HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS OF GONABADI DERVISHES IN IRAN JANUARY 2011 – 2014
Dervishes in Iran continue to face a range of human rights violations, including intimidation, harassment, attacks on their prayer centres, destruction of community cemeteries, arrest and torture.
The Nematollahi Gonabadis consider themselves followers of Twelver Shia Islam, the official state religion in Iran. The Iranian government, however, considers them members of a “deviant group,”
They have been sentenced to long prison terms. Lawyers who defended the Sufis were removed from the judiciary or imprisoned themselves. Journalists who wrote about their complaints were fired. The authorities are waging an on-going smear campaigns against them.
On 13 April 2011, authorities arrested eight Gonabadi dervishes: Abdolreza Kashani, Shokrollah Hosseini, Alireza Abbasi, Ali Kashanifar, Mohammad Marvi, Nazarali Marvi, Ramin Soltankhah and Zafarali Moghimi. The men had been part of a group of dervishes previously sentenced to five months in prison, 50 lashes and one year’s exile on charges of “disrupting public order”, mainly for assembling in front of the Gonabad Justice Department and prison to protest the detainment of a leader of the order.
In May 2011, Mostafa Daneshjou, a lawyer who represented Sufi dervishes pressured by Iranian authorities was arrested.
On 1 September 2011, a violent confrontation of plainclothes forces and Basijs with Gonabadi Dervishes took place after unrest was provoked by the anti-Sufi preaching of fanatical clerics, Mohammad-Reza Shahbazi and Ali-Reza Ghaemi, who travelled through the Shiraz district, started widespread propaganda against Islamic mysticism and distributed CD’s insulting dervishes and calling on local Muslims to demonstrate against the Sufis. The plainclothes security forces attacked the town of Kavar but the local police intervention resulted in the arrest of some 200 Dervishes who were blamed for the violence.
The violent confrontation led to the death of Vahid Banâni, a member of the Gonabadi Sufi Order, who was shot and killed by Iranian Security Forces. Three other Gonabadi dervishes
were also shot (Ibrahim Fazli, Asghar Karimi, Mohammad Ali Saadi) and taken to hospital in critical conditions.
After the hospitalization of the three wounded Dervishes, they were
moved to an unknown place by plaincloth agents where they were reportedly interrogated numerous times despite their critical health condition.
At 1 a.m. on September 3, 2011, security forces arrived at the offices of Majzooban Noor website, which covered the aforementioned developments. Authorities broke down the door, confiscated books, computers and office documents; surrounded all 12 employees with guns and arrested them, breaking the arm of one website reporter in the process. Later that day, three lawyers from the community, Amir Eslami, Afshin Karampour and Gholamreza Shirzadi, who were reportedly invited by the Kavar Governor’s Office to discuss the attacks, were also arrested.
Since September 2011, following the attacks by Basijs and plain-clothes on Gonabadi Dervishes in Kavar town in Fars Province, pressures on Gonabadi Dervishes increased. In the second half of 2011 and first half of 2012 more than 100 Gonabadi Dervishes in the city of Kavar were arrested and without written summons been tried. The procedure for arresting Gonabadi Dervishes was always with harsh violence by security forces and plainclothes forces and after the arrest and transfer to Intelligence detention centres or in the detention centre of security agents, the dervishes were interrogated and in some cases severely beaten by security agents.
On 3 May 2012, the trial of 189 Dervishes who were arrested in November 2007 began. The defendants were arrested at a protest against the demolition of their mosque. All charges, except for “disturbance of public order”, were reportedly dropped. It was also reported that 22 lawyers volunteered to represent the defendants, but that only two attorneys were allowed to participate in the trial for all 189 individuals. The presiding judge reportedly asserted that the number of lawyers wishing to participate in the trial would disturb the proceedings.
Vhid Banani
On June 26, 2012, Gonabadi dervish’s lawyer, Ehsanollah Heidari was disqualified of the second election period Board of directors in Lorestan Bar Association. He was disqualified only because he belongs to the Nematollah Gonabadi Order and also because he defended the rights of the jailed Gonabadi dervishes. In 2011, despite 11 years experience of full-time teaching in Islamic Azad University faculty of Law, he was fired
On July 9, 2012, Gonabadi dervish and Majzooban Noor website’s personnel, Ali Reza Roshan, was sentenced to 1 year imprisonment and 4 years of suspended jail term for his cooperation with the Majzooban Noor news website on charges of “assembly and collusion with the intent to disrupt national security”. He was arrested along with 15 dervishes’ lawyers and personnel of Majzooban Noor website in September 2011
Evin prison
August 6, 2012, Abdolghafour Ghalandari Nejad, one of the collaborators of Majzooban Noor website, was arrested and was released after 6 days of interrogation and imprisonment, with a warning of not to continue cooperation with Majzooban Noor website any more.
