Amnesty International: Hossein Sepanta at Risk of Paralysis
Amnesty International has called on the Shiraz prosecutor to take action to treat and save the life of Hossein Sepanta, a security prisoner held in Adelabad prison. Sepanta has been sentenced to ten years and is unable to move due to a spinal cord disorder called “syringomyelia.”
Amnesty International, in an appeal to Haidar Asiabani, the Shiraz prosecutor, has called on him to prevent the paralysis of a security prisoner by providing and ensuring medical treatment facilities.
In this appeal, the conditions of Hossein Sepanta, a prisoner held in Adelabad, Shiraz, have been described as dangerous and requiring urgent attention. Sepanta, who is 38 years old, was arrested at the Kurdistan border in 2013 while illegally returning from Europe to Iran. His charges include “cooperation with opposition groups,” “insulting leadership and sacred values,” “propaganda against the system,” and “action against national security.”
He had previously been imprisoned for six months in 2000 on charges of membership in the “Thunder Monarchist Association.” After his release, he traveled to Turkey, India, and Norway. He returned to the country to see his mother but was arrested at the border.
Amnesty International wrote in a letter to the Shiraz prosecutor: “Hossein Sepanta’s physical problems have worsened since his arrival at the prison due to lack of proper treatment. He suffers from chronic and severe pain, numbness, movement disorders, difficulty swallowing, inability to control bladder and bowel functions, and his painful screams at night have distressed and troubled his cellmates.
Hossein Sepanta is held in Ward 14 of the security section of Adelabad prison in Shiraz. He has told other prisoners that his lower back and spine were injured during his initial arrest and over 17 days of interrogation at the “Plaque 100” detention center of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps in Shiraz.
Amnesty International recalls that the Shiraz coroner confirmed three years ago that Sepanta would be able to endure imprisonment if he continuously uses medication, regular check-ups, mobility aids, and medical and specialized care. This was in response to Hossein Sepanta’s request to use the “law of inability to endure punishment.”
Addressing the Shiraz prosecutor, Amnesty International states that instead of specialized care, Hossein Sepanta’s cellmates help him with walking, hygiene, and personal matters: “This has led to worsening of injuries and spinal cord complications. Adelabad authorities refuse to send him to hospitals outside the prison and collect money from his family for dozens of painkillers per week.”
Amnesty International writes that prison authorities sometimes keep Sepanta’s medications, or claim there is no one in the infirmary to administer injections.
A group of specialist doctors who examined Hossein Sepanta a year ago stated that 60 percent of his spinal cord is damaged and continuation of the current situation could lead to his complete paralysis.
The request for conditional release of this security prisoner, who has served six years of his ten-year sentence, has also been rejected.
Amnesty International has called on the Shiraz prosecutor to provide medical and treatment facilities for Hossein Sepanta and, by investigating his allegations regarding torture and other mistreatment, prevent any obstruction in the treatment of sick prisoners.
Source: DW
