Amnesty International: Reza Shahabi Urgently Needs Specialized Medical Care

Amnesty International has expressed concern over the health status of Reza Shahabi, a board member of the Syndicate of Workers of the Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company, calling for immediate medical attention for this political prisoner. In a statement released to the media on September 16, the organization noted Mr. Shahabi's forced return to prison last month and his hunger strike, stating that this labor activist has been on hunger strike for 38 days. According to Amnesty International, Mr. Shahabi's health condition is critical, and he urgently requires specialized medical care. The board member of the workers' syndicate has gone on hunger strike in protest against his re-imprisonment. Reports indicate that Reza Shahabi, along with several other political and ideological prisoners, has faced 'threats' from prison authorities due to his hunger strike. Mr. Shahabi, 44, is one of the founders of the Syndicate of Workers of the Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company and was arrested in 2010. He spent 19 months in solitary confinement in Ward 209 of Evin Prison and was sentenced by the Revolutionary Court to six years in prison and a ban on union activities. The charges against Mr. Shahabi included 'gathering and colluding to commit crimes against national security' and 'propaganda against the regime.' However, human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, have described the arrest and imprisonment of Reza Shahabi and other labor activists as part of a 'threat and pressure campaign against independent labor unions.' In recent years, various labor activists have been arrested and imprisoned under security-related charges. Reza Shahabi was granted temporary leave from prison following neck and back surgery, but in mid-August, while 'it was promised he would be released,' he was imprisoned again. The Syndicate of Workers of the Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company had previously reported that his sentence, considering medical leave, had ended in 2015, and judicial officials had also verbally confirmed this. The General Secretary of the British Trade Union Congress has written to the President of Iran, calling for the immediate release of Reza Shahabi. The International Confederation of Trade Unions had also expressed concern in a letter to the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic last February regarding the actions of judicial and security officials in pressuring Mr. Shahabi to return to prison. Iranian judicial authorities have not responded to these requests.