Isa Kalantari: Clarify the Status of Environmental Detainees

The head of the Department of Environment has called for clarity regarding the environmental detainees. According to the IRNA news agency, Isa Kalantari stated on Sunday that these individuals have been detained since last February on charges of espionage, emphasizing that the Minister of Intelligence, as the only official authority to declare someone a spy, has stated that these individuals are not spies. The head of the Department of Environment also insisted that he is not saying whether these individuals should be released or executed, but rather is calling for their status to be determined. Mr. Kalantari had previously expressed concern about the situation of environmental activists in the Iran newspaper on Khordad 2, stating that the accusations against some of them do not involve espionage. However, Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi, the Tehran prosecutor, described these remarks as 'interference' in the judiciary's work and 'contrary to regulations,' stating that such comments are 'not appropriate' for the head of the Department of Environment and other executive officials. Kalantari has now told IRNA that it was supposed to be determined by the end of summer regarding these detainees, but they have not yet been tried. In February 2018, nine environmental activists were detained, followed by others, with espionage being one of the charges against them. Three months later, in May of this year, several environmental activists wrote a letter to President Hassan Rouhani, requesting clarification on the status of 13 wildlife experts and environmental activists in Iran. Among those imprisoned since last February in Ward 2-A of the Revolutionary Guards are Mir Hossein Khalighi, Hooman Jokar, Taher Ghadirian, Sam Rajabi, Niloufar Bayani, Sepideh Kashani, Morad Tahbaz, and Abdolreza Kouhpayeh. Kavous Seyed-Emami, a university professor and environmental activist, was also detained along with these eight individuals, and on February 21, his family was informed that he had 'committed suicide' in prison, a claim his family has denied. In Esfand of last year, when Maryam Mambini, the wife of Kavous Seyed-Emami, and their two sons attempted to leave Iran for Canada, her departure was prevented at the airport. Amnesty International has stated that 'preventing independent investigations' into Seyed-Emami's 'very suspicious death' is indicative of a 'deliberate and planned attempt to conceal any evidence of torture and murder.' On Khordad 1, the head of the Department of Environment announced that a four-member committee formed by the President to follow up on the fate of these detainees concluded that 'the detained activists should be released because there is no evidence to support the accusations against them.' The families of the environmental activists reiterated their children's innocence in a letter to the heads of the three branches of government on Mordad 9 and requested that a delegation representing the government and parliament hear the statements of the detainees. Mohammad Hossein Aghasi, the lawyer for two of the detainees, announced that their case has not yet gone to court and is still with the Tehran prosecutor for review and consideration of the indictment. He added that 'this case has eight defendants, and an indictment has been issued for five of them on charges of espionage.' According to him, the indictment issued by the investigative branch has been sent to the Tehran prosecutor for review and will then be sent to court.