Rough Handling of Officers During Arrest of Kurdish Environmental Activists
The process of arresting civil and environmental activists in various cities in Kurdistan continues. According to reports, the number of arrested activists has reached 9 so far. Reports indicate violent confrontations during the arrest of these individuals.
Following the arrest of environmental activists in the cities of Kamyaran and Sanandaj, Amanaj Ghorbani, an employee of the environmental office and a well-known environmental activist in Kamyaran, was also arrested at his workplace on Sunday, December 16 (January 6) at his place of work.
According to the report by the “Kurdistan Human Rights Network” website, with the arrest of Amanaj Ghorbani as well as Bakhtiar Kamanger, another environmental activist, the number of those arrested last week in Kamyaran has increased and reached 9 people.
Farhad Mohammadi, Fazel Qeitasi, Reza Asadi, and Hadi Kamanger are among the secretaries and members of the Kurdistan branch of the National Unity Party who were arrested on December 11 and 12, 1397 (January 1-2, 2019).
Rashed Montazeri, Issa Feizi, and Hossein Kamanger are also members of the National Unity Party in Kurdistan and among those arrested.
Most of those arrested have been active in the environmental field. Hossein Kamanger previously had two arrests due to his political activities.
Other pressures on environmental activists include the summons and short-term interrogation of six other media and environmental activists and their questioning in Mahabad, as well as the closure of an environmental organization office in Boukan.
Violence by Security Officers
Kaveh Kermanshahi, spokesperson for the Kurdistan Human Rights Network and resident of Berlin, on Monday, December 17 (January 7), explained to the Persian section of Deutsche Welle about the cause and manner of arrest of environmental activists in Kurdistan, stating that pressure on environmental activists in this province began a week earlier.
He said: “The latest instance of these arrests was related to the arrest of Bakhtiar Kamanger on Sunday, December 16. Two days before that, Mr. Amanaj Ghorbani, who is a senior environmental expert and a very well-known environmental activist in Kurdistan, was arrested at his workplace, which is the Kamyaran environmental office. This was the first working day for Mr. Ghorbani after his wedding ceremony.”
Kaveh Kermanshahi spoke about the use of violent methods during the arrest of environmental activists and placing bags over the heads of those arrested: “A number of these people were arrested at their workplaces in front of their colleagues with beating, physical and verbal violence. Fabric bags were even used to arrest these individuals. This means that at the workplace, by placing bags over the faces of these activists, they were transferred to security force vehicles.”
It is reported that the detainees have not been able to contact their families so far. These individuals were transferred from Kamyaran to Sanandaj prison after their arrest.
According to the spokesperson for the Kurdistan Human Rights Network, given the nature of the arrest of these individuals, it is likely that security charges will be brought against them and they will be subjected to pressure in detention.
A number of recent detainees in various cities in Kurdistan are among environmental activists and some members of the Kurdistan branch of the National Unity Party. Among these people is Farhad Mohammadi, a lawyer and secretary of this party.
The National Unity Party began its work in Sanandaj in April 2016 with official permission from the Ministry of Interior. Offices of this party have also been opened in various cities in Kurdistan Province, including Kamyaran and Marivan.
In part of the charter of the National Unity Party of Iran, it states: “During this transition period from traditional to modern society, we, as children of this land, have committed ourselves to being custodians of this precious heritage by establishing a civil institution called the National Unity Party of Iran—in order to achieve a vibrant, dynamic, and blessed society that responds to the material and spiritual demands of our fellow citizens.”
So far, training classes related to environmental issues have been held by the Environmental Committee of the Kurdistan branch of the National Unity Party in various cities in Kurdistan.
Securitization of Environmental Issues
The arrest and persecution of environmental activists has also occurred in various cities in Kurdistan before. In some cases, due to media coverage of environmental events in this region, activists have been accused of “acting against national security.”
Kaveh Kermanshahi said about this: “The environmental issue in Kurdistan Province has been securitized because in many cases, bitter environmental incidents that occur in mountains, rangelands, or forests—for example, several fires—are attributed to the presence of military and security forces to confront Kurdish parties that, according to security forces, are present in these areas, and therefore officers engage in combat against them. The occurrence of such confrontations causes environmental disruption or fires. Amanaj Ghorbani, as an environmental employee, was among those who personally appeared to contain fires. This environmental activity of environmental activists is not approved by security officers.”
The Kurdistan Human Rights Network, considering the recent pattern of arrests of environmental activists and the severe physical and verbal violence used during their arrest, has expressed concern about the detention conditions and treatment of these activists in Sanandaj detention facility and the possibility of raising security charges and prosecuting them.
Source: DW
