Two Political Prisoners Emphasize the Non-Partisan Nature of the No to Execution Campaign on Tuesdays

Reza Mohammadi and Zartosht Ahmadi Raghb, two political prisoners, emphasized in an audio message that the No to Execution campaign on Tuesdays is a non-partisan movement defending human lives and does not belong to any party, organization, or group. These two political prisoners, who are founders of the No to Execution campaign, stated that the Islamic Republic uses the death penalty to 'intimidate and suppress the people' and employs it as a method to counter freedom-seeking movements. Zartosht Ahmadi Raghb mentioned in his audio message that since the establishment of the oppressive regime in 1979, we have sadly witnessed this violent and blatant method that dictators and tyrants throughout history have used to suppress the people, which is the violence of execution. He added that in the name of law, religion, or ideology, they wield a sword against the people and, when faced with the solidarity of the people, they seek to impose silence and oppression in society, thus resorting to this double-edged sword. According to Mr. Ahmadi Raghb, Islamic Republic officials 'want to silence the people with executions.' This political prisoner emphasized that the No to Execution campaign is 'a humanitarian movement in support of human lives.' He stated that since they have witnessed these crimes by the government for years, especially in Rajai Shahr and Qezel Hesar prisons, they have gathered together with various thoughts and ideas to launch the No to Execution campaign. They agreed that no group or party should exploit this campaign or ride its wave. Additionally, Reza Mohammadi, another initiator of the No to Execution campaign, recorded a message via phone from Qezel Hesar prison, stating that one of the blatant acts of violence that the religious tyranny uses to intimidate and suppress dissenters and freedom-seekers is executions, which they exploit whenever a movement against the dictatorship arises. Mr. Mohammadi noted that political prisoners, especially those in Rajai Shahr and later in Qezel Hesar, witnessed these crimes and decided to stand against this injustice. He emphasized that the No to Execution campaign is undoubtedly formed outside of any organizational faction and that they all decided to support human lives. Last February, ten political prisoners in Qezel Hesar prison announced that from now on, every Tuesday, they would go on a hunger strike in protest against executions, under the title 'Black Tuesdays' or 'No to Execution Tuesdays,' aiming to draw public attention to executions in the Islamic Republic's prisons in Iran. According to a report from the Persian section of Voice of America, on January 30, 2023, 'Zartosht Ahmadi Raghb, Jafar Ebrahimi, Ahmadreza Haeri, Loghman Aminpour, Meysam Dehban Zadeh, Saeed Masouri, Reza Mohammadi, Reza Salmani Zadeh, Hamzeh Savari, and Sepehr Imam Jomeh' were the first prisoners to announce that they would go on hunger strike on Tuesdays in protest against the execution process. This campaign later gained support from prisoners in dozens of Islamic Republic prisons and attracted the attention of human rights organizations. Notably, Shirin Ebadi, a lawyer and Nobel Peace Prize winner, described the 'No to Execution Tuesdays' campaign as 'the result of not surrendering to pressure and repression' and also 'emphasizing unity and collective action.' Furthermore, nine Nobel Peace Prize laureates issued a joint letter supporting this campaign, calling for an end to the 'inhumane punishment of execution' by the Islamic Republic in Iran. Recently, Arsham Rezai, another political prisoner and member of the No to Execution campaign, detailed his personal experience with executions in prison in a letter sent to Voice of America, stating that in the first week he spent in solitary confinement, he witnessed the transfer of 12 prisoners sentenced to death. Mr. Rezai referred to the 'torture' of some prisoners sentenced to death through hanging and then resuscitation and called for other prisoners to join this campaign to 'end this medieval practice.'