Mass arrests of social, women’s rights, and political activists during the ten days leading to Islamic Revolution’s Anniversary has continued with arrests of Maryam Ghanbari, a member of the Maydan women’s group, and Mah-Farid Mansourian, an environmental activist. Most arrests were made during midnight hours and through a blanket arrest warrant and most arrested individuals were not informed about the reasons for their arrests. Some of those arrested were told that the reason for their arrest was participation in gatherings. Mahfarid Mansourian, 55, was imprisoned for six years in the 1980’s.
Several sources told International Campaign for Human Rights that the arrested individuals have been transferred to Evin Prison. In all cases, the arresting officers searched the premises and took away personal computers, hand-written notes, and some personal items of the arrested individuals. Maryam Ghanbari was one of the last ones to be arrested in her home on the afternoon of February 8, 2010. She is an attorney, a member of Maydan Group, and a member of the Iranian Bar Association Independence Campaign. This campaign was formed after a revised set of bylaws were proposed for the Iranian Bar Association, turning it into a subset of Iranian Judiciary. Upon a request by prominent Iranian lawyers, then Judiciary Head Ayatollah Shahroudi agreed to table the proposal for six months. Ghanbari was born in 1983 and is a Jurisprudence graduate of Allameh Tabatabaee Univers… >>>