On September 9, 2012, Nosrat Tabasi, was sentenced to 6 months imprisonment and 4 years and 6 months of suspended jail. Nosrat Tabasi, was arrested along with 15 dervishes’ lawyers and personnel of Majzooban Noor website in September 2011.
On January 18, 2013, a municipal official of Shahrekord, in an interview with “Chahar Mahal and Bakhtiari province network” threatened to demolish the house of Mr Saffarian because the house was sometimes used as a worship-place.
Later in January 2013, Mansour Saffarian and Mehdi Davari, members of the Gonabadi Sufi order of Shahrekord, found one morning that regime agents had broken into their private courtyard and destroyed a large tent set up to accommodate weekly ceremonials led by the local chairman of the Sufi group.
The two occupants of the property, Mansour Saffarian and Mehdi Davari, protested against the intrusion and were arrested. The two arrested men were released on probation, but some 4,000 Sufis camped around the house during the night to prevent further raids.
On January 15, 2013, Saleh Moradi and Kasra Nouri, imprisoned in the Adel Abad Prison in Shiraz started a hunger strike to protest the transfer of seven Gonabadi dervishes’ lawyers and Majzooban Noor website Managers to solitary confinement of Evin prison and the lack of medical treatment for these prisoners. Only after 90 days their demands were met and they ended their hunger strike. During their hunger strike they were harassed, beaten and at once instant forced to eat.
January 31, 2013, Gonabadi dervish, Ali Moazzami was sentenced to 2 years imprisonment on charges of “gathering and colluding against national security”.
Ali Moazzami was arrested along with more than 15 other lawyers and managers of Majzooban Noor website (Nematollahi Gonabadi Order News Website) in Shahrivar 1390 (September 2011) in Tehran and he was released on bail after enduring more than one month behind bars in solitary confinement in Ward 209 of Evin prison.
April 2013: Kasra Nouri, one of the collaborators of Majzooban Noor website, (arrested twice: once on Jan 11, 2012 and released after 46 days released on bail – second time on Mar 14, 2012) was sentenced to 4 yeears and 4 months in prison.
Adel Abad prison in Shiraz
Charges: various national security crimes in connection with his activities with the website
April 20, 2013, Abdolghafour Ghalandari Nejad was arrested again.
April 30, 2013, Mohammad Ali Sadeghi, Mohammad Ali Dehghan and Mohsen
Esmaeeli were arrested without a warrant.
May 8, 2013, Gonabadi dervish Mehran Rahbari was sentenced to two years in prison by the Revolutionary Court in Tehran on charges of “gathering and colluding against national security”, according to Article 610 of the Penal Code.
Mehran Rahbari was arrested along with more than 15 other lawyers and managers of Majzooban Noor website (Nematollah Gonabadi Order News Site) in Shahrivar 1390 (September 2011) in Tehran and he was released on bail after enduring more than one month behind bars in solitary confinement in Ward 209 of Evin prison.
May 10, 2013, Sayed Ebrahim Bahrami resident of Kavar town in Fars Province was arrested without a valid warrant by security forces and plain-clothes at his work place.
November 12, 2013, four Gonabadi Dervishes, named Sayed Ebrahim Bahrami, Mohammad Ali Sadeghi, Mohammad Ali Dehghan and Mohsen Esmaeeli residents of Kavar county are charged with “the formation of terrorist group against the regime,” “participating in the gatherings with the aim of overthrowing the Islamic Republic,” “Moharebeh (“enmity against the God”) and “carrying illegal weapons”.
Adel Abad prison no. 2 “Nezam prison”
June 4, 2013:
Mostafa Abdi was sentenced to 3 years in prison. Evin prison
Charges: Assembly and collusion against national security through cooperating with
Majzooban Noor Website
Saleh Moradi received a 1-year prison sentence plus 1 year of exile.
Adel Abad prison in Shiraz
Charges: “inciting public opinion” and “disturbing the public order”
Mostafa Abdi and Saleh Moradi were arrested along with 15 dervishes’ lawyers and managers of Majzooban Noor website in September 2011.
11 Gonabadi dervishes were convicted in unfair trials and informed of their sentences in July 2013:
Hamid Reza Moradi (Majzooban Noor website manager and human-Dervish rights activist) was sentenced to 10 years and 6 months imprisonment
Evin prison
Reza Entesari (photo journalist, webmaster and human-Dervish rights activist) to 8 years and 6 months imprisonment,
Evin Prison
Mostafa Daneshjou, Farshid Yadollahi, Amir Eslami, Omid Behroozi (Lawyers, webmasters and human-Dervish rights activists) and Afshin Karampour (Juristist, webmaster and human-Dervish rights activist) were sentenced to 7.5 years in prison. Evin Prison
All 7 are charged for: “membership in a sect endangering national security,” “propaganda against the state,” “insulting the Supreme Leader,” “disturbing the public mind,” “establishing and membership in a deviant group,” and “disrupting the public order” They were banned from social, legal, and journalistic activities related to the Sufi order for five years after their release.
