An Interview With Sister of Habibollah Latifi

HRA News Agency - Habibollah Latifi was an industrial engineering student at the University of Ilam [before his arrest] in October 2007. After enduring more than three months of torture and solitary confinement, he was sentenced to death on the charges of Moharebeh [enmity against God] and spreading “corruption on Earth”. Hassan Babai, the head of the Sanandaj Revolutionary Court is the judge who sentenced him to death.

His death sentence was reconfirmed by the Appeals Court and yesterday his lawyer was informed that his client will be executed on Sunday, December 26, 2010.

HRANA: Yesterday, human rights media outlets announced the planned execution date of Habibollah Latifi. Do you know anything about this?

Sister: Yes, this news is confirmed. His sentence is now at the final stage and his lawyer Saleh Nikbakht was informed that the sentence will be carried out this Sunday.

HRANA: Have you or the lawyer done anything to prevent this execution?

Sister: Today is Friday and all the government offices are closed in Iran. Also, Mr. Nikbakht informed us that at this stage all he can do as a lawyer is to plead for forgiveness.

HRANA: Is your brother aware of the situation?

Sister: No, unfortunately we still have been unable to inform him of the execution date. On the other hand my parents are not even aware of it. The only person who knows about the set execution is me and the lawyer.

HRANA: Mrs. Latifi, may you tell us how your brother was arrested?

Sister: They arrested Habib on November 10, 2007. He was subjected to horrendous tortures for three months at the Sanandaj Ministry of Intelligence prison while held in solitary confinement cells. He was forced to make false confessions. In a court a few months after the false confessions, he denied it all and declared that his confessions were extracted under torture. The court did not accept this.

HRANA: When and how was he tried?

Sister: His trial took place very late in January 2009. He was sentenced to death on charges of being an “enemy of God” and spreading “corruption on Earth”. His lawyer was the only person present in the court room. Habib nor we were aware that a trial was taking place.

His Appeals Court was not executed by the standards [of the law]. Neither we, the defendant, or the lawyer were informed that such a session was being held. All of a sudden they informed us that the Appeals Court has reconfirmed the sentence.

Also, for the past few years, the Supreme Court has stopped interfering with verdicts coming from western Iran, including the Kurdistan region. Thus, verdicts issued by the western district courts are directly carried out.

HRANA: You mentioned torture. Are you aware of the details of how Habib was tortured?

Sister: In order not to upset [the family], Habib did not talk about the details of the torture he endured. We only know that they beat him so often with batons that his kidneys began to bleed and he was transferred to the Sanandaj Social Welfare Hospital. A friend had seen him in prison. Due to the tortures inflicted on him, Habib was unable to walk for four weeks and he had to drag himself on the floor.

HRANA: How is his current physical condition?

Sister: Compared to a few years back, his physical condition is not so bad, but right now he has breathing problems and his gums are infected. We have requested treatment, but received no response.

HRANA: Do you have visitation rights? Is he allowed to call home?

Sister: We have not been allowed to have direct visitation with him for the past eight months. We are allowed to visit him through closed cabins once a week for 15 minutes. He can call home once every three days for 15 minutes. He is not allowed to call on holidays.

HRANA: What are your expectations of human rights groups at this point?

Sister: We are asking anyone who can do something for Habib to not hesitate. He is well worth people helping him. We are asking international human rights organizations to not listen to government media sources. Habib is not a terrorist. He was an industrial engineering student at the University of Ilam. He was expelled from university due to his arrest. State media calls him a terrorist in order to prevent international human rights organizations from supporting him. I ask people not to believe these lies.

Translation by P2E