Canadian Prime Minister: Iran Should Allow Seyed Emami's Wife to Leave the Country

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has urged the Islamic Republic to allow Maryam Mombini to leave Iran and return to her family in Canada. Trudeau also called for clarification regarding the ambiguities surrounding the death of Kavous Seyed Emami. On March 19, Trudeau tweeted, "Iran must allow Maryam Mombini to leave its territory and head to Canada to be with her family." He added, "The government [of Iran] must answer the existing questions regarding the death of [Maryam Mombini's] husband, Kavous Seyed Emami, in Evin prison." Kavous Seyed Emami, an environmental activist who died in prison, was arrested on January 24, 2018, along with several other environmental activists, and died on February 19, 2018, in Evin prison. Judicial authorities announced that the cause of death was "suicide." They claimed that Seyed Emami had engaged in "espionage" and "collecting classified information in strategic areas under the guise of scientific and environmental projects" before any trial took place. However, these accusations have faced various criticisms. Saeed Piyavandi, a sociologist, noted in a commentary that judicial officials are violating the most basic legal and ethical principles by accusing Seyed Emami and others of "espionage" and having relations with "foreign countries" without providing any convincing evidence. Judicial officials claim that surveillance cameras recorded Kavous Seyed Emami's "suicide," but a member of the Environmental Fraction of the Islamic Consultative Assembly stated that this event is not visible in the footage provided to the Assembly. Amid all this, it remains unclear why Mr. Seyed Emami's wife has not been allowed to leave Iran, and judicial authorities have yet to respond officially to this issue. Hadi Ghaemi, the executive director of the Iran Human Rights Campaign, told Radio Farda that the only reason for this situation is the fear that Iranian authorities have regarding the emergence of the case surrounding Kavous Seyed Emami's death, and thus they have "taken his wife hostage." On March 15, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, the Iran Human Rights Campaign, and the Justice for Iran organization issued a joint statement calling on Iranian authorities to end the "campaign of harassment and intimidation against the families of individuals who have suspiciously died in prisons."