The Syndicate of Workers of the Tehran Bus Company Condemns the Deprivation of Political Prisoners' Rights in Evin

Following the continued deprivation of several female political prisoners in Evin Prison from telephone contact and visitation rights, the Syndicate of Workers of the Tehran Bus Company condemned the 'punitive and repressive measures against the female prisoners in Evin.' According to human rights sources, 15 female political prisoners in Evin Prison have been subjected to beatings by prison guards following a peaceful sit-in against the execution of Reza Rasayi, a protester following the Yarsan faith from the city of Sahneh in Kermanshah province, and have been deprived of their right to telephone contact and visitation with their families since August 7. In a statement on September 24, the Syndicate recognized the right to visitation as a fundamental right acknowledged for all prisoners and emphasized that 'depriving these prisoners, which includes labor, civil activists, and women's rights defenders, has no legal or human justification.' Additionally, dozens of human rights organizations have called for international investigations into the 'brutal repression' of female prisoners in Evin. According to 'Hengaw,' a news agency of human rights activists in Iran, these deprivations were ordered by the 'disciplinary committee' of Evin Prison concerning Pakhshan Azizi, Elaheh Fooladi, Pariush Moslemi, Nasrin Khazari-Javadi, Zahra Safaei, Narges Mohammadi, Samaneh Asghari, Anisha Asadollahi, Mahbubeh Rezaei, Varisheh Moradi, Golrokh Iraei, Reyhaneh Ansari-Nejad, Maryam Yahyavi, Sarina Jahani, and Sanaz Yekta. The report states that Pakhshan Azizi and Elaheh Fooladi have each been deprived of telephone contact and visitation for three months; Narges Mohammadi, Golrokh Iraei, Samaneh Asghari, Anisha Asadollahi, Mahbubeh Rezaei, Varisheh Moradi, and Reyhaneh Ansari-Nejad for two months; and Pariush Moslemi, Nasrin Khazari-Javadi, Zahra Safaei, Maryam Yahyavi, Sarina Jahani, and Sanaz Yekta for one month. Some of these political prisoners, such as Narges Mohammadi, a human rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize winner, have been deprived of contact and visitation rights since December 2 of last year; Pakhshan Azizi, a political prisoner sentenced to death, and Elaheh Fooladi since July 6 of this year; and Varisheh Moradi since mid-May of this year, by order of Judge Abolqasem Salavati, head of Branch 15 of the Islamic Revolutionary Court of Tehran. The U.S. Department of State expressed concern on August 20 regarding the attack on Narges Mohammadi, stating it was 'deeply troubling.' The Department condemned the attack on Narges Mohammadi and other women prisoners in Evin due to their peaceful protest against the execution of Reza Rasayi as 'extremely distressing.' The U.S. government also called on the Islamic Republic to end attacks against human rights defenders and to release all 'unjustly detained prisoners' in the country. The representative of the Catalonia Parliament in Spain has taken political sponsorship of Pakhshan Azizi. The Iran Human Rights Campaign reported that at least 34 political prisoners have been deprived of adequate medical services in the past two and a half months. The United Nations declared the beating of Narges Mohammadi and other women in Evin Prison as a form of 'torture.' Mustafa Nili reported that prison guards have struck the area of a 'tumor' in Narges Mohammadi's body. The health condition of Sarvnaz Ahmadi in Evin Prison has been reported as 'very critical'; guards are opposing her medical leave. Amnesty International reacted to the beating of Narges Mohammadi and other women prisoners in Evin by calling for independent observers' access to prisons. The phone line of Narges Mohammadi in Evin Prison has been cut; the Nobel Peace Prize winner has requested a 'meeting with her lawyers.'