New Charges For Osanloo–A New Round of IRGC Intelligence Pressure On The Labor Activist

Prominent labor activist Mansour Osanloo has been serving time at Rajaee Shahr Prison under poor health conditions for a long time. In an interview with the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, his wife, Parvaneh Osanloo, said that her husband has been put in solitary confinement inside the IRGC Ward for the past three days, on new charges of “relations with state opposition groups,” and is under immense psychological pressure. She also told the Campaign that she and Mr. Osanloo’s mother had succeeded to visit him through a booth this week.

The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran demands an end to the abuse and mistreatment of Mansour Osanloo. The Campaign believes that if Mr. Osanloo had been able to have a trial court with minimal legal standards, he would have never been sentenced to prison.

Osanloo suffers serious problems and continuation of interrogations by IRGC intelligence officers could have dangerous consequences for him. The Campaign holds the Iranian Judiciary and the IRGC Intelligence Unit responsible for any negative consequence for Mr. Osanloo, whether accidental or planned. The alarming statements made by Mansour Osanloo’s wife are indicative of his very unsuitable conditions in prison and a representation of the constant pressure from intelligence organizations on Iran’s civil society activists. The Campaign also demands that the Iranian Judiciary stop pursuing new unfounded charges against Mansour Osanloo.

Parvaneh Osanloo told the Campaign that her husband has not accepted the new charges made by his interrogators, reminding them that he has been in prison for the past two years and such charges are completely baseless. He has complained about his deteriorating health and his lack of access to suitable medical attention.

Doctors from an official medical commission had recommended transfer of Osanloo to outside medical facilities for treatment of his critical and hard-to-treat illnesses. Prison authorities not only refused to act on the recommendations, they have moved him from the Methadone Ward to solitary confinement inside the IRGC Ward, putting him under interrogations. Since last March a new file has been started for him at Branch 6 of Karaj Revolutionary Courts. “His situation is the same as before; the only new thing that happened is that he has been transferred to the Intelligence Ward since Saturday, and this worries us. There has been no development in his case,” she said.

Parvaneh Osanloo also stated that she has written a letter to the Prosecutor. “We have written about furlough over and over again. He and his lawyers have also requested it, but he has not received even one day of furlough. The last time was yesterday when I wrote a letter to the Prosecutor, asking him for consideration and follow up on his transfer to solitary confinement inside the Intelligence Ward; I also asked for a furlough for him. It is questionable why he would have to be transferred to the Intelligence Ward after four years to be interrogated again. I also informed the Prosecutor about the medical Commission’s recommendations, because it would be easy for him to check it. Mr. Osanloo told me that the Commission had recommended that Mr. Ossanloo be given appropriate medical care. I asked for immediate consideration of his condition, but I haven’t received a reply yet,” she said.

Mansour Osanloo’s wife also stated that Osanloo has been deprived of visitation and furlough rights, saying: “Mr. Osanloo’s mother was unable to visit with her son since last winter. After repeated requests, and after hours of waiting since early this morning, we were only able to visit with him for a short time. We realized that he is not in good conditions. Even so, in order not to worry us, he kept saying that he is O.K., and that there is nothing wrong.” “Despite recommendations from the Medical Examiner for him to to be furloughed, prison authorities do not agree to this. Mr. Osanloo now suffers from pains in his legs, deterioration of his lower vertebrae, heart, and vision problems, and is in need of serious treatment outside the prison. But so far his requests for furlough have all been refused and he has remained in prison for two years under poor conditions.”

Background:

Mansour Osanloo, Chairman of the Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company, has been at Ward 5 of the Rajaee Shahr Prison, also known as the Methadone Ward. In November 2007, his sentence of five years in prison was upheld by Branch 14 of Appeals Courts. He has been in prison since 10 July 2007 under critical physical conditions. He was transferred to Rajaee Shahr Prison in October 2008. Osanloo suffers from serious eye disease and must be under medical treatment after his open heart surgery of several years ago. Some time ago, following a deterioration of Mansour Osanloo’s health, Rajaee Shahr Prison authorities transferred him to the Medical Examiners’ Commission while he was ankle- and hand- cuffed. The Commission was convened with five specialized physicians who examined Osanloo. For the second time, the Commission recommended Mr. Osanloo’s release for medical reasons but judicial authorities refused the recommendation.

The Rajaee Shahr Prison is a highly unsuitable place for Mansour Osanloo who has developed multiple conditions and illnesses over the past few years. Some time ago, Mansour Osanloo was saved from a suspicious assassination attempt by a prisoner through his cellmates’ alertness. But prison authorities never sought to investigate the situation. The assassination attempt took place in the presence of Hassanpour and Moradi, two prison authorities, who suspiciously did not react to it. Human Rights organizations expressed their deep concern about Mansour Osanloo’s life, security, and health in prison.