UN Special Rapporteurs Call for the Release of Three Iranian Artists

Two UN special rapporteurs issued an official statement emphasizing the right to freedom of expression for all and the right to artistic activity, calling for the release of three imprisoned artists in Iran. In a statement released by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on Friday, July 4, Karima Bennoune, the UN Special Rapporteur on Cultural Rights, and David Kaye, the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression, jointly demanded the release of Mehdi and Hossein Rajabian and Yousef Emadi. Mehdi and Hossein Rajabian are two brothers active in music and filmmaking, while Yousef Emadi is a musician. The Rajabian brothers, composers and musicians, were sentenced to six years in prison by Branch 28 of the Islamic Revolutionary Court of Tehran on charges of 'insulting the sacred' and 'propaganda against the regime.' This sentence was later reduced in an appeals court to three years of imprisonment and three years of suspended sentence. The two brothers officially reported to Evin Prison in Tehran on June 5, 2016. Yousef Emadi faces similar charges and convictions. The three were arrested in October 2013 at their studio and office, and according to the Kaleme website, all three were released on bail of 200 million tomans after enduring two months in solitary confinement in Ward 2A of the Revolutionary Guards. Kaleme reported at the time that there was 'intense pressure' on these three artists to confess in front of government television cameras. The arrest and imprisonment of these three artists faced widespread domestic and international condemnation, but these protests did not change the decisions of the judicial and security officials of the Islamic Republic regarding them. Now, Karima Bennoune, the UN Special Rapporteur on Cultural Rights, stated that these three artists have been 'unjustly convicted for exercising their right to freedom of media and creative activities.' Ms. Bennoune emphasized: 'Artistic activity is not a crime.' The statement from the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights noted that experts from the organization have contacted Iranian officials regarding this ruling and also about the 'torture' of Mr. Rajabian. Mehdi Rajabian was the founder of Barg Music, one of the most famous and active alternative music websites in Iran, which has been shut down by the Revolutionary Guards. David Kaye, the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression, also stated that imprisoning individuals on charges such as 'insulting the sacred' or 'propaganda against the regime' is 'incompatible with international human rights standards.'