The Daughters of Mousavi and Rahnavard Wrote to Religious Authorities About Their Parents' Situation

The daughters of Mir Hossein Mousavi and Zahra Rahnavard wrote a letter to religious authorities, criticizing officials for 'shying away' from pursuing the issue of their parents' house arrest, stating that 'the gradual death of the imprisoned has become the desire and plan of some.' Kouka, Zahra, and Narges Mousavi emphasized in a letter published on Sunday, October 15, on the 'Kaleme' website, that the imprisoned have 'paid the heavy cost of expressing the truth with knowledge, readiness, and heartfelt belief,' but this does not 'negate the responsibility and commitment of others.' According to the daughters of Mir Hossein Mousavi and Zahra Rahnavard, 'the responsible officials have deliberately shied away from addressing this important and blatant injustice' and 'only suffice to inquire about the well-being of the imprisoned in secrecy.' The letter stressed that officials 'are either complicit in and continuers of the injustice or they turn a blind eye to it with various collective and personal excuses, as if they were never aware of it.' The daughters stated that 'now, instead of freedom, the gradual death of the imprisoned has become the desire and plan of some, as well as an easy solution for others, so that instead of solving this undeniable problem, they wait for it and then escape responsibility with a thousand tricks.' The letter did not specify which officials it referred to. Institutions affiliated with the Supreme Leader defend the house arrest of the Green Movement leaders, while government officials appear to oppose the house arrest but have taken no practical action to lift it. The daughters of Mir Hossein Mousavi, Mehdi Karroubi, and Zahra Rahnavard had previously criticized the lack of follow-up on the house arrest issue by Hassan Rouhani's government. Lifting the house arrest was one of the main demands of Hassan Rouhani's supporters in the presidential elections of 2013 and 2017, and in both elections, Mr. Rouhani made promises explicitly or implicitly regarding lifting the house arrest. However, during the four years of Mr. Rouhani's first government, not only was there no public action to fulfill this promise, but restrictions on figures like Mohammad Khatami were also increased. Meanwhile, a group of national-religious activists inside the country recently stated in a letter that the president, in his capacity as the head of the Supreme National Security Council, has 'sufficient authority' to intervene in this matter and 'to persuade high-ranking officials of the system.' The daughters of Mir Hossein Mousavi also stated in their letter that their parents' natural rights, including 'medical care, have been delayed as much as possible to leave consequences, effects, and multiple abuses behind.' According to this letter, the daughters of Mir Hossein Mousavi and Zahra Rahnavard have no information about their parents except for weekly visits, and 'there is not even the possibility of a normal phone call without a request. Rather, a request must be made based on an unspecified protocol and unspecified individuals, and the possibility of it must be examined.' The daughters emphasized that their parents are 'illegally, un-Islamically, and inhumanely trapped in that hopeless and suspended situation, so that anyone can issue a decree based on power, hatred, and interests or make false accusations with distant and near goals.' Mir Hossein Mousavi, Mehdi Karroubi, and Zahra Rahnavard have been under house arrest without trial since February 2011. Their requests to attend a public court have not been accepted so far, and hardline military and clerical figures have threatened them with heavy sentences, including execution, from the judiciary. Meanwhile, Ali Motahari, the deputy speaker of parliament, in a letter to the judiciary spokesperson on August 21, again described the continuation of the house arrest of the Green Movement leaders by the Supreme National Security Council as 'against the constitution' and raised the question of whether the opposition to their trial 'does not create the suspicion of fear of revealing the truths?' The recent meeting of the Supreme National Security Council regarding the house arrest of Mir Hossein Mousavi, Mehdi Karroubi, and Zahra Rahnavard has made headlines in recent weeks, and government and judiciary officials have provided differing reports about this meeting. Ultimately, Keyvan Khosravi, the spokesperson for the Supreme National Security Council, announced that the issue of house arrest was not on the agenda of this council's recent meeting, and only a report about 'the openings created in the situation of the imprisoned' was presented, and 'no new decision regarding the main issue of house arrest was made.'