Saleh Moradi 3 years imprisonment – 3 years exile in Hormozgan Province (he received already a sentence of 1 year and 1 year of exile on June 4, 2013 for other charges)
Farzaneh Nouri: (mother of Farzaneh Nouri, arrested and imprisoned only to pressure her son) 2 years imprisonment plus 3 years internal exile in Khuzestan province
Charges: membership in an “anti-government” group intent on endangering national security, a reference to the website, and of disseminating “propaganda against the state.
Behzad Nouri: 2 years imprisonment plus 3 years internal exile in Bushehr Province Charges: membership in an “anti-government” group intent on endangering national security, a reference to the website, and of disseminating “propaganda against the state.
Farzad Darvish: 1 year imprisonment plus 3 years internal exile in Sistan and Baluchestan Province
Charges: membership in an “anti-government” group intent on endangering national security, a reference to the website, and of disseminating “propaganda against the state.
All 4 are charged for: membership in an “anti-government” group intent on endangering national security, a reference to the website, and of disseminating “propaganda against the state.
While in custody, the dervishes are subject to intimidation, beatings, torture, held in solitary confinement and other ill-treatment.
Hamid-Reza Moradi, Mostafa Daneshjou, Reza Entesari, Afshin Karampour and Amir Eslami are in poor health and are in need of urgent medical treatment but they are denied adequate medical care and specialized treatment, which aggravate their ailments. In itself, this is torture.
During September and October 2013, the Majzooban Noor Sufi News Agency, which covers news about the Nematollah Gonabadi Dervishes in Iran experienced a series of cyber attacks.
November 15, 2013, a number of religious extremists who are known as “Fatemiyon group”, have started a wave of intimidation against the Gonabadi Dervishes in the city of Khorramshahr. The threats started with a series of phone calls to Dervishes residents in Khorramshahr and continued with graffiti against Sufis written on the door of the Dervishes’ places of worship with the intention to stop Dervish ceremonies. The fundamentalist group kidnapped Amin Azadi after he left his home and was transferred to a place out of the city where he was tortured and severely beaten. He was left unconscious. The police found him. The extremists wanted Azadi to sign a letter of repentance of being Dervish, of his faith and beliefs. The letter was prepared ahead of Azadi’s kidnapping. The Dervish did not accept their orders.
(On November 22, 2013, plainclothes security officers attacked a house in Hassan Abad in Karaj, where fifteen Dervishes in the night of Ashura were doing their ceremony. The fifteen “Qaderi kasanzani” Dervishes, were all arrested.)
On January 2, 2014, three Gonabadi Dervishes, Hamid-Reza Arayesh, Kazem Dehghan and Mohammad-Ali Shamshirzan, who were arrested in relations with the Kavar unrest in September 2011, were sentenced to deportation for the rest of their lives and to life in exile in the provinces of Sistan and Baluchestan, Khuzestan and Hormozgan (Bandar Abbas).
Charges: attending protests intended to overthrow the government, waging war against God and shipping illegal weapons.
On January 2, 2014, the three Gonabadi Dervishes, Ebrahim Fazli, Asghar Karimi, and Mohammad Ali Saadi who had been shot and injured after being attacked by religious extremists and Basij militia members during the attacks in Kavar town on September 4, 2011 were charged for “activities against national security and disturbing the public order” by Kavar Court and each was sentenced to two years imprisonment.
February 20, 2014, security forces entered the Ferdowsi printing office that located in the city of Ahvaz and arrested two employees of the publishing office and confiscated 500 copies of the printed calendar, posters and effigies of Sufi grand Masters.
The two men were released after 30 Gonabadi Dervishes gathered in front of the police station and demanded the immediate release of them but the seized property has not been returned yet.
March 2013, llegal deportation of Farshid Yadollahi and Reza Entesari to Karaj’s Rajai Shahr prison
March 3, 2014, Abdolghafour Ghalandari Nejad, appeared in his charges hearings in Branch 2 of the Revolutionary Court in the city of Bandar Abbas and after refusing to deposit the bail was sent to prison. He is accused of “propaganda against the Islamic Republic” and “being a member of opposition group”
Bandar-Abbas prison
Gonabadi dervishes released:
Parviz Malekshahi was released from Khorramabad prison after serving his
sentence of 6 months imprisonment on the charges of ” insulting the leadership”
and “Propaganda against the Regime due to just participating in Sufi’s meeting”
Ali-Reza Roshan was released from Evin prison after enduring one year behind
bars without furlough.
Saleh Moradi was temporarily released from Adel Abad prison on June 6, 2013.
mehriran