Iran Affirms Right of Constitutionally Recognized Religious Minorities to Run in Local Elections

JULY 27, 2018

Sepanta Niknam has reclaimed his city council seat in the city of Yazd, southeastern Iran, nine months after he was suspended by a local court because he’s a member of the Zoroastrian faith. 

“I think it would be best that under the current circumstances, when the country is dealing with many issues, the authorities don’t expel an elected representative just because of his religious affiliation,” said Kourosh Niknam, Sepanta’s uncle and a former member of Iran’s Parliament, in an interview with the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) on July 20, 2018.

By a two-thirds majority, the Expediency Council, Iran’s highest arbiter of disputes between state branches, voted on July 21 to amend the Law on the Formation, Duties, and Election of National Islamic Councils, thereby affirming the right of constitutionally recognized religious minorities to run in local elections.

Rapper Detained For More Than a Month Without Lawyer in Iran’s Sistan and Baluchistan Province

JULY 27, 2018

Rap artist Shah Baloch, real name Emad Bijarzehi, has been detained in the southeastern Iranian port city of Chabahar without counsel since June 20, 2018, for singing about state oppression against ethnic Baluchis in Sistan and Baluchistan Province.

“He has been interrogated mostly about his songs,” a source with knowledge about the case told the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) on July 23. “They asked him why he had defiled the regime and praised Baluchis and congratulated them on Baluchi Cultural Day [March 2]. They wanted to implicate him in working for foreign agents and other [opposition] groups.”

Rights Groups: Iran Confirms Prison Terms for 8 Baha'is

July 28, 2018

Human rights groups say Iranian courts have confirmed prison terms for eight Baha’is, members of a religious minority that has experienced decades of discrimination in the Shiite Muslim-majority nation.

In a report published Thursday, Iran’s Human Rights Activist News Agency (HRANA) said an appeals court in the central city of Yazd confirmed prison terms for six Baha’i men and one Baha’i woman. The report did not specify the charges against the seven or when the court confirmed their sentences. A separate HRANA report published Wednesday detailed the sentencing of an eighth Baha’i by another court.

Brunel professor reports on Iranian human rights abuse for United Nations

July 27, 2018

A professor of law from Brunel University London has been unanimously elected as the United Nation’s new Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Iran.

Professor Javaid Rehman, an expert in human rights, international law and Muslim constitutionalism, will work on behalf of the UN Human Rights Council to monitor compliance in Iran, and engage with the government on specific legal and policy issues that contribute to abuses in the country.

Political Prisoner Narges Mohammadi’s Sister Banned From Travel as State Continues to Harass Her Family

JULY 21, 2018

From her cell in an infamous Iranian prison, imprisoned human rights activist Narges Mohammadi has condemned Iran’s judiciary for preventing her sister from traveling to France to visit her children who she has not seen for three years. 

In a letter from Evin Prison in Tehran to Judiciary Chief Sadegh Larijani, the prominent human rights defender warned that she would take “protest action” if the ban on her sister was not lifted. 

“The imposition of pressures, the domination over defenseless families of political prisoners even during visitation, are not only motivated by political and security considerations but also show a deterioration of morality and human dignity,” wrote Mohammadi.

Detained Teachers’ Rights Activist Denied Months of Salary Due to “Fault of Others” 

JULY 21, 2018

Detained teachers’ rights activist Mohammad Habibi is being denied his monthly state salary despite not being convicted of any crime, the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) has been informed.

Habibi, a 29-year-old member of the Iranian Teachers’ Trade Association (ITTA), has not been paid his wages since his arrest on May 17, 2018, according to a colleague who spoke to CHRI on July 18, 2018.

“Mr. Habibi is still under temporary detention and has not been convicted of anything but his salary has been cut off,” said the colleague who requested anonymity for security reasons.

Activists Note Serious Failings by Iranian Organization Tasked With Supporting People With Disabilities

 

JULY 21, 2018

As Iran’s State Welfare Organization (SWO) marked its 38th birthday, several people with disabilitiesbased in the country told the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) that the organization must undergo fundamental reform in order to carry out its mission. 

Pouya, a disability rights activist who requested anonymity for security reasons, said: “The welfare organization does not have a sufficient budget or the human resources to handle a mountain of responsibilities. Destitute women, child laborers and street workers, drug addicts, victims of violence among women and children, the elderly and persons with disabilities have all been entrusted to the welfare organization even though each of these groups requires specialized expertise and equipment.”

