was sentenced to 8 years in prison, 74 lashes, and deprivation from political activities; Hamid Reza Rajaei was sentenced to 4 years in prison and deprivation from membership in parties and groups; and Ali Forutan, Mostafa Rabati, Saeid Haghprast, and Hassan Johari, other teachers and union activists convicted in this case, were each sentenced to 3 years and 8 months in prison.

On the other hand, Saeid Haghprast, Ali Forutan, Hamid Reza Rajaei, Mostafa Rabati, and Hassan Johari were acquitted by Branch 102 of Criminal Court 2 in Bojnord District regarding charges of disturbing public opinion through cyberspace, insulting officials, and spreading lies.

However, Mohammad Reza Ramezanzadeh was sentenced to 2 years in prison, 74 lashes, and payment of a 3 million toman fine regarding charges of “betrayal of trust” and “spreading lies with the intent to disturb public opinion,” and Hossein Ramezanpour was sentenced to 74 lashes regarding charges of “spreading lies with the intent to disturb public opinion” and “insulting officials.”

According to the report, the hearing for the case of these union activists was held on Tuesday, October 2, in Branch 102 of Criminal Court 2 in Bojnord District, while these individuals and their defense lawyer had no information about the contents of the case file and the prosecution’s petition.

According to the Iran Human Rights website, these teacher union activists were arrested by security agencies during nationwide educators’ gatherings in September and October 2018 and were released on bail after some time until the end of their trial.

This is not the first time that one of the teacher union activists in Iran has been arrested or sentenced to long-term sentences; Mohammad Habbibii, Mahmoud Bahrami Langarudi, Hojjat Imami, and Ismail Abdi are among teacher union activists whom Voice of America has previously addressed in its reports regarding the situation of imprisoned teachers.

Mohammad Habbibii was arrested along with 14 other participants at a gathering held on April 9, 2018, in front of the Budget and Planning Organization on the occasion of Teachers’ Week, and last year the sentence of 10 years and 6 months in prison and lashing for this teacher union activist and member of the board of directors of the Teachers’ Association of Tehran Province was upheld in the Court of Appeals.

The treatment of protesting teachers and their arrest by security forces has repeatedly been met with objections from human rights and professional organizations.

The U.S. Department of State has repeatedly condemned violent confrontations in various cases and the widespread suppression of protesters as well as the repeated and continuous violation of the rights of Iranian citizens, including labor rights activists and union activists, by the ruling regime in that country.

Source: Voice of America