The deadly Corona virus has forced the IR to temporarily send home more than 90 thousand prisoners under emergency leave until the end or betterment of the conditions of Corona crisis. The regime has been forced to take such measures to reduce the pressure of public opinion and especially families of the prisoners concerned about the fate of their members and to reduce the huge logistical and financial burden of this deadly epidemy. There are signs of infection and even death in prisons, among them Fashafooye prisons. The beginning and expansion of the protests of the prisoners who were worried about their lives and lack of trust in promises of prison officials have been the reasons for such a decision.
According to reports, fourteen prisoners of three wards of the Shiraz Adel Abad prison in an attempt to escape from prison tangled with the guards and were injured. Thursday March 26, detainees of Tabriz prison, concerned about the spread of Corona and in protest to bringing in new detainees without going through quarantine period and also expressing dissatisfaction with the implementation of the decision to release the prisoners, set the prison ablaze and tangled with the authorities and prison guards opened fire on them. Friday March 27, 80 prisoners of the Saghez prison after overcoming guards’ resistance managed to escape and saved their lives. Rebellious prisoners in the Barsylon prison in Khoramabad, angry of the situation attempted to escape in which one of them died, 23 others injured and the rest managed to escape. Prisoners of in Aligudarz, Lorestan prison attempted to escape, however it was not successful. There is also news on riots and protests in the Hamadan prison.
In general, the IR's decision, to temporarily release a number of prisoners due to the risk of possible outbreak of Corona in prisons which can kill thousands of prisoners, even if expedient, is the right approach. But the IR’s treatment of the political prisoners, who are labeled as “security” is inhumane and disgusting. The regime’s retaliatory treatment against the opposition in any situation raises great concern. The confrontation of the regime with the political prisoners can be summarized in the following three categories : a) coinciding with the release of non-political prisoners, arrest and recall of some of the political and cultural and human rights activists in this horrific situation to be doomed to stay in prison with extremely alarming condition; b) treating political prisoners in a selective and exceptional fashion; and iii) investigators’ abusive treatment of the prisoners in this serious situation of life and death in order to put pressure on them to bend to conditions imposed by the regime. It is worth noting that the regime’s attempt is a failure in this regard.
The Islamic Republic (IR) treatment of the political prisoners shows that even in the current difficult situation the regime has decided to treat political prisoner as scapegoat and victim of its existence. The regime’s inhumane treatment of the political prisoners has this message to the nation that even in this critical situation, the IR is sensitive to its non-existence sovereignty more than anything else. The regime deliberately put lives of those who are known as political and civil activists and advocate of freedom, democracy, and development based on social justice and environmental protection, those who can be the most effective community collaborators in fight against this fatal epidemic and those that people are accustomed to their inspiring presence at the risk.
By expressing deep concern over the lives of all prisoners, especially political prisoners who are sentenced to stay in prison because of their opposition to the regime, the Left Party of Iran (People’s Fadaian) believes that putting pressure on the regime to push back from such an inhumane tactic is a national duty. We, alongside Ms. Ozra Bazargan, mother of noble activist Narges Mohammadi and all the families of political prisoners who are extremely concerned about threats against the lives of their loved ones in such a deadly situation, by insisting on the need of revelation of the regime’s inhumane policy, extend our hands for a collective struggle for the unconditional release of all political prisoners.
Political prisoners must be freed.
Political-Executive Bureau of the Left Party of Iran (People’s Fadaian)
March 30, 2020
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