A civil activist from Shadegan was sentenced to 9 years in prison.
Adel Asakereh, a civil activist and rural school teacher in Khuzestan, was sentenced to 9 years in prison by the Shadegan City Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor's Office.
On Tuesday, July 25, human rights activist Karim Daheimi told VOA about the sentence issued to Adel Asakereh, a rural school teacher in Khuzestan. The civil activist has been sentenced to nine years in prison by the Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor's Office of Shadegan County on charges of "disturbing public opinion," "insulting the leader, officials, and agents," and "acting against national security."
According to Mr. Daheimi, the plaintiff in this case was the "Office of Judicial Support for Veterans" and the ruling issued is the final decision of the Public Prosecutor's Office and the Revolutionary Court.
The human rights activist cited the charges and sentence issued against Mr. Asakere as examples of his activities in cyberspace, and told VOA that Adel Asakere was a teacher at the Ashraf Isfahani School in the village of Pahgah, a part of Shadegan County. After starting his work in this village, he criticized the plundering of villagers' lands in the area, the livelihood and economic problems of citizens in Khuzestan Province, and the budget spent on the seminary and its affiliated centers by the country's officials. According to the human rights activist, this led to Mr. Asakere's arrest in May of last year and the issuance of a prison sentence to him.
Karim Daheimi, a human rights activist, also told VOA about the village of "Pahfeh" that this village is part of Shadegan County, most of its lands have been plundered by the Sugarcane By-Products Company (Salman Farsi Company), but the villagers have not left their lands with their resistance and currently the village is surrounded by the company's sugarcane fields. He also says that these villagers are currently struggling with a lack of water and electricity.
According to Mr. Daheimi, Adel Asakereh, who is a master's degree student in history, was previously arrested by security forces on May 5, 2019, and after several months of interrogation, explanation of charges, and solitary confinement, he was temporarily released on bail of 5 billion rials until the end of the trial.
This is not the first time that a civil rights activist in Iran has faced harsh sentences, such as long prison terms, for criticizing the functioning of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s authorities and expressing opinions on the livelihood and economic problems of Iranian citizens. The US State Department has previously condemned the regime’s violent crackdown on protesters and its repeated and persistent violations of the rights of Iranian citizens, including labor and trade union activists, on various occasions.
Source: Voice of America
