Fatemeh Karroubi: Rouhani Has Not Secured the Rights of the House Arrested

Fatemeh Karroubi, the wife of Mehdi Karroubi, one of the leaders under house arrest from Iran's Green Movement, criticized Hassan Rouhani on Wednesday, April 29, stating that he has not secured the rights of those under house arrest "contrary to his oath." According to the news website Khabar Kermanshah, close to Mir Hossein Mousavi, Fatemeh Karroubi mentioned in a meeting with several former parliament members that "arbitrary house arrest is against the explicit text of the Constitution and the laws of the country, and insisting on its continuation is an insistence on lawlessness." The house arrest of Zahra Rahnavard, Mir Hossein Mousavi, and Mehdi Karroubi has entered its eighth year, during which there have been some changes in their situation. In recent months, several political activists have managed to meet with Mehdi Karroubi, and the restrictions on the scheduling of visits for Mir Hossein Mousavi and Zahra Rahnavard with their daughters have also been lifted. However, according to the daughters of Mr. Mousavi and Ms. Rahnavard, the "created openings" regarding their parents and Mehdi Karroubi are "drops in a bucket," and "the security conditions of house arrest over the homes and protection and movement are still ongoing as before." Ms. Karroubi also confirmed this point on Wednesday, stating: "We are in the eighth year of house arrest, and after this long period, only a few openings have occurred." She further remarked about Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, saying: "It is regrettable that he has not taken effective action to protect the rights of the house arrested, both in his first and second terms, contrary to his oath." Fatemeh Karroubi emphasized that the Supreme National Security Council's resolution regarding house arrest is "illegal even if such a resolution exists," and that Hassan Rouhani's government has not fulfilled the "legitimate and legal demand of the people and the two house-arrested families for the visibility of the Supreme National Security Council's resolution." Her reference is to a resolution that some officials of the Islamic Republic, including officials from the judiciary, claim belongs to the National Security Council and mandates the house arrest of the Green Movement leaders. In contrast, Rouhani's government officials have denied the existence of such a resolution. In this context, the spokesperson for the judiciary stated last Esfand that the National Security Council has made "no changes" in its resolution regarding the house arrest of the leaders of the 2009 protests, but if this council's resolution changes, they will be tried. On Wednesday, Ms. Karroubi warned the Rouhani government: "Government officials should note that there are only three years left in this government's term, yet many promises in the fields of economy, culture, and politics remain unfulfilled, and unfortunately, no will has been seen in the government to implement these promises and confront lawbreakers. Breach of promise is the root of people's despair." Officials of Hassan Rouhani's government have repeatedly promised to pursue the lifting of house arrest, but this issue, which was also one of Hassan Rouhani's electoral slogans, has not yet been realized. The families of Mousavi and Karroubi and several political activists have repeatedly criticized the Rouhani government for not taking practical action to lift the house arrest.