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Alert

Journalist Taghi Rahmani marks 5,000 days in prison

(RSF/IFEX) - RSF has strongly condemned the ill-treatment of journalist Taghi Rahmani, who has spent over 5,000 days in prison since 1981, sentenced each time in connection with his journalistic work. Rahmani has currently been in jail for 19 months without charge.

RSF called for Rahmani's immediate and unconditional release. The organisation noted that with 10 journalists behind bars, Iran is the Middle East's largest prison for the profession and is one of the world's 10 most repressive countries in terms of press freedom. "Under the direct orders of Supreme Guide Ayatollah Khamenei, the conservatives in power have made use of the country's courts to gag the media," RSF underlined.

Rahmani has worked for several newspapers and most of his periods of work have been brought to an end by arrest. During repeated crackdowns in 1981, Rahmani was among several intellectuals arrested who worked for the underground newspaper "Pishtazan" and spent three years in prison. He was arrested again in 1986 and sentenced to 11 years in prison for his work on the newspaper "Movahed", owned by a group of democratic religious intellectuals in favour of a separation of Islam from the state.

On leaving prison, Rahmani contributed to the monthly "Iran-e-Farda" and weekly "Omid Zanjan". In February 2000, he was arrested with other journalists, including Reza Alijani and Hoda Saber, after a roundup at the home of an Iranian intellectual.

After posting substantial bail, Rahmani was briefly released in March 2001. His trial was held behind closed doors in May 2003, and he was sentenced to 11 years in prison and 10 years' loss of civil rights in connection with his work. The journalist was again released on bail while awaiting the outcome of his appeal, as provided for under the law.

On 14 June 2003, Rahmani, Alijani and Saber were rearrested on the orders of Tehran Prosecutor Said Mortazavi. No reason was given for the move and the case has since been shrouded in mystery. On 15 October 2003, court spokesman Golamhossein Elham said the three journalists were serving a prison term, but he did not give reasons for their imprisonment, nor the date or place of their trial. On 1 May 2004, the journalists learned that their appeal hearing had been held, but their lawyers were not informed further.

To this day, no legal papers have been given to the journalists' lawyers in connection with the trial, and no official reason has been advanced to justify the detention of the three men. On 27 January 2005, one of the lawyers, a Mr Ryahi, said Alijani and Saber may soon be conditionally released given that they had served half their sentences, but this measure would not apply to Rahmani.