Eman Jalalinezad, Teacher, Sentenced to 3 Years and 6 Months in Prison

On Friday, December 28, the Coordinating Council of Iranian Teachers' Trade Unions announced that Eman Jalalinezad, a imprisoned teacher, has been sentenced to 3 years and 6 months in prison by the Revolutionary Court of Ahvaz. According to this national teachers' organization, Mr. Jalalinezad's trial took place in December, during which this imprisoned teacher and two other defendants were brought to the trial session with ankle shackles. The names of these two defendants were not mentioned in the report by the Coordinating Council of Iranian Teachers' Trade Unions. The report states that despite the insistence of these three defendants on their innocence, the judge 'issued the initial sentence of 3.5 years in prison solely based on interrogations, without regard to the lack of evidence, sufficient documentation, and expert statements.' Typically, the judicial system of the Islamic Republic relies on interrogations in issuing sentences, despite the emphasis from released political prisoners and human rights organizations that physical and psychological torture is used against prisoners during interrogations. The Coordinating Council also reported that the judge agreed to convert the detention order to a salary slip, and Farzaneh Zilabi, the case's lawyer, expressed hope for overturning the ruling in the appeals court while protesting the verdict. The Coordinating Council of Iranian Teachers' Trade Unions fully supports this imprisoned teacher and calls for an end to security-related cases against teachers. In recent years, security and judicial confrontations with teachers and their union activists have increased. The national teachers' organization states that the suppression of teachers continues, and Ismail Abdi has been banned from leaving the country due to 'case-making by the IRGC' against union activists. A union council reports that the Ministry of Education in Kurdistan is obstructing the activities of civil institutions, and the selective hiring of teachers has been rejected; 'opponents' will not be accepted.