Emadeddin Baghi
| Emadeddin Baghi | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Iranian |
| Occupation | Human rights activist |
| Website | |
| http://www.emadbaghi.com/en/ | |
Emadeddin Baghi is a prominent Iranian human rights activist, prisoners' rights advocate, investigative journalist, philosopher and writer. He is the founder and head of the Committee for the Defense of Prisoners' Rights and the Society of Right to Life Guardians in Iran, and the author of twenty books, six of which have been banned in Iran. Baghi was imprisoned in connection with his writings on the Chain murders of Iran, which occurred in Autumn 1998,[1] and imprisoned again in late 2007 for another year on charges of "acting against national security." According to his family and lawyers, Baghi has been summoned to court 23 times since his release in 2003.[1] He has also had his passport confiscated, his newspaper closed, and suspended prison sentences passed against his wife and daughter.[2] Baghi was rearrested on 28 December 2009 on charges related to an interview with Grand Ayatollah Hussein-Ali Montazeri. Baghi was released and then again rearrested on 5 December 2010.
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[edit] Political arrests
Emadeddin Baghi's record as a political prisoner or defendant includes:
- A three-year prison term passed in 2000 by a Revolutionary Court on charges brought by the intelligence ministry and the conservative-run state television [3] of "endangering national security" for his writings about the serial murder of dissident intellectuals in Iran in the late 1990s. He served two years of that sentence, and one year was suspended.[1]
- A one-year suspended term issued in 2003 by Judge Babayee of Branch 6 of the Revolutionary Court for "endangering national security" and "printing lies" in his book, The Tragedy of Democracy in Iran.[1]
- A one-year prison sentence for "acting against national security", issued on 15 October 2007, when he was summoned by Tehran's revolutionary court on the charges of "propaganda against the Islamic Republic" and "divulging state secret information". This imprisonment was condemned by Iranian lawyer, human rights advocate and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi, and by the Paris-based Reporters Without Borders.[4] Baghi had been protesting a wave of public hangings that was part of a campaign by the authorities to improve "societal security". A year before his arrest and trial, Baghi had written an open letter to the heads of the reformist parties, scolding them for their silence over the increased number of hangings.[5]
- Baghi was among the numerous journalists and reformists detained by the government of Iran on 28 December 2009 in the wake of violent crackdowns on Ashura protests.[6][7]
[edit] Organizations
Emadeddin Baghi founded two Iranian nongovernmental organizations — the Society for the Defense of Prisoners' Rights in 2003, and the Society of Right to Life Guardians in 2005. The two organizations produce reports on the situation of Iranian prisoners and gather data about death penalty cases in Iran.[1]
[edit] Health problems
Baghi suffers from severe heart and kidney ailments. On August 7, 2008, a prison doctor recommended strongly that he be taken to a hospital to receive treatment for his illnesses. On the same day, the authorities transferred Baghi to solitary confinement in Section 209 of Evin Prison, where intelligence agents interrogated him for three weeks.[8] As Baghi’s health deteriorated considerably, on September 16, 2008, the authorities released him for medical treatment.[8]
[edit] Awards and recognition
- In 2004 he was awarded the Civil Courage Prize, sharing it with Zimbabwean opposition politician Lovemore Madhuku, but was prohibited from leaving Iran to accept it.[9]
- In 2005 he was awarded the Human Rights Prize given by the French Government in recognition of his work campaigning against the death penalty.
- In April 2008, Baghi was named International Journalist of the Year by the British press, but was forbidden by the Iranian government to visit London to accept the award.
- In 2009, Baghi won the Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders. This award is given annually in Geneva by a coalition of 10 international human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and Front Line, to a leading defender of human rights who is currently in danger. Again Baghi was denied permission to attend the award ceremony by the government of Iran.[10][11]
- Amnesty International has named him a prisoner of conscience.[12]
[edit] Works
Among Baghi's published books are The Tragedy of Democracy in Iran and Clerics and Power. One of Baghi's more notable books is The Right to Life, in which he argues that there is no such absolute requirement for the death penalty within Sharia or the Qur'anic verses. Baghi has been interrogated and imprisoned several times for articles he wrote making the arguments collected in this book. The book has been banned in Iran, but has been translated into Arabic.[13]
[edit] References and notes
- ^ a b c d e "Iran: Release Leading Defender of Prisoners' Rights". Human Rights Watch. 16 October 2007. http://www.hrw.org/legacy/english/docs/2007/10/16/iran17105.htm. Retrieved 25 April 2011.
- ^ "Prominent Iranian Human Rights Defender Emaddedin Baghi Detained". Amnesty International. http://www.amnestyusa.org/all-countries/iran/prominent-iranian-human-rights-defender-emadeddin-baghi-imprisoned/page.do?id=1221004. Retrieved 25 April 2011.
- ^ "Pro-reform journalist arrested in Iran". BBC News. 29 May 2000. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/768663.stm. Retrieved 25 April 2011.
- ^ [Niusha Boghrati (16 October 2007). "Prisoners' Rights Activist Arrested and Detained". worldpress.org. http://www.worldpress.org/print_article.cfm?article_id=3085&dont=yes. Retrieved 25 April 2011.
- ^ Letter of application to parties leaders inside Iran for reacting against waves of executions in Iran
- ^ Release Emadeddin Baghi and All Arbitrarily Arrested Iranians 12/30/09
- ^ "Dissident Iran Rises". The Wall Street Journal. December 30, 2009. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703510304574626453406091222.html. Retrieved December 29, 2009.
- ^ a b RIGHTS CRISIS ESCALATES, September 18, 2008
- ^ "Civil Courage Prize". civilcourageprize.org. 2010. http://www.civilcourageprize.org/honorees.htm. Retrieved 11 May 2011.
- ^ The ceremony was held in Geneva on November 2, 2009. Baghi was the first prizewinner in the history of the award to be barred from attending the award ceremony.
- ^ Iranian activist banned from receiving human rights award in Geneva, 3 November 2009
- ^ "UA 05/10 Prisoner of conscience". Amnesty International. 7 January 2010. http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/uaa00510.pdf. Retrieved 18 April 2011.
- ^ Book: Sharia and Islamic Jurisprudence Allow for Abolition of the Death Penalty, Arabic translation of "Right to Life" by Emad Baghi, (1 December 2008)
[edit] External links
- emadbaghi.com
- Hope for Democracy in Iran by Emadeddin Baghi Washington Post, October 25, 2004
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