Iran: Report on Women Prisoners Detained Illegally

Confirmed reports from Evin Prison suggest that a number of female political prisoners have been held illegally for months, and face unsubstantiated charges which can lead to heavy verdicts. According to the Kalame website, one such prisoner is Maryam Akbari-Monfared, who was arrested on December 31, 2009, following the Ashura events, and is currently held in Evin.

Akbari-Monfared is the mother of 3 children, with her youngest aged at 5. She has been accused of Moharebeh for alleged membership in the MKO, a charge that she has repeatedly denied. Akbari-Monfared’s temporary detention order has never been renewed, and she remains extremely concerned for her children, who in her absence, are going through difficult times.
Parvin Javanzadeh is another female prisoner who is being held under harsh conditions. Javanzadeh was arrested in the afternoon of Ashura (December 27, 2009), and is currently waiting in limbo in Evin Prison. At 22, she is the youngest political prisoner at Evin’s women’s ward. Javanzadeh spent the first 3 months of her captivity in solitary confinement at an IRGC detention center, and her physical and emotional well being have suffered greatly as a result. Reports from Evin suggest that the young woman faces Moharbeh charges, and her case has recently been sent to the 15th branch of the Revolutionary Court in Tehran.

Also detained unlawfully in Evin on expired detention orders are, Kobra Zagheh-Doost, Badrolsadat Mofidi (secretary of the Iranian Journalists Association) and Fatemeh Khorramjoo. All 3 are said to be in poor physical and emotional states.

May 27, 2010