February 4, 2010
Kermanshah,—
The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran
denounced the arrest Wednesday of Kaveh Ghasemi
Kermanshahi, a leading human rights activist, member
of the Central Council of the Human Rights
Organization of Kurdistan, and journalist. He is
also belongs to the One Million Signatures Campaign
that seeks to gather public support against laws
that discriminate against women.
“Kermanshahi is one of the most important sources of
objective human rights information and analysis in
Iran, and one of the few still courageously working
to document, in a scientific way, the deprivation of
human rights there,” stated Hadi Ghaemi, a
spokesperson for the Campaign.
Kermanshahi had been active in reporting about human
rights abuses and arrests in the Kurdish areas of
Iran.
|
Kaveh Ghasemi Kermanshahi |
|
“Kaveh has
committed no crime, and his arrest is an
apparent attempt to shield the authorities from
scrutiny ahead of expected protests on 11
February,” he added.
Kermanshahi was arrested in his hometown of
Kermanshah in Western Iran. According to
information obtained by the Campaign, seven
security agents searched his home, confiscated
his personal belongings, including his computer
and written documents, and took him to an
unknown place. The agents arrested him on the
basis of a warrant that did not show the name of
the authorities who issued it. No information
was given to his family about where he was
taken.
At twenty-five years old, Kermanshashi holds a
law degree. As a human rights defender, his work
is widely recognized for its quality and detail
and his personal attention to political
prisoners and their families. Kermanshashi was
also member of the student alumni group ADVAR,
and the One Million Signatures Campaign working
for an end to gender discrimination.
Ejlal Ghawami, spokesperson for the Human Rights
Organization of Kurdistan, told the Campaign
that there is high pressure on members of the
organization to close it. He said that in the
past month,www.ekurd.nethe
had been summoned three times by security
agents, who had demanded the closing of the
group. The founder of the Human Rights
Organization of Kurdistan, Mohammad Sadiq
Kaboudvand, has been in custody since June 2007,
and is serving an 10-year prison term having
been convicted solely on the basis of his human
rights activities.
Other human rights organizations, including the
Committee of Human Rights Reporters, have come
under increasing assault from government
authorities and prosecutors. As reported by the
Campaign, arrested members of the Committee of
Human Rights Reporters are under pressure to
deliver forced confessions on unfounded
allegations of the Committee’s affiliation with
the Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization (MKO), which
could lead to their conviction as Mohareb, or
“enemies of God,” a charge punishable by death.
In the past several weeks prominent human rights
defenders have been detained without authorities
providing any information about them. They
include Emad Baghi, founder of the Association
to Defend Prisoners’ Rights, as well as seven
members of the Committee of Human Rights
Defenders: Shiva Nazarahari, Parisa Kakaie,
Mehrdad Rahimi, Kouhyar Goudarzi, Saeed Hayeri,
Saeed Kalanaki, and Saeed Jalalifar.
“The Islamic Republic is egregiously violating
its international obligations to protect human
rights defenders, and the international
governmental and civil society community should
demand the immediate release of Kermanshashi and
all human rights defenders who have been
arbitrarily arrested,” Ghaemi said.
Copyright, respective author or news agency,
iranhumanrights org | Agencies
Top |
®