Two Years Imprisonment for Speaking at a May Day Celebration!

An Event that Never Took Place!

November 29, 2006: According to the official ISNA news agency, as well as an authentic copy of court verdict, Mr. Mohsen Hakimi, who was arrested on May 1^st, 2004 and subsequently charged with attempting to hold an illegal gathering for the purpose of committing crime against the country’s national security has been sentenced to 2 years imprisonment by the Branch One of the Saqez’ Revolution Court.  Mr. Hakimi, who is a labour activist and a member of the Iranian Writers’ Association and a resident of Tehran, was invited to speak at the May Day event in Saqez on May 1^st 2004.  However, prior to the event taking place, the security forces arrested scores of people including Hakimi and the event organizers mentioned below and hence the event never took place. Since then, these labour activists have gone through numerous court hearings and persecutions. In March 2005, Mr. Hakimi was sentenced to two years in jail. That sentence was appealed by his lawyer and subsequently overturned by the Kurdistan Province Court of Appeal, Division 7 in May 2006. However, the Saqez Revolutionary Court decided to press new charges against him, as well as Mahmoud Salehi, Jalal Hosseini, Borhan Divargar and Mohammad Abdipour. 

As of this time, the most recent sentences in the Saqez case are as follows:

Mahmoud Salehi: 4 years

Jalal Hosseini: 2 years

Borhan Divargar: 2 years

Mohsen Hakimi: 2 years

Mohammad Abdipour: Acquitted

For more information, contact [email protected] or [email protected].

International Alliance in Support of Workers in Iran

Background Information: www.workers-iran.org