Iranian of the Day

ICHRI: Taghi Rahmani, husband of Narges Mohammadi, Deputy Head of Center for Human Rights Defenders, who was arrested on 22 April 2012 told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran that Mohammadi's family have not been informed about her detention location. "Narges has not called home since yesterday and her family's calls and followups have also gone unanswered. But we heard from families of other prisoners that she has been transferred to Evin Prison's Women's Ward. I don't know how reliable the news is, but some prisoner families said that they saw her when she was getting out of car in front of Evin Prison," he told the Campaign.

"At 11:30 a.m. yesterday, security forces went to Narges' mother's home in Zanjan. Apparently there was a man and a woman, and they asked Narges to go with them, but Narges asked to see their identification cards, which they refused to present. They struggled for a half an hour until at 12:00 p.m., she went with them. The reason she went with them was that the forces wanted to enter the house, and she agreed to go with them because she didn't want the children to be frightened. At 5:00 p.m., Narges' parents went to Zanjan Intelligence Office and were told by the officials that she had been transferred to Tehran. Since then we have no more news on her, except for what prisoner families told us," said Taghi Rahmani about his wife's arrest.

Narges Mohammadi, a human rights activist and winner of the 2011 Swedish Per Anger Prize was sentenced to eleven years in prison for "assembly and collusion against national security," "membership in the Center for Human Rights Defenders," and "propagating against the regime." An appeals court later reduced her sentence to six years in prison.

"Everyone is concerned about our two young children, and I worry a lot about them, too. But I know that my mother, my sisters, and Narges' sisters will look after them. More than the kids, right now I worry about Narges' illness. She has muscular paralysis which is exacerbated under stress and pressure. I don't know what prison would do to her," said Rahmani, expressing concern about his wife's conditions.

Taghi Rahmani, journalist, author, and political activist, spent one third of his life in prison. He was arrested on 9 February 2011, after security forces broke the door to his home and stormed his residence without a warrant. He was released on bail on 14 May 2011. Faced with a five-year prison sentence and other impending cases, as well as mounting pressure by intelligence forces who summoned him routinely and insisted that he refrain from writing and giving interviews, Taghi Rahmani left Iran in March 2011 and currently resides outside Iran.