The names of the people who provided testimony to CHRI for this report have been changed due to the sensitivities in Iran around speaking to foreign media outlets.

Iranian Judiciary Closes Acid Attack Cases With No Convictions But Promises Victims Compensation

 

JULY 21, 2018

Nearly four years after a series of acid attacks on women in the Iranian city of Isfahan, the judiciary has closed the cases without any convictions while pledging to compensate the victims.

“This was a public crime that does not go away with the passage of time and therefore it makes no sense to close the case,” Iranian Canadian attorney Hossein Raeesi told the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) on July 19.

“If the private plaintiffs have agreed to stop pursuing the case, that’s fine but if it means that the authorities are going to stop looking for the perpetrators, that would be unlawful and unreasonable,” said Raeesi.

Iran: Crackdown on Student ActivistsLong Prison Sentences, Rights Violated

University students cross a street during a snow storm in Tehran November 8, 2010. 

 © 2010 Reuters/Caren Firouz

 

July 21, 2018

(Beirut) – Iranian authorities have increased their crackdown on student protesters with prison terms and restrictions on their peaceful activities, Human Rights Watch said today.  After authorities repressed the protests that broke out in December 2017 and January 2018, Intelligence Ministry authorities have arrested at least 150 students and courts have sentenced 17 to prison terms, according to a member of parliament. In January, another parliament member had tweeted that when he followed up on the arrests of students with the authorities, he was told that most arrests were “preventive.”

As of mid-July 2018, reliable sources reported that revolutionary courts had sentenced at least eight student protesters from universities in Tehran and Tabriz to prison sentences of up to eight years and banned some of them from membership in political parties or participating in media, including social media, for two years.

Iran is Imprisoning University Students Accused of Attending Protests

 

JULY 13, 2018

The number of students being prosecuted for allegedly joining Iran’s December 2017/January 2018 protests is much higher than earlier estimates according to a well-known reformist lawmaker.

“A list has been put together of the students detained in the December 2017 incidents and they number more than 150,” said Member of Parliament Parvaneh Salahshouri in an interview with the state-funded Iranian Labor News Agency (ILNA) on July 10, 2018.

“So we’re not talking about just 55 or 90 students,” she added. Unfortunately, the issue of student detentions is much more extensive.”

Leading Teachers’ Rights Activist Mahmoud Beheshti Refusing Food to Protest “Unjust” Sentence

JULY 14, 2018

Beheshti Warns of Further Uprisings as Officials Continue to Ignore People’s Demands

Prominent Iranian teachers’ rights activist Mahmoud Beheshti has been on hunger strike in Tehran’s Evin Prison since July 10, 2018, to protest the judiciary’s refusal to review his case and the mistreatment of political prisoners.

In a letter announcing the strike on July 12, a copy of which was obtained by the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI), Beheshti said he would only consume liquids and minerals during his hunger strike.

Local Police in Iran Admit Killing Farmer at Protest Against Water Shortages

JULY 13, 2018

Police in the Iranian city of Kazeroon have admitted killing a farmer at a local protest against water resources in the region.

“After several warnings to the crowd to disperse, the police opened fire into the air with pellet guns and in the midst of it, one of the unruly individuals identified as ‘I. A.’ was wounded in the neck area and transferred to the hospital where he died,” said police chief Col. Mohammad Ebadinejad on July 12, 2018.

The exact number of fatalities was previously unconfirmed due to the authorities’ unwillingness to speak publicly about the cases.

Opinion: Women Key to Change in Iran As Human Rights Flatline

JULY 14, 2018

By Rose Rastbaf

Iran has posed policy dilemmas for the United States for decades, ever since the revolutionary transfer of power from the pro-Western Pahlavi dynasty to the Islamic Republic. A commonly touted belief is that moderation and reform are the only pathways to sincere change, but in the words of Sen. Lindsey Graham, “There are no moderates in Iran; they’ve been killed a long time ago.” This statement remains as true as ever, despite the reelection of the supposedly more tolerant Hassan Rouhani.

One of the simplest ways of gauging this reality is the condition of women in Iran. Serious concerns persist despite promises of a liberalized economy and the curtailing of abuses; in fact, women’s rights have actually deteriorated. Women continue to face discrimination as judiciary groups crack down on the compulsory dress code and restrict rudimentary freedoms even under the “moderate” Rouhani.

