Six Political Prisoners Launch Hunger Strike Protesting Unfair Trials and Prison Conditions
Six political prisoners in Ward 4 of Evin Prison announced a hunger strike in an open letter “addressed to the people of Iran” in protest of “unfair trial procedures and prison conditions.”
In a statement signed by Hossein Sarlak, Morteza Nazari Sedahi, Mohsen Aminpur, Ali Bazaazadeh, Behrouz Zare, and Reza Mohammad Hosseini, a copy of which was provided to the Human Rights Campaign in Iran, the prisoners stated: “In this regard and as a sign of protest, we, a group of political prisoners at Evin Prison located in Ward 4, in protest of these wrongful procedures and unsuitable prison conditions in all matters, including food rations, have begun a hunger strike as of July 15th [2016], and we will continue this protest until our demands are met. We hope that our weak voice reaches the ears of all officials and that they will address our rightful demands.”
An informed source told the campaign that Evin Prison officials summoned these six prisoners to the ward office and asked them to end their hunger strike.
The demands of these prisoners are: “Separation of political prisoners from other prisoners, whether in men’s or women’s wards, acceptance of conditional release for political prisoners, removal of the security label and official recognition of political prisoners, judges of the Revolutionary Court not arbitrarily treating lawyers of political prisoners, right to legal counsel from the moment of arrest through the final stage of political defendants’ cases, annulment of all death sentences and lengthy prison sentences of political prisoners, swift implementation of bail procedures for political prisoners with reasonable bail pending trial, and proper and accurate attention to the food and dietary conditions of political prisoners.”
The full text of the political prisoners’ statement is as follows:
Dear Compatriots
Over many years, we have witnessed that the cases of political activists have been handled by intelligence and security officials, with no definition of political charges and political prisoners in the judicial process, and thousands of people are imprisoned in prisons across the country for political activities with baseless accusations. People who, given dire economic conditions and poor living standards, in recent years have only sought to criticize government performance, and now protesting wrong policies, without study and by eliminating prominent intellectuals, thinkers and experts, loyal to the nation, have been labeled as criminals and are currently serving long-term sentences.
Furthermore, the failure to implement the Prison Organization’s regulations regarding the separation of political prisoners from other prisoners and the poor conditions in the Islamic Republic’s prisons occasionally result in tragedies and incidents, the most recent of which was the killing of political prisoner, the late Ali Reza Shirmohammadali, who was brutally killed in Tehran’s main prison or Fashafuyeh. Preventing defendants’ chosen lawyers from entering Revolutionary Court proceedings, prolonged case processing times lasting over two years, judges of Revolutionary Courts arbitrarily treating the chosen lawyers of political defendants, issuance of death sentences and heavy sentences to political convicts in Revolutionary Courts, which constitute wrongful practices of the judicial system.
In this regard and as a sign of protest, we, a group of political prisoners at Evin Prison located in Ward 4, in protest of these wrongful procedures and unsuitable prison conditions in all matters, including food rations, have begun a hunger strike as of July 15th [2016], and we will continue this protest until our demands are met. We hope that our weak voice reaches the ears of all officials and that they will address our rightful demands.
We also request from the honorable people of Iran to make our voice of protest heard to all people of the world, and we are and will remain grateful to the honorable people of our beloved nation.
Demands of the Protesters:
– Separation of political prisoners from other prisoners, whether in men’s or women’s wards
– Acceptance of conditional release for political prisoners
– Removal of the security label and official recognition of political prisoners
– Judges of the Revolutionary Court not arbitrarily treating lawyers of political prisoners
– Right to legal counsel from the moment of arrest through the final stage of political defendants’ cases
– Annulment of all death sentences and lengthy prison sentences of political prisoners
– Swift implementation of bail procedures for political prisoners with reasonable bail pending trial
– Proper and accurate attention to the food and dietary conditions of political prisoners
Names of Hunger Strike and Protest Participants:
1 – Hossein Sarlak – Sentence: 12 years – Detention period: 30 months
2 – Morteza Nazari Sedahi (Ashok) – Sentence: 6 years – Detention period: 24 months
3 – Mohsen Aminpur (Kian Irani) – Sentence: 10 years – Detention period: 16 months
4 – Ali Bazaazadeh – Sentence: 2 years – Detention period: 18 months
5 – Behrouz Zare – Sentence: 2 years – Detention period: 12 months
6 – Reza Mohammad Hosseini – Sentence: (undetermined) – Detention period: 2 months
Source: Human Rights Campaign
