Amnesty International Report 1995 - Iran

There were continuing reports of political arrests, torture, unfair trials and summary executions. Among the thousands of political prisoners held during the year were prisoners of conscience; some were detained without charge or trial, others were serving long prison sentences imposed after unfair trials. Judicial punishments of flogging and amputation of fingers continued to be implemented. Four religious leaders were killed in Iran and at least one prominent opponent of the government was killed abroad in circumstances suggesting they may have been extrajudicially executed. At least 139 people were executed, including political prisoners. The government headed by President ‘Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani continued to face armed opposition from the Iraq-based People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI), and organizations such as the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran (KDPI) in Kurdistan and Baluchi groups in Sistan-Baluchistan. The government blamed the PMOI for a bomb attack in June in a holy shrine in Mashhad in which over 20 people were killed, and accused the PMOI of trying to plant several other bombs during 1994. The PMOI denied responsibility for these acts. In February police attacked demonstrators who had gathered outside a Sunni mosque in Zahedan to protest against the demolition of a Sunni mosque in Mashhad the previous month. Several people were killed and many injured, and scores were arrested. Among those detained was the Imam of the mosque, Moulavi ‘Abdolhamid. There were further arrests of demonstrators in August in Qazvin and in Tabriz. At least 13 people were reportedly shot dead by Revolutionary Guards and 80 wounded in Qazvin; the circumstances in which these killings took place were not clear. In February the UN Commission on Human Rights adopted a resolution whose recommendations included urging the Iranian Government to refrain from activities directed against Iranians living outside the country. The Commission again called on the government to investigate and rectify human rights issues identified by the Special Representative, particularly regarding the administration of justice and due process of law. It also encouraged Iran to offer the Special Representative its full cooperation, particularly by allowing him to pay another visit to the country. He had not been allowed access since 1991. The Commission extended the mandate of the Special Representative for a further year. In August the UN Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities condemned human rights violations in Iran, including the use of excessive force in suppressing public demonstrations, and called on the government to cease involvement in "state sponsored terrorism against Iranians living abroad and the nationals of other states". Retired General Azizollah Amir Rahimi, a former Commander of the Military Police, was arrested in November, allegedly for his open criticism of the government, and reportedly beaten by members of the secret police. His son, Mehrdad Amir Rahimi, was arrested a few days later after he had protested to the foreign media about his father's arrest. Both remained held as prisoners of conscience and their whereabouts were unknown. A number of followers of Ayatollah Shirazi, a leading jurist, were arrested in Esfahan. Among them were Sheikh Makki Akhound, arrested in May and allegedly tortured, ‘Abdolamir Akhound, aged 60, and ‘Abdolrasoul Akhound, both reportedly arrested in October. At the end of the year they remained held as possible prisoners of conscience. At least nine followers of Ayatollah Hossein ‘Ali Montazeri were reportedly arrested in October, after he had publicly criticized the authorities in an open letter. Their fate and that of five of his followers arrested in 1993 (see Amnesty International Report 1994) remained unknown. A well-known poet and satirical writer, ‘Ali Akbar Sa‘idi-Sirjani, was arrested in March together with another poet, Sa‘id Niazi Kermani, ostensibly for possessing drugs. Officials publicly accused ‘Ali Akbar Sa‘idi-Sirjani of drug abuse, brewing alcohol, homosexual acts, links with espionage networks and receiving money from "counter-revolutionary" circles in the West. Some of these offences carry the death penalty. However, the real reason for his arrest appeared to be open letters he had written to the government objecting to censorship: most of his writings were effectively banned in Iran. ‘Ali Akbar Sa‘idi-Sirjani was held in incommunicado detention until 27 November when the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported that he had died that day of a heart attack in an unspecified Tehran hospital. His family reportedly stated that he had no history of heart trouble. Sa‘id Niazi Kermani was reported to have been released in September. Some political prisoners and prisoners of conscience were still held after years in detention without trial. For example, Hossein Javadi-Gsor, a teacher and possible prisoner of conscience, had reportedly been held without charge or trial since 1985 in his home town of Oromieh. Other political prisoners were serving long prison terms following unfair trials: they included supporters of the PMOI; at least 24 followers of Dr ‘Ali Shari‘ati; members of left-wing organizations such as the Tudeh Party, Peykar and Razmandegan; supporters of Kurdish organizations such as the KDPI and Komala; and members of other groups representing ethnic minorities such as Baluchis and Arabs (see previous Amnesty International Reports). Several amnesties were declared during 1994. For example, in February Ayatollah ‘Ali Khamenei, Iran's spiritual leader, pardoned and commuted the sentences of 1,503 prisoners. No further details were made available. In November he pardoned 190 women convicted by ordinary and revolutionary courts. Political trials continued to fall far short of international standards for fair trial. Trial hearings were almost always held in camera, often inside prisons. Proceedings were summary with hearings often lasting only a few minutes. Reports consistently indicated that political detainees were denied access to legal counsel at any stage of judicial proceedings, despite official assurances to the contrary. Mohammad Hussein Khotani, a businessman arrested in Tehran in April, was reportedly tried by an Islamic Revolutionary Court in November and sentenced to eight months' imprisonment. He was apparently denied access to a lawyer. Charges were reported to have included