STATEMENT ABOUT PRISONER OF CONSCIENCE ABBAS LISANI

We have received information about the health situation of Abbas Lesani. Lesani has been accused of organizing demonstrations and propagating separatism in the Azeri provinces of Iran . These accusations are made on flimsy grounds. Despite this Lesani was sentenced to prison. When he asked the prison leadership for an application for leave this application was denied. Applications for leave are mostly allowed in cases of Lesani´s type. When Lesani was denied an application for leave and heard that his wife was harassed by the Iranian authorities because she was telling media abroad of the treatment of Lesani he started a hunger-strike. In this situation the prison leadership revenged on Lesani and put him into a cell with low temperature.

First of all Lesani is no Azeri separatist, but fighting for human and democratic rights of the Azeri population in a united Iran . Secondly Lesani was sentenced to prison on very flimsy grounds. Thirdly Lesani only used his democratic right to express his opinion.

Today Lesani´s life is in great danger. Lesani was in bad health conditions already before he entered the prison. When hunger-striking and because of the hunger-strike put into an even worse situation the prison authorities obviously can be accused of trying to kill Abbas Lesani.

Abbas Lesani must immediately be released and sent to hospital for medical treatment!

Respectfully

Eva-Britt Svensson

Left Party, Swedish Member of the European Parliament

Eva-britt.svensson@europarl.europa.eu

Jens Holm

Left Party, Swedish Member of the European Parliament

Jens.holm@europarl.europa.eu

Hans Linde

Left Party of Sweden

Member of the Swedish Parliament

The left Party’s spokes person in foreign affairs questions

Hans.linde@riksdagen.se

Press release                                                                                                                                                      

31 January, 2007

               The Committee for Abbas Lisani’s Rights

Left Party of Sweden demands the immediate release of prisoner of conscience Abbas Lisani 

In connection with the deteriorating conditions of the Azerbaijani prisoner of conscience Mr. Abbas Lisani, the Swedish Left Party’s Foreign Affairs spokespersons have released a statement where they express their concerns over Mr. Lisani’s health and state that his life is in danger. In the statement the undersigned, two of whom are members of the European Parliament, and one of whom is sitting in the Swedish Foreign Affairs committee, point out that Mr. Lisani has been unlawfully imprisoned and that he is guilty of nothing other than using his democratic means to fight for his human rights.

Further more the parliamentarians write that Lisani’s health has been unstable prior to the hunger strike and that his transfer to a small solitary confinement with no heating facility has worsened it, putting him in a critical condition. The decision of the prison authorities to detain him in a cell without heating, they believe, was an act of revenge against Mr. Lisani’s strike which was also a protest against the harassment of his family members by the authorities among many other injustices. Considering the aforementioned, the members of Sweden ’s Left Party conclude that the Iranian authorities can be accused of attempting to murder Mr. Lisani.

The statement letter sent to the Iranian embassies in both Stockholm and Brussels demands immediate and unconditional release of Mr. Lisani and urges the Iranian authorities to provide him with all necessary medical treatments.

The Committee for Abbas Lisani’s Rights

E-mail: lisani.info@yahoo.com

www.lisani.blogfa.com

Fakhteh Zamani (Canada)  + 1 604 677 2524

Nargiz Nedaei (Sweden) + 46 735 68 78 82