A Number of Political and Civil Activists Demand the Release of Morteza Moradpour

Fourteen political and civil activists expressed concern over the health condition of Morteza Moradpour "after 57 days of hunger strike" and called for his release. In a letter sent to Radio Farda, it is stated: "Morteza Moradpour, a political prisoner and a civil activist of Azerbaijani descent, has been on hunger strike for over fifty days, demanding the implementation of Article 134 of the Islamic Penal Code regarding his case. If this article—which is the right of the accused—is implemented, he should be released." The signatories emphasized: "While supporting Mr. Moradpour's legal demands and urging judicial and security officials to uphold justice and fairness regarding this political prisoner, we warn that Mr. Moradpour's life is in danger after 57 days of hunger strike and he must be released as soon as possible." This letter was signed by Noushabah Amiri, Mahdi Amini-Zadeh, Abdolali Bazargan, Mehrzad Boroujerdi, Mohammad Heydari, Taghi Rahmani, Nasrin Sotoudeh, Reza Alijani, Morteza Kazemian, Ammar Maleki, Mohammad Maleki, Ahmad Montazeri, Yaser Mirdamadi, and Hassan Youssefi Ashkouri. Morteza Moradpour, 29 years old, has been pursued due to his participation in the "Ilgoli (Shahgoli) Tabriz Walking Conference" in June 2009 and was arrested three days later in a student dormitory by intelligence agents. It is reported that he has been on hunger strike in Tabriz prison since November 4 of this year in protest against the non-implementation of Article 134 of the Islamic Penal Code and the rejection of his request in this regard. Masoumeh Amani, Morteza Moradpour's mother, had previously expressed concern about her son's physical condition. Additionally, this week, 53 Iranian civil and political activists called for the release of Arash Sadeghi and Morteza Moradpour. While Morteza Moradpour is imprisoned in connection with the Ilgoli (Shahgoli) Tabriz walking conference, this event was officially permitted by the government and had recreational and sporting aspects; however, some ethnic activists chanted slogans regarding the right to education in their mother tongue and against the drying of Lake Urmia, which led to the arrest of several individuals, including Moradpour. He was tried in the Tabriz Revolutionary Court and sentenced to one year in prison for propaganda against the Islamic Republic and two years for conspiracy to commit a crime against national security. Moradpour served part of his sentence six months after his arrest and was released on bail, but has been imprisoned again for the past 13 months.