<<previous | index | next>> VI. Arbitrary Arrest and Detention
These were the first few hours of what would become months of detention, harassment, and intimidation for Moshen M., a young doctor and student activist who had been very vocal on his university campus. He had recently been elected to a high position in a campus student group and had given a speech on student activism and written several articles critical of government hardliners in reformist newspapers. He was targeted by the Ministry of Intelligence (Vezarat-e Etelaat) prior to its clean-up in 2001.7 Iran is a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which prohibits arbitrary arrests and detentions. An arrest or detention is arbitrary when not carried out in accordance with the law, or if the law is itself arbitrary or so broadly worded as to allow arrest and detention even for the peaceful exercise of basic rights such as freedom of expression.8 In 2000 and 2001, many intellectuals, activists, and dissidents feared the Ministry of Intelligence, which was known for its links with plainclothes security agents ready to do the ministrys bidding: pick up dissidents, search homes, and imprison activists and intellectuals in illegal detention centerswithout judicial orders or on the basis of vaguely worded prohibitions. Since 2000 the use of plainclothes security agents to attack critics of the government has taken on a more formal character. They are increasingly armed, violent, and use sophisticated communication and transportation equipment. Very few of the individuals interviewed have reported encounters with the regular Iranian police or Law Enforcement Forces [LEF]. We asked one writer if the uniformed police had worked with or attempted to stop the plainclothes agents who had attacked a group of students and others who had gathered to hear him speak, The police? he replied, The police are afraid of these groups.9 These state sponsored groups have been implicated in the crimes of assault, theft, illegal seizure, and illegal detention. The cumulative effect of their activities is to foster an environment where people are afraid to speak out, to write critically, and to engage in political activism. Dr. M.s experience is typical of those who were arrested or picked up in 2000, when the Ministry of Intelligence was firmly under the control of conservatives. Farhad T.s unlawful arrest in September 2000 followed a similar pattern:
Farhad T. had been very active in developing youth support for President Khatamis initiatives, had recently given a speech in early 2000 where he challenged Expediency Council Chairman (and former president) Hashemi Rafsanjani on government policies. This was his first of several encounters with plainclothes officers. He was never charged with any crime. Those who spoke out were typically picked up by plainclothes agents. Several established writers and intellectuals said that upon hearing that they were to be detained, decided to report to the courtroom themselves. This did not prevent them from being subjected to similar treatment. Massoud Behnoud, a highly respected journalist and writer, heard from a newspaper reporter on August 8, 2000 that his arrest would be announced in the dailies the following day:
Behnoud was then driven to his second home, where the men carried out another five hours of aggressive searching through his private belongings. Despite Behnouds repeated requests, the men never displayed a search warrant:
With this, Behnoud, like many other political prisoners before him, and many more who would come after him over the next three years, entered Tehrans notorious Evin prison. None of the journalists arrested and detained during the first wave of the crackdown in 2000-2001 were promptly charged with a crime. Irans constitution requires that the authorities submit provisional charges to the competent judicial authorities within 24 hours.14 As described above, detainees were held, often incommunicado and in solitary confinement, for long periods without being charged, in violation of the constitution and Irans obligations under international human rights law.15 Several former prisoners told Human Rights Watch that all of Mortazavis prisoners were cut off from communications for several long stretches beginning in late 2001. While in prison in early 2000 and 2001, a group of Mortazavis Prisoners provided secret interviews over prison telephones, passed letters to the press and international organizations through their families, and were able to pass messages to their families about the condition of other political prisoners or about their most recent encounters with their judges.16 These testimonies, which document the invasion of privacy, threats of false prosecutions, and intimidation of writers and journalists critical of the government are typical of the experiences of the other individuals that spoke with Human Rights Watch. [6] Human Rights Watch telephone interview with Dr. Mohsen M., Ankara, Turkey, December 8, 2003. [7] In late 1998 and early 1999, a number of Irans most prominent writers, journalists, and secular intellectuals were brutally murdered in a series of killings that came to be known in Iran as the Serial Murders [qatl-hayeh zanjiri]. In a watershed response, the government announced in January 1999 that a group of rogue elements within the Ministry of Intelligence were operating a death squad that was responsible for the killings. President Khatami created a commission to investigate the serial murders, and to charge all the Ministry of Intelligence staff involved. At least seventeen staff were terminated, including Said Emami, the man charged with masterminding the group and later said to have committed suicide in prison. See, for example, Iran OKs New Intelligence Minister, Associated Press, February 24, 1999; Scott Peterson, Irans Arrests of Intelligence Officers May be Watershed, Christian Science Monitor, January 8, 1999. A new minister was appointed, and the agency was brought more directly under the control of the Presidents office. However, many dissidents told Human Rights Watch that many of the individuals who were removed from the Ministry moved to the intelligence services of the judicial authority and currently operate a parallel intelligence service targeting those who are politically active or vocal. [8] International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), G.A. res. 2200A (XXI), 21 U.N. GAOR Supp. (No. 16) at 52, U.N. Doc. A/6316 (1966), 999 U.N.T.S. 171, entered into force Mar. 23, 1976. Iran ratified the ICCPR in June 1975. Article 9(1) states: Everyone has the right to liberty and security of person. No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest or detention. No one shall be deprived of his liberty except on such grounds and in accordance with such procedure as are established by law. [9] Human Rights Watch interview with Siamak S. (not his real name), December 20, 2003. [10] Human Rights Watch interview with Farhad T. (not his real name), London, December 21, 2003. [11] Human Rights Watch interview with Massoud Behnoud, London, December 20, 2003. [12] Human Rights Watch interview with Massoud Behnoud, London, December 20, 2003. [13] Human Rights Watch interview with Massoud Behnoud, London, December 20, 2003. [14] Article 32 of the Iranian Constitution states: No one may be arrested except by the order and in accordance with the procedure laid down by law. In case of arrest, charges with the reasons for accusation must, without delay, be communicated and explained to the accused in writing, and a provisional dossier must be forwarded to the competent judicial authorities within a maximum of twenty-four hours so that the preliminaries to the trial can be completed as swiftly as possible. The violation of this article will be liable to punishment in accordance with the law. [15] See ICCPR, article 9 (anyone who is arrested shall be informed, at the time of arrest, of the reasons for his arrest and shall be promptly informed of any charges against him). [16] Examples include the number of critical letters and interviews by journalist and writer Akbar Ganji, the letter passed to the international press from Ahmed Batebi, and others. Prison letters from Nasser Zarafshan, Akbar Ganji, and Ahmed Batebi are on file with Human Rights Watch.
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