While Iran remains in the headlines, little attention is paid to these stark realities, and women’s voices remain noticeably absent in these conversations.

Amnesty Calls On Iran to Ensure Right to Safe Drinking Water

Critics say mismanagement by the authorities, combined with years of drought, has led to a drop in river and groundwater levels, sparking water shortages.

July 07, 2018

 Amnesty International has called on Iran to ensure that Iranians have access to clean water and also to carry out an independent investigation into reports that security forces used “unnecessary and excessive force” against those who peacefully protested in Khuzestan Province over water scarcity and pollution.

“Iranian authorities should also ensure that people in Khuzestan and other provinces across Iran enjoy their right to access sufficient amounts of safe drinking water for personal and domestic uses,” the rights group said in a July 6 statement.

Family of Jailed Activist in Iran Concerned He Will Be killed in Prison

Iran Ahead of the scheduled execution on Thursday of Ramin Hossein Panahi, a 22-year-old man from Iran’s Kurdish minority who was sentenced to death in January for “taking up arms against the state

July 07, 2018

The brother of an Iranian Kurdish man on death row says the prison authorities have told the dissident that he would either be executed or killed behind bars.

Arrested in June 2016 for alleged membership in the Kurdish Nationalist party (Komala), 23-year old Ramin Hossein Panahi is currently incarcerated in the central prison of Sanandaj, capital city of Kurdistan province, western Iran.

Hossein Panahi was charged with taking up arms against the Islamic Republic and sentenced to death by a Revolution Court in January 2018. Later the Supreme Court upheld the decision.

In a tweet on Thursday, July 5, Ramin’s brother, Amjad Hossein Panahi cited authorities of the prison in Sanandaj as warning the young dissident, “You are not going to leave this block, and will either be executed, or killed in the prison.”

Kilgour: Harper was right to speak out on Iran

People hold pictures of relatives killed by the Mohllas regime, during "Free Iran 2018 - the Alternative" event on June 30, 2018 in Villepinte, north of Paris during the Iranian resistance national council (CNRI) annual meeting. ZAKARIA ABDELKAFI / AFP/GETTY IMAGES

DAVID KILGOUR

July 7, 2018

The criticism levelled at former prime minister Stephen Harper for speaking to a “Free Iran” rally near Paris last Saturday is unfair. At that rally, Harper thanked the tens of thousands of participants for their “long battle for a free and democratic Iran,” without endorsing any political party.

Harper wasn’t alone at the rally. Canada’s delegation at the event included the former prime minister, Liberal MP Judy Sgro, former Conservative foreign minister John Baird, former Liberal MP Raymonde Folco, former Conservative MP Paul Forseth, Liberal supporter David Matas, Conservative MP Candice Bergen, and me, a former Liberal cabinet minister.

Protests In Iran Continue Despite Maximum Suppression

• Protests In Iran Continue Despite Maximum Suppression

July 7, 2018

The continuation of the protest movement despite maximum suppression in Iran

The Iranian regime has two “main characteristics.” The first is exporting terrorism and warmongering in the region and beyond. The second is brutal repression designed to intimidate the Iranian people in their own country.

Since the January 2018 uprising, signs of real change in Iran leading to the regime’s overthrow have become manifest.

AN END TO LEGAL RIGHTS IN IRAN

07 July 2018

By INU Staff

INU - An end to legal rights in IranDespite promises from President Hassan Rouhani, the Iranian Regime’s judiciary is increasing its efforts to strip defendants of their civil and legal rights, including due process, according to political scientist Dr Majid Rafizadeh.

Rouhani has promised to promote human rights in Iran, including freedom of speech, the press and assembly, on numerous occasions since he first ran for office in 2013, but he never actually intended to protect these rights, which is why it is not surprising that he has failed.

Rapporteur On Human Rights In Iran

Geneva -- Newly appointed Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran, Javid Rehman, undated.

July 07, 2018

Javid Rehman, a British-Pakistani legal scholar has been appointed as U.N. Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Iran.

Rehman first studied in Pakistan and then continued his law studies in Great Britain, where he became professor of law and led the Brunel Law School.

He is an scholar of international and Islamic law and is also considered an expert on terrorism. He has previously worked with the U.N. on issues of protection of minorities and banning torture.