Michael de Laine

By Michael de Laine, The Copenhagen Voice, 8 July 2009

Human rights activitists fear that pro-democracy demonstrators were among prisoners hanged last weekend or killed in other ways in prison. Demonstrators have also been tortured, a witness says.

A group of human rights activists living in different parts of the world, but related to Iran, is investigating whether pro-democracy demonstrators were among prisoners who were hanged recently at a prison near Teheran.

Citing the state-run Iranian news agency Fars, the group, Iran Human Rights, said 20 people were hanged in the Rajaee shahr prison of Karaj (west of Tehran) early on 4 July. The Fars report stated that ‘all those hanged were convicted of drug trafficking between 2004 and 2008, and were between 35 and 48 years of age’.

The human rights organisaton said Rajaee shahr prison is not normally used for executions, but used under special situations.

“34 people have been executed in Iran in the past four days, and 26 of the executions have taken place in Tehran,” said Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, spokesperson of Iran Human Rights. “There is no doubt that these executions are meant to spread fear among the people and suppress further the pro-democracy movement in Iran.”

Amiry-Moghaddam’s comments were supported by a source who talked to the Norwegian daily newspaper Aftenposten.

The source has demanded full anonymity because of the large personal risks involved in speaking with foreign media. The source sympathises with the opposition and has a position in Iran giving in-depth knowledge of how the authorities are reacting to the situation that has arisen since the presidential election on 12 June, says the newspaper.

“The prisoners are subjected to advanced torture,” the souce said. “The families of those arrested can also be subjected to physical or mental abuse to get them to talk.”

On Sunday 14 June, Aftenposten’s journalists witnessed Iranian special forces forcing frightened young men from the street demonstrations into the basement of the ministry of the interior, where they were bound with plastic strips and forced to squat with their faces towards the wall.

The police said the demonstrators were being detained ‘indefinitely’.

Asked whether the lives of such prisoners were now at stake, the source said: “Yes, what you described is a typical example of what happened after the election. The authorities said that just over 1,000 were arrested in connection with the demonstrations. We believe the number is considerably higher, perhaps twice as many. There are a lot of people who are just ‘missing’ and their families have no information about them. We are gravely concerned about what can happen to these prisoners. On the basis of our previous experience with the regime’s repression, I believe that at least 50 of the demonstrators will be hanged or killed in other ways in the prisons in the near future.”

Aftenposten said its source referred to the events of 8 July 1999, when a peaceful student demonstration in Teheran against the closure of the Salam newspaper turned into a riot. Salam was the mouthpiece of the reform movement led by Iran’s then president, Mohammad Khatami. The peaceful demonstration was followed by an attack on a student dormitory that night by riot police in which a student was killed. This in turn sparked six days of demonstrations and rioting throughout the country in which at least three more people were killed and more than 200 injured.

According to Amiry-Moghaddam, “Several thousand people have been arrested following the last three weeks’ demonstrations in Iran. Many of them are in danger of torture, forced confession and execution. The world community, UN, EU and all countries with diplomatic ties with Iran must do whatever they can in order to stop the bloodshed started by the Iranian regime.”

Amiry-Moghaddam continued: “The world must act now, before it is too late! We also ask the world community to support the legitimate demands of the Iranian people and not to recognize results of the recent Iranian election.”

Iran Human Rights is a group of human rights activists living in different parts of the world. Most have Iranian origin or live inside Iran. The aim of group is to put focus on the human rights situation in Iran and contribute to its improvement.

Click here to go to Iran Human Rights’ website.

Click here to read Aftenposten’s Norwegian story.

Click here to read the Copenhagen Voice story, ‘New demonstrations planned in Iran on Thursday - FFFI’.

Click here to read the Copenhagen Voice report, ‘Iran clerics declare election invalid, condemn crackdown - The Times’.

Click here to read the Copenhagen Voice story, ‘Eight hungers strikers fight high temperatures for democracy in Iran’.