Prison Officials in Qarchak Prevent Meeting Between Maryam Akbari Monfared and Her Husband

The lawyer of Maryam Akbari Monfared, a political prisoner who has spent the last 15 years without a single day of leave, confirmed that the officials at Qarchak prison did not allow Ms. Akbari to meet her husband. Hossein Taj stated on Sunday, January 13, to the Shargh newspaper that his client's husband obtained a meeting order from the prosecutor's office, but prison officials prevented the meeting from taking place. According to Mr. Taj, the prison officials claimed that after inquiring with the Civil Registration Organization, 'the marriage of my client and her husband was not verified, and for this reason, they did not allow the meeting.' Previously, Zhila Bani-Yaghoub, a journalist and former cellmate of Maryam Akbari Monfared, reported that the officials at Qarchak prison said that in-person meetings are 'not a right but a privilege.' Hossein Taj pointed out that the Qarchak prison officials only agreed to a cabin meeting with his client's two daughters, stating that according to the law, cabin meetings are possible every week, and in-person meetings are usually once a month, but this law 'is not applied to Ms. Akbari Monfared by the Qarchak women's prison.' Maryam Akbari Monfared, who comes from a family of victims of the executions of prisoners in the 1980s, was arrested in 2009 and sentenced to 15 years in prison by the Revolutionary Court on charges of 'moharebeh' (waging war against God) and 'acting against national security.' This 15-year sentence was supposed to end in October of this year in Semnan prison, but this political prisoner was sentenced to an additional two years for 'propaganda against the regime' last September. Zhila Bani-Yaghoub had previously told Radio Farda that Maryam Akbari Monfared is a victim of the malice and stubbornness of the security forces.