Another Lawyer on the Way to Prison; Mohammad Seifzadeh's One-Year Sentence Confirmed

Mohammad Seifzadeh, a lawyer, stated in a voice message to Voice of America that his one-year prison sentence has been confirmed and communicated to him by the Evin Court's execution branch. This human rights defender added that he will report to Evin Prison on Wednesday, July 25, to serve his sentence. Seifzadeh was summoned to court in connection with a letter from several lawyers to the UN Secretary-General regarding events 'following the murder of Mahsa Amini.' However, he refrained from attending the court, stating: 'Due to the illegality of revolutionary courts and the incorrect nature of the charges, I did not participate in these proceedings.' This prominent lawyer emphasized that 'I did not attend the court due to the charges of spreading falsehoods and propaganda against the regime, based on formal and substantive reasons, including the illegality of revolutionary courts and the inconsistency of the alleged act, which was a legal complaint, with the attributed charge.' Several Iranian activists wrote a letter to Antonio Guterres, the UN Secretary-General, on Saturday, December 10, 2022, highlighting the right of all Iranian people to seek justice, stressing that 'only the swift reaction of Your Excellency and the public opinion of the world, democratic and freedom-loving governments, and influential and humanitarian figures can stop the execution and repression machine of the Islamic Republic.' The signatories of this letter described the situation in Iran as 'bloody and volatile' and 'horrific and terrifying,' noting that the transformative movement 'Women, Life, Freedom' has permeated all its borders. In addition to Mohammad Seifzadeh, activists and legal scholars such as Noushin Ahmadieh Khorasani, Hossein Ahmadinejad, Mahmoud Amiri Moghaddam, Mahnaz Parakand, Nasrin Sotoudeh, Shirin Ebadi, Mehrangiz Kar, Ammar Maleki, Saeed Dehghan, Mohammad Moqimi, and Marzieh Nikara were among the signatories of this letter. Marzieh Nikara, a colleague of Mr. Seifzadeh, is also facing a similar ruling. Seifzadeh stated: 'I do not consider the revolutionary court legal and did not participate; I have been sentenced to one year in prison.' He also mentioned: 'For writing a letter to the UN Secretary-General, I was tried and banned from leaving the country again.' Seifzadeh asserted that according to the constitution, revolutionary courts, special courts, and clerical courts are illegal. The summons of two lawyers to the appellate court for 'taking a commitment'; Seifzadeh: 'The revolutionary court is illegal.' One year of imprisonment for two lawyers; Seifzadeh: 'The act committed is seeking justice.' The continued summons and detention of political and civil activists; Seifzadeh: 'I will not attend the court.' Mohammad Najafi is still on a hunger strike; a lawyer expressed concern for his condition. Nasrin Sotoudeh and Mohammad Seifzadeh deemed revolutionary courts 'lacking legal legitimacy.' A statement from 40 legal scholars: 'The absolute majority do not want the Islamic Republic; lawyers should come to the scene.'