Shiva Nazar Ahari, a human rights activist and member of Committee of Human Rights Reporters, has spent more than 120 days in prison. She was arrested for the second time in one year on December 20, 2009. Earlier, she had spent 102 days in prison, 33 of which was in solitary confinement, and was released on a $200,000 bail on December 23, 2009. Shahrzad Kariman, Nazar Ahari’s mother, told International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran that she and her daughter’s lawyers’ endless search for locating Nazar Ahari’s case file in different branches of the Revolutionary Courts have all be fruitless so far. The Evin Court judge has received Shiva Nazar Ahari’s last defense, charging her with “propagation against the regime through cooperation with the Committee of Human Rights Reporters Web site,” and “actions against national security through participation in the November 4, 2009 and December 7, 2009 gatherings.” Shiva Nazar Ahari has denied participation in the mentioned gatherings and has stated that she was at work during both events. She was arrested again last year on December 20, 2009 along with Kouhyar Goudarzi and Saeed Haeri, two other members of the independent civil organization. On that day a bus taking several political and civil activists to Ayatollah Montazeri’s funeral in Qom was stopped by security forces in Tehran’s Enghelab Square, and only the three members of he Committee of Human Rights Reporters were arrested and transferred to Evin Prison. Regarding the latest followups for locating her daughter’s case file, Shahrzad Kariman told the Campaign: “I went to the court twice. They didn’t give me any information about her first file and whether the file is under review in Branch 26 or not. One of Shiva’s lawyers, Ms. Moezzi, was told that the file is in Branch 26, but no registration number for it is yet available in the branch computer. Regarding her second file, the Prosecutor had ordered that both files be merged to be reviewed in one place, but we don’t have any further news and no dates have been set for the trial. The 3rd Branch of Evin Court has informed Shiva of two charges. One is ‘creating public anxiety through writing on the Committee of Human Rights Reporters’ Web site and other sites,’ a charge which other Committee members share. Her second charge is ‘actions against national security through participation in the November 4, 2009 and December 7, 2009 gatherings.’ Shiva has denied these charges because she wasn’t present at those gatherings and the Evin Court Judge has concluded the case as such. Today, [April 24, 2010], I was at the court between 9 a.m. and 12 noon. When I went to Branch 26, they told me that I had to file a new inquiry to confirm that the file is at Branch 26. When I went to file an inquiry, they told me that it seems the first file is in Branch 2 and there is no new information about the file. The new file which is dated December 20, 2009, was sent to Branch 15 of the Revolutionary Courts, but I was told at that branch that Shiva had objected to her arrest orders and after reviewing her objection, they had forwarded the case file, but they didn’t answer my question about where they had forwarded the case.” In her last meeting with her mother last Thursday, Nazar Ahari told her that upon receiving her last defense, the judge in Evin Prison Court’s Branch 3 had informed her that her case is closed in that branch now, and that her file would be forwarded to the trial court. She was also told that because she was imprisoned, efforts would be made to expedite her trial date. Shahrzad Kariman described Shiva Nazar Ahari’s mental state as “good,” and said about her conditions in prison: “Shiva remains in Ward 209 and even though she has requested to be moved to the [General] Ward, she has not been transferred yet and she remains in a two-person cell with Ms. [Hengemeh] Shahidi. Her psychological state was good, but she has been in prison for five months now and her temporary detention orders have not been extended yet and the previous detention orders which were valid for two months have expired.” Shiva Nazar Ahari’s mother referred to the fruitless followups of Nazar Ahari’s lawyers and said: “Her lawyers keep going to the courts, but when they go to Branch 26, they receive no answers about her June 14, 2009 case which has an indictment in it and has already been allocated to a branch. The branch office manager has been kind enough to acknowledge that the file is in that branch, but has said that the case doesn’t have a registration number yet and it cannot be located in the branch computer.” Kariman also referred to the inappropriate treatment she has received during visitation with her daughter and the limitations created for her in-person visits with Nazar Ahari. Calling the new limitations problematic, she said: “The treatment is not very good. Shiva was also very unhappy with the treatment at visitation time and said that they insult her and yell at her. There are no particular problems with visits through booths, but in-person visits have become problematic and no family members other than the parents are allowed to visit her. Continuing this situation will be very difficult, as Shiva’s sisters have been unable to see her. If visits are limited like this, it will not just be difficult for us, it will be difficult for all prisoners. First they were going to let [other family members] to have in-person visits along with the parents, but apparently the Prosecutor has ordered that only the father, mother, or spouse can have in-person visits, creating limitations in the case of other family members.” Kariman said she remains hopeful that Shiva is soon released on the bail they had previously posted. “We posted a $200,000 bail on her previous case, and we haven’t requested a bail refund yet. I thought if they combined the two files to issue new bail orders, the existing bail would serve for her release. I don’t know if they would release her on the same bail or a lower bail. I am optimistic that they would not ask for a higher bail.” Currently Navid Khanjani and Kouhyar Goudarzi, two other members of Committee of Human Rights Reporters remain in prison. Kouhyar Goudarzi is in Ward 350 and Navid Khanjani is in IRGC’s Ward 2-A at Evin Prison. Another Committee member, Ali Kalaee, was informed in writing yesterday to appear at Branch 3 of the Revolutionary Courts in order to continue investigations. Source: http://www.iranhumanrights.org/2010/04/shiva-nazar-aharis-mother-my-daughter-has-denied-the-charges-against-her/
