“Kouhyar’s Crime is defending human rights”

The Committee of Human Rights Reporters -- Kouhyar Goudarzi, a member of the Committee of Human Rights Reporters has been detained in Iran for more than one month. He was illegally kidnapped by security forces and taken to prison on July 31st. Iranian security and judicial authorities have not provided any explanation about how and why the human rights activist was detained.

A day after his arrest, the security forces raided his mother’s home and arrested her, after searching and confiscating her belongings. Parvin Mokhtare was transferred to Kerman prison. No reason was given for her arrest and the judicial arguments presented were processed unjustly without any strong legal evidence. Parvin Mokhtare has no history of breaking the country’s laws or engaging in political activities. She had only tracked the status of her imprisoned only child.

Parvin Mokhtare’s crime was not remaining silent when her son was caught by Iranian authorities. Her motherly senses and extreme support for Kouhyar’s freedom were so unbearable for security and judicial authorities that they were both sent to prison. It has been more than one month and Parvin Mokhtare is still held in Kerman prison.

Kouhyar’s only crimes were making persistent efforts in the field of human rights and being a member of the Committee of Human Rights Reporters. In the past two years [following the June 2009 Iranian Presidential election and the ensuing protests] he and the other CHRR members were repeatedly abused by Iranian authorities. Kouhyar Goudarzi spent one year in prison for his objective reporting of human rights violations in Iran. During that year he launched hunger strikes to protest the inhumane and unjust actions of the ruling establishment. The hunger strikes resulted in the physical deterioration of his health and affected him even after his release.

Kouhyar Goudarzi was expelled from Sharif University of Technology for his human rights activities. After his release from prison, he contacted university authorities and expressed his intention to study again. Although the university officials approved his return to university, the Ministry of intelligence upheld the illegal expulsion order. This is not the first time that a top-ranking student was expelled from the best technological Iranian university due to political activities.
In the past two years, following the Presidential election, many Iranian intellectuals and world renowned figures have been imprisoned.

Since, a month has passed since Kouhyar’s arrest, there is no news on his condition, he has not made any phone calls, and the judiciary and security officials have remained silent on the matter, concerns have increased regarding his physical health.

According to civil rights laws and regulations, a defendant has the right to inform his/her family immediately following arrest. Kouhyar Goudarzi was denied this right. According to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which Iran is a signatory of, freedom of speech is the right of all citizens, which means that citizens have the right to criticize their country’s condition through non-violent methods.

The Committee of Human Rights Reporters (CHRR) is an independent and non-political organization that reports objectively on the human rights violations in Iran. CHRR condemns the arrests of Kouhyar Goudarzi and Parvin Mokhtare and asks for their immediate and unconditional release.