Husband and Lawyer of Jailed Human Rights Lawyer Threatened with Arrest
September 20, 2010
Persian Report by Deutsche Welle | September 13, 2010
Translation by Siavosh Jalili for P2E
Deutsche Welle (Persian) – Nasrin Sotoudeh’s husband Reza Khandan and her lawyer Nasim Ghanavi have been threatened by the Ministry of Intelligence with arrest if they give any interviews to the media.
Reza Khandan said, “Yesterday (September 12th), the Ministry of Intelligence contacted Ms. Ghanavi and stated that the arrest warrant for you and Mr. Khandan has been issued, and if you give any interviews, you will both be arrested. Today, when she went to the court to follow up on Nasrin’s case, the statement was confirmed, and the message was repeated to her.”
Khandan added that in the one phone conversation he had with his wife since her arrest, she also asked him to not give any interviews. In the phone conversation, Sotoudeh insisted that her place of confinement is suitable, and she has no particular problem, but she is detained in solitary confinement. Nasrin Sotoudeh has informed her daughter that she will imprisoned for a long time to come.
According to Khandan, Sotoudeh’s lawyer visited the branch where the case of her client is being investigated, however, she was told that the magistrate of the case is on vacation until next Saturday, and no action will be taken until then.
Shirin Ebadi, the Iranian Nobel Peace Laureate, in a letter to the president of the International Bar Association, asked him to protest the illegal arrest of his Iranian colleagues. Shirin Ebadi referred to two jailed Iranian lawyers, Nasrin Sotoudeh and Mohammad Oliayifard, and also pointed out that Nasrin Sotoudeh is under pressure to make self-incriminating confessions.
She wrote, “I implore you to protest in any way possible to the arrest of your detained colleagues. Draw the attention of the Islamic Repbulic government to the need for freedom of expression and independence of lawyers who are key to the administration of justice. Use all your international resources to secure the release of jailed lawyers in Iran.”
Reza Khandan says that international protests are important in the context of support, however, there is no guarantee that officials pay any attention to such portests.
Mohammad Oliaifard is another lawyer who was active in commuting and abolishing the death penalty for juveniles. He is now in jail serving a one year prison sentence.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Take Action with Amnesty International:
IRAN: DEMAND RELEASE OF HUMAN RIGHTS LAWYER, NASRIN SOTOUDEH(F)
Third Trial Held for Heshmatollah Tabarzadi While Lawyers Remain Behind Bars
http://persian2english.com/?p=13956جلسه دادگاه حشمت الله طبرزدی برگذار شد
نسرین ستوده بازداشت شده است
International Federation for Human Rights:
Arbitrary Arrest of Ms. Nasrin Sotoudeh