Maziar Samiee, a social and human rights activist, equal rights defender and active member of the One Million Signatures Campaign, Arman Sedaghati and Behnam Sepehrmand were arrested on Tuesday the 30th of October due to their participation in a protest, organised by student groups from several universities, to denounce the continued detention of three student activists (Ehsan Mansouri, Ahmad Ghassaban and Majid Tavakoli, arrested in May 2007[1]). The protest, in which several hundreds of students participated, also had the objective of opposing the suspension of 31 students at Allameh Tabataie University and the continued closure of student organisations. Following the demonstration, eight students were beaten and subsequently arrested. Five of them were released on the following day but Maziar Samiee, Arman Sedaghati and Behnam Sepehrmand are still being held in the Evin prison’s section 209 which hosts political prisoners.
Ali Azizi, was arrested in his home on the 4th of November due to his participation in the 30th of October protest. Ali Nikounesbati, member of the student organisation « Tahkim vahdat » was arrested in his home on the of 8th November. We have no further information on the circumstances under which Pedram Rafati was arrested.
The arrests come at a time when the authorities have seriously increased the pressure on independent civil society. « The ongoing repression is the Iranian authorities’ response to increased social demands. They are exerting an iron-grip over the Iranian society to reduce it to silence », says Karim Lahidji, Vice-president of FIDH and President of the LDDHI.
FIDH and LDDHI urge the Iranian authorities to put an immediate end to the current harsh repression against civil society, in conformity with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
Press contact : Gaël Grilhot : +33-1 43 55 90 19