50-Year Prison Sentence Confirmed for Five Iranian Christian Citizens
A Christian couple who had been sentenced to a total of 15 years in prison by a Revolutionary Court have left Iran before their sentences could be carried out.
According to a report by the website “Article 18,” which covers news related to minority rights, an appeals court has recently upheld the sentences of Pastor Victor Betamarz and his wife Shamiran Isayi, who were sentenced to 10 and 5 years imprisonment respectively.
The charges against the two were “missionary activity” and “action against national security by establishing and running house churches.”
Three other citizens who converted to Christianity were also mentioned in the case: Hadi Asgari and Kavian Fallah Mohammadi, each sentenced to 10 years in prison, and Amin Afshar Naderi, sentenced to 15 years in prison. The sentences of these three individuals have also been upheld by the appeals court.
The case of Victor Betamarz and his wife Shamiran Isayi dates back three years. Their sentence was recently upheld by the appeals court, and on August 12 (Mordad 21), a summons was issued requiring them to report to prison within five days. However, they left Iran before the sentence could be implemented.
Dabrina Betamarz, the daughter of this Christian couple, stated that her father spent 65 days in solitary confinement and spent an additional two months in prison.
Mansour Borji, director of “Article 18” organization, which works on minority rights issues, said that Iranian judicial authorities criminalize “activities that are not defined as crimes in law.”
In recent years, human rights organizations have repeatedly called for fair legal proceedings in the cases of these citizens.
In November 2017, four independent UN human rights experts warned about “severe discrimination” against religious minorities in Iran and called on Iranian authorities to ensure fair legal proceedings in the cases of Christian citizens.
In the Constitution of the Islamic Republic, only followers of three Abrahamic religions—Christianity, Judaism, and Zoroastrianism—are officially recognized as religious minorities. However, neither this group of Iranian citizens nor Sunni Muslims nor followers of other faiths, such as Bahais, enjoy complete freedom in practicing their religious rites.
The Islamic Republic particularly targets groups engaged in the propagation and promotion of Christianity, and numerous cases are brought before Iran’s judicial system annually, most often resulting in lengthy prison sentences.
Source: Radio Farda
