New information:
The Observatory has been informed by the League for the Defence of Human Rights in Iran (LDDHI) about the enforced disappearance of human rights lawyer Mr. Payam Derafshan [1] and the continuing judicial harassment against him and fellow human rights lawyer Farrokh Forouzan-Kermani.
According to information received, on June 8, 2020, Mr. Payam Derafshan was arrested in his office in Tehran by unknown individuals. However, the place of his detention, the reasons of the arrest, and the charges against him are not known as of the publication of this Urgent Appeal. However, his lawyer indicated that the arrest may be related to a new, national security-related case opened by Branch 2 of the Office of the Prosecutor for Security against him, and not to his client’s conviction in late January (see below). The details of this case are not known because defendants suspected of committing national security-related offences do not generally have access to the case files, and are not allowed to have lawyers of their choice during the investigation phase.
On January 31, 2020, Branch 1 of the Islamic Revolution Court in the city of Karaj, west of Tehran, convicted Messrs. Payam Derafshan and Farrokh Forouzan-Kermani on the charge of “insulting the Supreme Leader” (Article 514 of the Islamic Penal Code), sentenced them to two years in prison, and banned them from practising law for another two years. According to Mr. Derafshan’s lawyer, the court did not allow the defence lawyer to read the case file during the trial, in clear violation of international law on due process and fair trial. In a ruling dated May 3, 2020, the Court of Appeals reduced the prison sentence of both human rights lawyers to one year and retained the ban on professional practice. Both sentences were suspended for two years, which means that the sentence would be enforced if the same “offence” were committed by the defendants again.
The Observatory recalls that Messrs. Derafshan and Forouzan-Kermani were previously arrested on August 31, 2018, as part of a crackdown on human rights lawyers [2] and human rights defenders [3], and were released on bail on September 6, 2018 (see background information).
The Observatory expresses its strong concern over the enforced disappearance of Mr. Payam Derafshan and the continuing judicial harassment against him and Mr. Farrokh Forouzan-Kermani, which seems to be only aimed at punishing them for their human rights activities. The Observatory calls on the Iranian authorities to immediately and unconditionally disclose the fate and whereabouts of Mr. Payam Derafshan, and to put an end to all acts of harassment, including at the judicial level, against him and Mr. Farrokh Forouzan-Kermani, as well as all other human rights defenders in Iran.
Background information:
On August 31, 2018, Messrs. Payam Derafshan and Farrokh Forouzan-Kermani were arrested in the city of Karaj, west of Tehran, while visiting the family of fellow human rights lawyer Arash Kaykhosravi, who was arrested in front of the Iranian Parliament on August 18, 2018 together with another human rights lawyer, Mr. Ghasem Sholeh-Saadi [4]. The authorities did not provide the reasons for their arrests. Mr. Derafshan is Mr. Kaykhosravi’s lawyer and is also part of the defence team of human rights lawyer Ms. Nasrin Sotoudeh [5], who has been arbitrarily detained since June 13, 2018.
On September 6, 2018, Messrs. Payam Derafshan and Farrokh Forouzan-Kermani were released on bail of 1.1 billion rials and 1.2 billion rials respectively, after being charged with “insulting judicial authorities” by Branch 1 of the Islamic Revolution Court in the city of Karaj.
Actions requested:
Please write to the authorities of Iran asking them to:
i. Guarantee in all circumstances the physical integrity and psychological well-being of Messrs. Payam Derafshan and Farrokh Forouzan-Kermani, and all other human rights defenders in Iran;
ii. Immediately and unconditionally disclose the whereabouts of Mr. Payam Derafshan and release him, as well all other human rights defenders arbitrarily detained in the country;
iii. Respect under any circumstances Messrs. Payam Derafshan’s and Farrokh Forouzan-Kermani’s right to a fair trial and to a legal counsel;
iv. Put an end to all acts of harassment, including at the judicial level, against Messrs. Payam Derafshan, Farrokh Forouzan-Kermani and all other human rights defenders, and ensure they are able to carry out their activities without hindrance;
v. Conform to all the provisions of the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights Defenders adopted by the UN General Assembly on December 9, 1998, in particular its Articles 1, 6, 9, 11 and 12;
vi. Ensure in all circumstances respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms in accordance with international human rights standards and international instruments ratified by Iran.
Addresses:
• Leader of the Islamic Republic, H.E. Ayatollah Sayed Ali Khamenei, Fax: + 98 21 441 2030, Email: info_leader@leader.ir; Twitter: @khamenei_ir
• President Hassan Rouhani, Islamic Republic of Iran, Fax: + 98 21 644 54811; Email: media@rouhani.ir; Twitter: @HassanRouhani (English) and @Rouhani_ir (Persian).
• Head of the Judiciary, H.E. Hojattolislam Ebrahim Ra’eesi, Islamic Republic of Iran, Fax: +98 21 879 6671 / +98 21 3 311 6567, Email: info@dadiran.ir / info@dadgostary-tehran.ir / info@bia-judiciary.ir
• Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mohammad Javad Zarif, Islamic Republic of Iran, Fax: +98-21-66743149; matbuat@mfa.gov.ir
• Secretary General, High Council for Human Rights, Mr. Ali Bagheri Kani, Islamic Republic of Iran. Email: info@humanrights-iran.ir
• H.E. Mr. Esmaeil Baghaei Hamaneh, Ambassador, Permanent Mission of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, Fax: +41 22 7330203, Email: mission.iran@ties.itu.int
• H.E. Mr. Peiman Seadat, Ambassador, Embassy of Iran in Brussels, Belgium, Fax: + 32 2 762 39 15. Email: secreteriat@iranembassy.be
Please also write to the diplomatic representations of Iran in your respective countries.
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Paris-Geneva, June 16, 2020
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders (the Observatory) was created in 1997 by FIDH and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT). The objective of this programme is to prevent or remedy situations of repression against human rights defenders. FIDH and OMCT are both members of ProtectDefenders.eu, the European Union Human Rights Defenders Mechanism implemented by international civil society.
To contact the Observatory, call the emergency line:
• E-mail: Appeals@fidh-omct.org
• Tel and fax FIDH +33 (0) 1 43 55 25 18 / +33 1 43 55 18 80
• Tel and fax OMCT +41 (0) 22 809 49 39 / +41 22 809 49 29
[1] Mr. Derafshan is one of the lawyers for imprisoned human rights lawyer Ms. Nasrin Sotoudeh as well as of Messrs. Mohammad Najafi and Arash Kaykhosravi. He had also previously represented the family of Mr. Kavous Seyed-Emami and filed a complaint against the State-owned Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) for airing a film in which Mr. Seyed-Emami was portrayed as a spy.
[2] See Observatory Press Release “Iran: Free seven human rights defenders arbitrarily detained in the latest crackdown” published on September 5, 2018, available here; Urgent Appeal IRN 004 / 0918 / OBS 115, published on September 14, 2018.
[3] See Observatory “Open letter to President Hassan Rouhani: Stop the persecution of HRDs” published on September 28, 2018, and available here.
[4] See Observatory Urgent Appeal IRN 003 / 0818 / OBS 106, published on August 23, 2018. Messers Arash Kaykhosravi and Ghasem Sholeh-Saadi were sentenced to six years’ imprisonment in December 2018 (see IRN 004 / 0918 / OBS 115.2). But they were both acquitted of the charges in late January 2020 by the court of appeals.
[5] See Observatory Urgent Appeal IRN 001 / 0618 / OBS 085, published on June 15, 2018; and IRN 001 / 0618 / OBS 085.1, published on March 12, 2019.