Labor activist Hirad Pirbodaghi is still under pressure, having been held and interrogated on Ward 209 of Evin Prison for more than 35 days. His mother Setareh Jalali has been sat in front of the prison court for much of the past week, demanding an update on what’s happening to him.
Pirbodaghi, an editorial board member for the unionists’ magazine Gam, was arrested together with student activist Asal Mohammadi on Monday, November 6. Both were beaten by security forces as they were taken away. The case investigator promised Mohammadi that Pirdobaghi, would be released 48 hours after she was. That deadline has now long passed.
The official charges against Hirad Pirbodaghi and Asal Mohammadi were "conspiracy and collusion" and "propaganda against the regime". This week Mohammadi spoke to IranWire about the case so far.
What was the reason for your both being arrested on November 6?
We’d recently been released from [a previous term in] prison and immediately filed a complaint about our illegal detention and solitary confinement. There were nine of us who complained: Hirad and I along with Behnam Chegni, Amir Abbas Azarmvand, Yashar Tabrizi, Mohsen Barzegar, Siavash Rezaeian, Mehrnaz Haghighi and Jamal Ameli. We were arrested again that evening because of the complaint.
It seems the accusation against you is “collousion” and “propaganda against the regime”.
During the interrogations, there was no mention of “propaganda against the regime”. But the examples cited for the charge of conspiracy and collusion were firstly, a statement we’d written about telephone threats from the Ministry of Intelligence, and secondly, our complaint about white torture and solitary confinement.
What happened during your arrest?
On November 6, an Intelligence Ministry agent disguised as a postman came to our private home. We opened the door, thinking that he was a post office employee. But all of a sudden, several other agents rushed up the steps. Even though there were so many of them, they called for backup: several male and one female officers. They took us away with violence, threats and intimidation, obscene sexist words and swearing, and without an arrest warrant. The only document they showed us – from a distance – was the text of a court summons for Hirad. Then we were transferred to Branch 2 of Evin Prison court, to judge Haji Moradi, and informed of the charges.
How many times has Hirad been detained?
The first time was in December 2019: he was arrested in front of the Revolutionary Court in support of the Haft Tappeh Sugar Factory’s imprisoned workers, and released a month later. Two weeks after his release, was detained again for 10 days, this time with the excuse that he still hadn’t stopped his activities. Hirad was then sentenced to six months in prison. Sometime later, he was said to be eligible for the same amnesty granted to Haft Tappeh protesters. But Judge Behrouz Shahmohammadi, the investigator in the case, opposed it, and Hirad was sent to prison.
He was also arrested in 2020 at another rally held in front of the courthouse for the ousting of Haft-Tappeh's directors, and was interrogated for several hours. A case was filed against him, but he was let off with a restraining order.
Why did the judge insist on Hirad Pirbodaghi’s imprisonment?
They think it’s important to complete the "repentance" project. Hirad was charged with associating with Mohammad Davari, who was being held in Adelabad Prison, for publishing an audio file detailing the conditions inside.
You mean, it was just for helping to release an audio file?
I think this accusation is understandable. Imagine being accused of the most risible thing, something that might seem ridiculous to you: attending friends' birthday parties, for example, or visiting someone released from prison at home! The interrogator in the case told me privately: “Your weddings and mourning ceremonies are also instances of collusion, for us.”
Did you yourself come under pressure during this latest period of imprisonment?
Yes. I was under a lot of pressure to cooperate and do a forced TV confession. I was released on a Monday, and Hirad was scheduled to be released the following Wednesday. The interrogator put his hand on the Quran on his desk and vowed to release him on Wednesday.
You can see the extent of their loyalty to the promises they make. I’d been released at midday, and at 4pm that day Ministry of Intelligence agents called me and summoned me again. I told them that my case investigator had advised me not to pay attention if they called, and to remind them that their calls were illegal. I said “Even if you’ve taken a cooperative statement from me, that was given under duress.” The agent immediately replied that the consequences of my non-cooperation would be imposed on both of us. He openly threatened to put more pressure on Hirad.
Did they act on this threat?
Yes. Just the next day, the pressure intensified. Hirad's calls were reduced, and he came under new pressure to give a TV interview. Then the case investigator blocked all family visits.
On November 24, the detention changed to bail. They said we had to post 800 million tomans ($26,000). But the next day, after bail had been granted, they said that it hadn’t been and “If he said such a thing, your child was deluded”. Imagine! Hirad has been to Evin Prison twice. His signature and fingerprints were taken, his belongings were handed back to him, and he was told he was free. But minutes later, he was sent back to his cell and told that they had made a mistake. Our follow-ups came to nothing.
Did you go to see the official who made the promise?
Actually we did. Amir Abbas Azarmvand and I went to see the case investigator who had promised Hirad would be released two days after me. But he wouldn’t admit us. Ever since my release I’ve gone back to the judiciary every day. Today I went to Mr. Salehi, the public prosecutor of Tehran, but he told me Hirad's case had been sent to the Revolutionary Court and it was no longer in their hands.
Has Hirad told his family he is under pressure to confess?
They say it officially; they have no reservations in doing so. The interrogator himself told me that if Hirad didn’t promise to cooperate, "I’ll talk to the case investigator and in a minute, the two charges will turn into five. The court won’t want to release him and will send the case directly for sentencing. He’ll never see freedom again.” Just because the interrogator failed to break him, he was deprived of his liberty and his case was sent to the Revolutionary Court. The accusations leveled against him are baseless.
The public no longer seems to pay attention to forced confessions.
In my opinion, these efforts aren’t meant to direct public opinion. By carrying them out, they are breaking labor activists, driving them insane. They don’t assassinate us on the street, they kill us while we still appear to be alive. They destroy our psyche.
What happened to you during your incarceration?
I was told that I had to cooperate. They said, “Don’t answer now because you are angry, go to your cell and think about our offer.” I was in such a bad mental state that when I got to the cell, I banged my head against the wall so hard I was blinded for a while and my heart rate went up to 170. All of these things are written in my file.
This was not just mine and Hirad’s fate. We don’t know about the others. One of my friends was constantly having seizures in prison and during interrogation. He promised to comply to put an end to this but since then, his mind has been badly disturbed. I think forcing us to promise to submit is a dirty plan meant to eliminate us.
If we do not stop this forced repentance project, a high proportion of activists will suffer from serious psychological problems after their release. Another friend of mine has been telling us for a long time that he promised to cooperate under pressure. He was sad. We laughed and made a joke out of it; we didn’t take it seriously, not understanding the extent of his grief and pain. A few months after he was released from Ward 2A, he attempted suicide and ended up having 18 stitches.
Forced repentance project is not meant to convince people, but to break the will of activists.
Related coverage:
Labor Activists Detained as Protests Erupt in Three Provinces
Haft-Tappeh Factory Workers Still Waiting for Action
Teacher and Labor Activists Jailed for Speaking Out
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