Letter to the Head of the Judiciary; Hojjati Calls for Legal Attention to Ehsan Mazandarani's Situation

Elias Hojjati, a representative from Tehran in the parliament, in a letter to Ayatollah Sadegh Larijani, the head of the judiciary, requested "legal attention" to the case of Ehsan Mazandarani, a imprisoned journalist, considering his health condition. Recently, news has emerged regarding Mr. Mazandarani's poor physical condition, including a tweet from his wife, Malihe Hosseini, on Tuesday, August 31, stating that the imprisoned journalist was "transferred to the medical facility of Evin prison in a semi-unconscious state with blood pressure below 8, sugar below 40, and heart rate of 130, but the doctor only monitored his level of consciousness and stated that no action could be taken for his treatment." On Friday, September 2, Ms. Hosseini tweeted again, asking Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi, the Tehran prosecutor, to "stop torturing her husband." According to ISNA news agency, in Mr. Hojjati's letter to the head of the judiciary, referring to the former editor of the Farhikhtegan newspaper, it is stated: "Ehsan Mazandarani was sentenced long ago and was serving his sentence when he was released a while ago and returned to prison a few days later under the pretext that a mistake had been made. Now, with about a month left until the end of his sentence, his respected wife has written a letter about his unfortunate physical condition, which is truly distressing." Meanwhile, a relative of Ehsan Mazandarani stated in an interview with Radio Farda that he "was healthy and had no illness before his arrest" and added: "Ehsan Mazandarani developed respiratory and lung problems after his arrest and poor detention conditions." According to ISNA, Elias Hojjati, in his letter to the head of the judiciary, pointed out that "the imposition of punishment and imprisonment on any convict should be accompanied by Islamic compassion and kindness" and added: "I wish there was an authority to address these simple requests so that representatives would not need to follow up, and the very existence of such a situation is a negative point for the adjudicating body." Ehsan Mazandarani had previously gone on hunger strikes several times in protest against issues such as "illegal detention" and "mistreatment by prison officials." A relative of this imprisoned journalist told Radio Farda: "Ehsan Mazandarani, after the hunger strike, which lasted 60 days in the first instance and only water was consumed in the second hunger strike that lasted 18 days, was ultimately transferred to the hospital in a semi-unconscious state suffering from stomach bleeding, duodenal ulcers, and stomach ulcers." He noted that Mr. Mazandarani "visited a forensic doctor at the request of the supervising prosecutor for examination and to determine the extent of his illness a year ago," adding: "The specialist clearly stated that continuing imprisonment would exacerbate Ehsan's illness." He also added: "Evin officials have transferred Ehsan Mazandarani to the hospital eight times in the past few months, but unfortunately, evidence suggests that no treatment is intended, and these transfers are merely for formalities. Meanwhile, Evin prison officials have repeatedly warned the prosecutor in writing about his condition." According to this relative of Mr. Mazandarani's family, "after a year and the refusal to grant leave or release, Ehsan's condition has become critical." He pointed out that "there is blood in Ehsan Mazandarani's urine, and he also has nosebleeds at night" and added: "For the past 10 days, he has been unable to eat food or anything with taste or smell, and his stomach rejects it. He also cannot eat due to illness and only drinks water. His heart rate has decreased, and his ability to converse has also diminished." This relative of Mr. Mazandarani's family said: "The question is, while there is only a month left until Ehsan Mazandarani's imprisonment ends, what dangers could the refusal to grant leave connected to his release, which is a basic right of a prisoner, pose that officials insist on?" He expressed hope that given "Ehsan Mazandarani's physical condition and before any unfortunate incident occurs," the prosecutor would agree to his leave connected to his release. Previously, the daughter of Hengameh Shahidi, a journalist and political activist imprisoned, had tweeted that her mother had begun a dry hunger strike a week ago. Reports indicate that Ms. Shahidi's hunger strike is in protest against "indecision and the lack of accountability of judicial officials." Meanwhile, there is no news on the situation of Yaghma Fashakhami, a journalist who was arrested on the evening of Tuesday, August 30. The Khabar Online website, close to Mir Hossein Mousavi, reported that this journalist was arrested by security agents at his workplace, the Didban Iran website. It was added that the arrest of this journalist was carried out by the judiciary's intelligence protection. Mr. Fashakhami was also arrested in 2015 and imprisoned for a while. He has been a reporter for the monthly "Payam Hajar" and a former reporter for the "Rozan" newspaper. Before him, Sasan Aghaei, the deputy editor of the Etemad newspaper, had also been arrested. Reporters Without Borders states that Iran ranks 165th out of 180 countries in its press freedom ranking this year. In this context, the Tehran prosecutor stated: "We will not yield to the hunger strikes of prisoners." Reza Moieni stated: "A new round of repression of journalists has begun in Iran." Reporters Without Borders criticized the "gross violation of media freedom and threats against journalists." The court sentenced Eisa Saharkhiz to six months in prison.