Concerns raised over the condition of the detainees arrested during November demonstrations
28-November-2019
Category: Freedom of Expression، Prisoners
Breathing in Confinement- Thirteen days after the nationwide protests began against the rise in gas price, Iranian authorities have not yet provided any official information on the number and whereabouts of detainees. And the lack of information has raised concerns about the detainees’ situation and their health condition.
According to Breathing in Confinement, the news organ of the Prisoners’ Rights League in Iran, Hussain Naqavi Hosseini, the spokesman for parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, said that about 7,000 protesters have so far been arrested. In addition, on November 27, 2019, Tehran’s Police Chief announced the continuation of the arrests. While, Shahr-E Rey County Council Chairman-Hassan Khalil Abadi, said that since the last week’s protests, the number of detainees in Fashafuyeh prison has increased and that the prison is not capable of accommodating such a large number of detainees. There are dangerous detainees at Fashafuyeh prison and in this context, the responsibility of the judiciary system is heavy,” said Hassan Khalil Abadi.
Previously on April 30, 2019, the Directorate-General for the Administration of Justice and Law Enforcement for the State Prisons Organization had stated that the number of prisoners was 28% more than the total capacity of the country’s prisons (Mashreq News- April 30, 2019). Currently, therefore, following the widespread detentions in recent days, with 7000 increase in the number of inmates, concerns over the risks to the lives of prisoners have raised.
The videos uploaded on the Internet, reveal the violent and assaultive treatment of the protesters by the security forces. There also is a video showing the security forces using a girls ‘school to accommodate the detainees, a clear example of the violation of both prisoners’ and children’s rights.
In addition, non-compliance with the principle of separation of different prisoners- adopted by the Prisons Regulations, with keeping detainees among tough and dangerous inmates pose a serious risk to their health. As an example, in June 2019, a political prisoner- Alireza Shirmohammadi, was stabbed to death by a violent prisoner in Fashafuyeh prison.
The right to a family visit, the right to a fair trial, having access to a lawyer, being kept in a standard condition, having access to health facilities, medical care and foods are the basic rights of the defendants which have been repeatedly violated by the judiciary and security forces. And there is a serious concern that, given the high number of detainees in recent protests, there be appalling breaches of the regulations adopted by the Prisons Organization.
Televised confessions, under torture, duress and ill-treatment are other areas of concern, that demand a serious response by the international community and in particular, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran. The tragedy of Sina Ghanbari and Saru Ghahremani who were killed under torture in January 2017, should never be repeated.
On November 23, 2019, in a video of his visit to Fashafuyeh Prison, Montazeri- the state attorney general, said that all prisoners were satisfied with their situation. (Fars News Agency, November 23, 2019) This is while a number of detainees were being shown with broken hands.
Given the background of human rights violations by the Islamic Republic authorities, human rights activists and international human rights organizations including UNESCO must respond appropriately to the recent attempts of the Iranian authorities and the way they treat the prisoners, urging them to release accurate information on the number and whereabouts of detainees.