the distribution of anti-government leaflets among businessmen in Tehran. He was released in December. There were continuing reports that prisoners were tortured or ill-treated to extract confessions or statements to be used as evidence at trials. The most frequently cited methods were beatings, particularly on the back and on the soles of the feet, and being suspended by the wrists or ankles. Former political prisoners testified that they had been beaten with sticks and cables, and had been held blindfolded for long periods while held in incommunicado detention. For example, Sheikh Makki Akhound (see above) was reportedly subjected to two months of torture, including beatings and lashing. He was ill and was believed to be suffering from high blood pressure. At the end of the year he had not been charged or tried. Flogging and amputation as judicial punishments remained in force. Scores of women were reported to have been sentenced to flogging for violating the dress code. Flogging was frequently imposed for a wide range of other offences, often in conjunction with prison sentences. Mary Jones, a US national, was sentenced in April to 80 lashes, a fine and deportation to the USA reportedly for alcohol-related offences. The flogging was administered in public. In March Mohammad Hossein Honar-Bakhshi and Karim Gol-Mohammadi each had four fingers of their right hand amputated in Qom's Central Prison, in the presence of other prisoners, after being convicted of theft. Religious minority figures were victims of possible extrajudicial executions. Reverend Haik Hovsepian Mehr, Superintendent of the Church of the Assemblies of God, was found dead in January. He had campaigned for the release of prisoner of conscience Reverend Mehdi Dibaj, a pastor in the same church who had been imprisoned since 1984 (see Amnesty International Report 1994). The body of Reverend Mehdi Dibaj was found in a forest in West Tehran on 5 July; he had been released from prison in January, still facing charges of apostasy, and was last seen alive on 24 June. The body of Reverend Tatavous Michaelian, Chairman of the Council of Protestant Ministers, was discovered on 2 July with gunshot wounds to the head. Sunni leader Haji Mohammad Zia'ie was found dead on 20 July, five days after he was summoned for interrogation at the security headquarters in Laar, Fars province. His mutilated body was discovered beside his car some 200 kilometres from Laar. Security officials attributed the death to a car accident, but eye-witnesses reportedly disputed this. Haji Mohammad Zia'ie was a government critic and had been arrested, reportedly tortured and harassed in previous years. A government opponent was killed in Turkey in January in circumstances suggesting the possible involvement of Iranian government agents. Taha Kermanj, a leading member of the KDPI (Revolutionary Command), was shot dead near his home in Çorum. He had fled to Turkey early in 1993 from northern Iraq, where he had reportedly received death threats from Iranian agents. He was a recognized refugee awaiting resettlement in a third country. This was the third killing of an Iranian political opposition figure in Turkey since mid-1993 (see Amnesty International Report 1994). The threat of extrajudicial execution extended to many Iranian nationals abroad, as well as to non-Iranians such as the British writer Salman Rushdie whose killing had been called for in a fatwa (religious edict) in 1989. At least 139 people were executed. Some were hanged in public. As in 1993, the number of executions reported in the Iranian media was far lower than in previous years. However, Amnesty International believed that the real number of executions for political and non-political offences, such as drug-trafficking and murder, was considerably higher than publicly reported. Political prisoners continued to be sentenced to death by Islamic Revolutionary Courts using procedures that fell far short of international standards for fair trial. Among those reported to have been sentenced to death during 1994 was Seyed Nasrollah Mirsa‘idi. He was arrested in March 1992, apparently in connection with his past activities with an underground left-wing organization. Among political prisoners executed during 1994 were Hossein Sobhani, Bahman Khosravi and Raouf Mohammadi, who were reportedly executed in February. They had been imprisoned in Kermanshah since July 1992. A 77-year-old member of the Jewish community, Feyzollah Mechubad, was executed in February, allegedly because of his religious beliefs and activities. According to reports, his body bore the marks of severe torture, including the gouging out of his eyes. Bahram ‘Abbas-Zadeh was publicly hanged in Zahedan in August, after being convicted of attempting to plant a bomb in Zahedan in June. Salim Saberniah and Mustafa Ghaderi, two alleged members of Komala (see Amnesty International Report 1994), reportedly remained under sentence of death. It was not known whether Mitra Zahraie, who was sentenced to death for murder in 1993 when she was 15 years old, had been executed (see Amnesty International Report 1994). Amnesty International repeatedly called for the immediate and unconditional release of all prisoners of conscience. It urged the government to introduce safeguards to ensure that political detainees would receive fair and prompt trials and to take steps to eradicate the use of torture. Throughout the year Amnesty International appealed for death sentences to be commuted, expressing particular concern about Mitra Zahraie. Amnesty International appealed for immediate, thorough and independent investigations into the deaths of the four religious leaders killed in suspicious circumstances, as well as the death of ‘Ali Akbar Sa‘idi Sirjani. Officials claimed that the killings of Tatavous Michaelian and Mehdi Dibaj had been carried out by a young woman who had confessed to carrying out the crimes on behalf of the PMOI. The PMOI denied any involvement in the killings. Amnesty International also called for an investigation to establish the circumstances of the killings in February at the Sunni mosque in Zahedan. The government replied to some of Amnesty International's inquiries, although it failed to answer most requests for information on particular cases. The government responded to Amnesty International's 1993 report, Iran: Victims of human rights violations (see Amnesty International Report 1994), accusing the organization of double standards and selectivity. Amnesty International delegates continued to be denied access to the country.