Amnesty USA: Political prisoners in Iran,
including prisoners of conscience, are routinely subjected to inhuman and
degrading prison conditions, including overcrowding, poor food and water, dirty
and unsanitary facilities, and medical neglect. Many of them suffered severe
injuries as a result of torture in custody that have never been properly
treated while many others contract chronic and debilitating ailments including
kidney and lung infections. Political prisoners, who seek medical leave to
enable them to receive urgent or specialized medical care, as permitted under
Iranian law, often see their requests arbitrarily rejected and appear to be
routinely discriminated against by the prison administration.
Blogger Hossein Ronaghi Maleki was
arrested on 22 August 2012 when police and plain-clothed security forces
reportedly attacked a relief camp in East Azerbaijan province where he and
others were offering supplies for earthquake victims. Hossein Ronaghi Maleki
had been sentenced to 15 years in prison after an unfair trial in 2010 on
charges including “membership of the [illegal] internet group ‘Iran Proxy,’”
“spreading propaganda against the system” and “insulting the Leader and the
President,” apparently in connection with articles he posted on his blog, 14
Tir. When he had complained of being tortured, the judge at his trial told
him that he “deserved it.” He had been released from prison on 2 July 2012 to
receive needed medical treatment for his serious kidney condition, upon payment
of a large sum of money for bail. He has now been charged with “distributing
unclean and non-hygienic goods” and is reported to have been tortured during
questioning. He was reportedly beaten so severely in the kidney area that
the wound from his recent surgery started bleeding.
On 4 November 2013 Hossein Ronaghi Maleki was
transferred to Tehran’s Hasheminejad Hospital but was taken back to Evin Prison
after only three hours and without receiving the treatments he requires. Reports
indicate that doctors have diagnosed him with a kidney infection in his one
remaining kidney, as well as a condition called Hydronephrosis, where the
kidney becomes stretched and swollen as a result of a build-up of urine inside
the kidney. Hossein Ronaghi Maleki needs ongoing specialized treatment on his
remaining kidney, which he cannot get in prison. Since his arrest, he has
launched a number of hunger strikes in protest at the authorities’ refusal to
grant him medical leave, their harsh treatment of political prisoners, and
disregard for prisoners’ welfare, have resulted in further deterioration of his
health.
Hossein Ronaghi Maleki’s mother, Zoleikha
Mousavi had launched her own hunger strike on 20 August 2013in protest at the
authorities’ refusal to release her son. His hunger strike prompted letters
from dozens of political prisoners and hundreds of journalists, academics and
civil, political and human rights activists to the Iranian authorities, urging
them to release him. Former president, Mohammad Khatami, also wrote a letter
asking Hossein Ronaghi Maleki to end his hunger strike and expressing concern
that the constraints and restrictions on Iranian people still continue today.
Ayatollah Hossein Kazemeyni Boroujerdi,
age 55, a dissident cleric and prisoner of conscience detained in the Special
Clerical ward at Evin prison, is suffering from various illnesses and has been
prohibited from receiving medical treatment. He has served seven years in
prison and has never been given any furlough from prison. Ayatollah Boroujerdi
advocates the separation of religion from the political basis of the Iranian
state. He was arrested at his home in Tehran on October 8, 2006, along with
more than 300 of his followers. He and some of his followers were initially sentenced
to death after an unfair trial in Branch 3 of the Special Court for the Clergy
in June 2007, although his sentence was commuted in August 2007 to eleven years
in prison. In addition to this, Ayatollah Boroujerdi was also defrocked (banned
from wearing his clerical robes and thereby from practicing his clerical
duties), and his house and all his belongings were confiscated. He had
reportedly been found guilty of at least 30 charges, including “waging war
against God” (moharebeh); acts against national security; publicly
calling political leadership by the clergy (velayat-e faqih) unlawful;
having links with anti-revolutionaries and spies; and using the term “religious
dictatorship” instead of “Islamic Republic” in public discourse and radio
interviews.
Ayatollah Boroujerdi has reportedly been
tortured and otherwise ill-treated on numerous occasions since his arrest. He
is said to have been beaten, thrown against a wall, and had cold water thrown
on him when he was sleeping. He suffers from a heart condition, pulmonary
issues, diabetes, severe problems with his eyes including untreated cataracts,
and kidney stones. His legs are swollen which makes it very difficult for him
to walk. His hands also shake as a result of his Parkinson’s disease. While
in detention, he has not been receiving necessary medical treatment and has
lost a considerable amount of weight. He was reportedly attacked and beaten in
prison on 17 November 2013, perhaps as a result of letters he wrote that have
been published on various web sites.
Take Action:
Head of the Judiciary
Ayatollah Sadegh Larijani
c/o Public relations Office
Number 4, 2 Azizi Street
Vali Asr Ave., above Pasteur Street
intersection
Tehran, ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN
Email: bia.judi@yahoo.com
Salutation: Your Excellency
I am writing to you to express my concern
over the situation of two prisoners of conscience, Hossein Ronaghi Maleki and
Hossein Kazemeyni Boroujerdi, who are seriously ill and in urgent need of
proper medical care, which they are not receiving in prison.
Blogger Hossein Ronaghi Maleki is serving
a 15-year prison sentence imposed after an unfair trial in 2010 on charges
including “membership of the [illegal] internet group ‘Iran Proxy,’” “spreading
propaganda against the system” and “insulting the Leader and the President,”
apparently in connection with articles he posted on his blog, 14 Tir. He
had one kidney removed already and needs specialized treatment for a severe
infection of his remaining kidney.
Ayatollah Hossein Kazemeyni Boroujerdi
has been in prison since his arrest in October 2006 and has not received a
single medical furlough. He is serving an 11-year sentence for having
peacefully expressed his opinion about the separation of religion from the
political basis of the Iranian state. He has been subjected to brutal
mistreatment in detention and suffers from a variety of ailments including a
heart condition, pulmonary issues, diabetes, severe problems with his eyes
including untreated cataracts, drastic weight loss and kidney stones. His legs
are swollen which makes it very difficult for him to walk. His hands also shake
as a result of his Parkinson’s disease.
The failure to provide adequate medical
care to vulnerable prisoners is a breach of international human rights
standards, including the prohibition against torture and other ill-treatment
under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Iran
is a party. The UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners also
states that prisoners who require specialist treatment must be transferred to
specialist institutions or civil hospitals. Equipment and pharmaceutical
supplies in prison medical facilities are required to be proper for the medical
care and treatment of sick prisoners. Iran’s own prison regulations require
that prisoners who are suffering from serious medical conditions that cannot be
treated inside prison, or whose conditions will worsen if they stay in prison,
be granted medical leave in order to receive treatment.
I urge you to ensure that Hossein Ronaghi
Maleki and Hossein Kazemeyni Boroujerdi are treated humanely in prison, and
that they be granted medical furloughs to receive appropriate medical
treatment, if such treatment cannot be provided to them while they are in
prison. Furthermore, both are prisoners of conscience and I also urge that they
be immediately and unconditionally released from prison and that their
sentences be overturned.
Thank you for your attention to this
matter.
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