Kamall Lotfi Denied Medical Services and Visitation Rights; Pressure on Political Prisoners Continues

Fifty-five days after the arrest of Kamall Lotfi, a member of a grieving family, he remains in a state of uncertainty at the Kamyaran prison under temporary detention without access to a lawyer, medical services, or family visits. On Tuesday, June 4, the Kurdistan Human Rights Network reported on the situation of Kamall Lotfi, the father of Reza Lotfi, who was killed by government forces in the city of Dehgolan, Kurdistan province, during protests against the death of Mahsa Amini while in custody of the morality police in 2022. According to a knowledgeable source, Mr. Lotfi was transferred to Kamyaran prison at the end of Ordibehesht (May) after about a month of detention in one of the security detention centers in Kurdistan province. The report states that Kamall Lotfi has been deprived of the right to access a lawyer, visitation, and contact with family by the order of the Kamyaran prosecutor and continues to remain in detention without a clear status. The source indicated that Mr. Lotfi, who suffers from a skin disease, has been denied access to medication and medical services, raising concerns among his family regarding his health condition. Additionally, it is noted that Kamall Lotfi, a father seeking justice, has been in limbo for 45 days since his arrest. He was arrested on Farvardin 21 (April 10) after being summoned to the public and revolutionary prosecutor's office in Qorveh, Kurdistan province, and transferred to a security detention center. Previously, he had been sentenced by the Dehgolan Revolutionary Court to one year in prison for 'propaganda against the regime,' two years for 'insulting' the Supreme Leader, and two years for 'insulting' the founder of the Islamic Republic. According to Article 134 of the Consolidation of Sentences Law, if this sentence is confirmed, a two-year prison term will be enforceable for Kamall Lotfi. The report indicates that after Mr. Lotfi's objection to this ruling, the case was referred for reconsideration to the Kurdistan Provincial Court of Appeals. Kamall Lotfi was first arrested on Farvardin 27 (April 16) of the previous year in Dehgolan by security forces. About a month later, in protest against his continued detention in Kamyaran prison, he went on a hunger strike for several weeks and was eventually released temporarily on bail after 87 days of detention on Tir 12 (July 1) of that year. The Kurdistan Human Rights Network reported that three weeks after the arrest of Susan Hassan Zadeh, a civil activist and Kurdish language teacher, she remains imprisoned in the Urmia Intelligence Department detention center without the right to visit family or contact a lawyer. A knowledgeable source told this human rights group that since Ms. Hassan Zadeh's arrest, she has only had a brief phone call with her family and reported being held in solitary confinement in a security detention center in Urmia. According to this source, the family of this civil activist has repeatedly visited the court and security agencies in the city of Boukan to inquire about her status, but so far, they have not received any clear answers. Susan Hassan Zadeh, from Boukan, was violently arrested on Ordibehesht 26 (May 15) in one of the streets of this city. She has 17 years of experience teaching the Kurdish language in Boukan and surrounding villages and has been summoned and interrogated multiple times by security agencies due to her activities in recent years. The Kurdistan Human Rights Network noted that in recent years, pressure, summons, arrests, and prison sentences against Kurdish language activists have increased, mentioning that in early Ordibehesht (April), Souma PourMohammadi, a Kurdish language teacher and a member of the board of the cultural-social association 'Nozhin,' was sentenced to 10 years in exile in Kermanshah prison by the Sanandaj Revolutionary Court for 'forming groups and associations aimed at disrupting national security.' The human rights organization 'ADAP' also reported on Tuesday that Hadi Sharifi, an Azerbaijani civil activist, was arrested by government forces in the 'Baharestan' district of Tehran on Friday morning, June 1. The 'ADAP' report indicated that Mr. Sharifi's arrest involved violence, and he was transferred to an unknown location. Relatives of Hadi Sharifi told 'ADAP' that eight plainclothes agents and one police officer did not have an arrest warrant when they detained Sharifi. They stated that Hadi Sharifi's father has not received any results from his inquiries at the Baharestan and Tehran Revolutionary Prosecutor's Office, and the judicial authorities have claimed ignorance regarding his arrest, raising concerns among his family about his enforced disappearance. The Syndicate of Workers of the Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company reported on the health condition of Reza Shahabi, a jailed member of this labor organization, stating that he was transferred to the medical clinic of Evin prison for two consecutive nights due to back pain and sciatica. The syndicate noted that the prison doctor has refused to send Mr. Shahabi to the hospital for an MRI, adding that this imprisoned labor activist 'cannot move and even perform basic hygiene and daily tasks.' According to the report, Reza Shahabi is 'suffering from severe pain in the back, thigh, and calf, as well as tingling in his toes and numbness in his right leg,' and he has repeatedly requested an appointment with a surgeon due to 'severe back and neck pain,' but Evin prison officials have prevented his transfer to the hospital 'due to not wearing prison clothes,' while 'some specific prisoners are always and continuously sent to the hospital without prison clothes.' The syndicate emphasized that Reza Shahabi's 'need for treatment' outside of prison is 'urgent' and noted that this labor activist has repeatedly requested leave for treatment but has received no response or has been denied by the 'prison classification council.' The syndicate called for an end to this 'inhumane process' and for the immediate and unconditional release of Reza Shahabi and his transfer to the hospital 'without the requirement to wear prison clothes,' as well as the unconditional release of other imprisoned members of the syndicate; Davood Razavi and Hassan Saidi, and other labor, teaching, and civil activists.