Mohammad Ali Dadkhah in Strong Spirits

Maryam Dadkhah, the daughter of human rights lawyer and prisoner of conscience Mohammad Ali Dadkhah, told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran that she was able to visit with her father on December 24 and 31, 2012, and that she found him to be in “strong spirits” and enjoying “exemplary sharpness,” discussing daily issues and his conditions. She told the Campaign that with cooperation from judicial officials, she hopes her father will come to furlough in the near future.

Maryam Dadkhah, a student outside Iran, traveled to Iran to visit her father in prison during the end-of-the-year holidays. “I would like to sincerely thank the officials who allowed me to visit with my father for two consecutive weeks. I know that it is not normal procedure to allow prisoners frequent in-person visits, but all the people involved in the decision-making cycle for authorization visits treated me with respect and showed considerable cooperation to allow for these visits, and I would like to highlight that,” Maryam Dadkhah told the Campaign.

She also told the Campaign that during the visits, her father carefully discussed and commented on details about her life and education, and that despite the natural prison limitations, his enthusiasm for reading books and writing was apparent.

“My first visit with my father was on December 24, 2012. It lasted for 30 minutes and we talked,” she added.

“My father is very active in prison and in addition to teaching other prisoners, he holds poetry readings and Shahnameh narration sessions. I hope my father has access to the books and resources he needs for his academic activities during the time he is in prison, which I hope will end soon. My family is hopeful that with the cooperation and goodwill of officials, my father will be able to come to furlough soon and pursue his academic activities outside the prison,” Maryam Dadkhah told the Campaign.

In an interview with the Campaign, Maryam Dadkhah said that she was impressed by the way the judicial authorities treated her during her two visits with her father, and that she is very grateful for spending time with her father even outside the normal times prisoners are allowed to talk to their families. “I can say about myself that the officials showed utmost cooperation for the visits with me, and therefore I think it is only fair to talk about such treatment,” she said.

Maryam Dadkhah also told the Campaign that some reports reflected her father’s final prison sentence as nine years, which is incorrect, as his sentence is eight years. She added that Mohammad Ali Dadkhah’s wife and children are the best and most credible sources of information about her father’s situation, and they will disseminate information about any changes in his conditions. Previously, Mohammad Ali Dadkhah’s brother Seyed Hassan Dadkhah told the Campaign that Dadkhah was suffering memory loss in prison (LINK: http://www.iranhumanrights.org/2012/12/dadkhah_lawyer/).