[Video + English Transcript]: Iran’s History of Political Prisoners

[Video + English Transcript]: Iran’s History of Political Prisoners

The following is a translated transcript of a documentary that provides a brief look into the history of Iranian political prisoners since the coup of August 1953.

Documentary via YouTube:

English translation transcript:

“The contemporary political history of Iran is a bloody one.”

“You executed two people, thank you!” (Jannati in a Friday Prayer Sermon)

Narrator: In the contemporary political history of Iran, the wave of executions began after the coup of August 1953.

Ayoub Rahmani (leftist activist): Maybe the best known executions [at that time] were the executions of the Officers Club, whose members were part of the Tudeh Party (an Iranian communist party). The most prominent member was Khosrow Rouzbeh who was tried in 1958 in the military court. He was sentenced to death, and then he was executed. In 1972, twelve Iranian intellectuals were arrested on charges of “conspiracy against the monarchy” and “conspiracy to kidnap the heir to the throne [Mohammad Reza Shah’s son].” They were tried in a military court in 1974. Some parts of the court proceeding were aired from Iran’s [state] TV at the time.

Khosrow Golsorkhi (Iranian journalist, poet, and communist activist in Iran during the Cold War) said in the military court: “I am not bargaining in this court for my life or the length of my sentence. I am a small drop in a large sea…”

Narrator: Consequently, Golsorkhi and his companions were sentenced to death.

Ayoob Rahmani: “The wave of arrests and executions continued until we arrived at the revolution of 1979.”

Narrator: During the course of the monarchy’s overthrow, the executed were named “martyrs.” Now, it was the turn of the previous regime’s leaders to face the firing squad.

Sadeq Qalqali (The head of the religious court): I see myself as a responsible person. During these ordeals, I sat as a judge, and my judgments were fair. I handed down death sentences to Hoveyda, Rabiei, Nasiri, Naji and many others like them.

Narrator: With the execution of the previous regime officials and the establishment of a new regime, it was now the turn of the opponents of the new regime, the very opponents that were considered revolutionary themselves not long before that.

Effat Mahbaz (former political prisoner): My brother who was a political prisoner during Shah’s time and who was released in 1977 after serving two years [in prison], was arrested again in 1981 at his work, despite the fact that my brother believed in political and non-armed resistance. He completely believed in the Revolution.

When my brother was arrested, apparently after being reported by his workplace’s Islamic Association, he had just received permission to go to the war fronts (during the Iran-Iraq war) to tend to the wounded. Under such conditions, they arrested my brother. After only two and a half months, and without informing anyone, they executed him.”

Shahab (former political prisoner): Javad Amini was in prison with us. He was really young and was accused of being a member of the MKO (Mujahedeen Khalq Organization). He insisted he was just a student and not very attached to the organization. They took him to the court and returned him home. When he got back, we all thought that he would be safe. On the 6 o’clock news, they would read out the names of those sentenced to death; it was horrific. We heard Javad Amini’s name. I looked over, he was very pale. I told him, “Don’t worry Javad, they probably made a mistake.” He replied, “They correct their mistakes by committing worse ones.” Immediately, the guards came, took him away, and executed him.

Narrator: And this is how the wave of political executions started in the Islamic Republic.

Effat Mahbaz (former political prisoner): I was arrested along with my husband in 1984 on the first day of spring (the day of the Iranian New Year). My husband was executed in 1988 in the mass political executions of that year.”

Between 1981 and 1988, arrests, imprisonments, and executions of members of opposition political parties continued. In 1988, following the MKO’s military operation on Iranian borders (from their base in Iraq), large numbers of political prisoners were executed. The summer of that year was named the “summer of mass political executions.”

Shahab: The guard came and took me to a dark room used for hanging prisoners. When he opened the door, the lights were off. Even he was shocked and said, “Wait here until I come back. Do not remove your blindfold and do not look around.” Of course, once he left I lifted my blindfold. Although the room was dark, there was some light. I saw a lot of clothes, slippers, and nooses hanging from the ceiling.”

Effat Mahbaz: I witnessed how they would call in members of the MKO from our prison ward in groups of five, six, and seven. We would say our goodbyes, and then I heard they were executed. That is how life ended for those women. They would put the women in bags, and then they would execute them. I want to also talk about my last visit with my husband. His eyes were filled with tears. We were not even allowed to embrace each other, to kiss one another, or to say “goodbye” forever.

Shahab: From my personal experience and observations in Evin and Gohardasht Prison, and the information I received from various sources, I could say that out of 4500 to 5000 prisoners, only 700 to 800 survived [following the mass execution of political prisoners in the summer of 1988].

Mohammad Javad Larijani (the deputy foreign affairs minister at that time ): I don’t think it [the number of executions] should be that high. There is no rationale for that. First of all, we do not have that many political prisoners. They broke the country’s rules and they are in prison. The claim that we executed hundreds or even thousands of political prisoners is a lie.

Drewery Dyke (Amnesty International researcher for Iran): In February of 1989, Hashemi Rafsanjani told a French TV program that “we did not execute more than 1000 people,” but our investigations have led to the collection of 2000 names so far. Since 1988, the executions for political beliefs have either decreased in number or they are being carried out in secret.”

Jannati (Guardian Council’s Secretary in Tehran’s Friday Prayer sermon after the execution of two political prisoners on January 28, 2010): “Come for the grace of God, the same way you have executed those two people quickly, and I thank you for that…”

Narrator: It seems that 20 years after the mass political executions, carrying out death sentence for political crimes has restarted.

Translation by: Siavosh J.
Persian2English.com

Recent video for the release of political prisoners via YouTube: