Iran's president praises civil rights while judiciary cracks down on dissidents

Iran's new President Masoud Pezeshkian on Saturday called on parliamentarians to confirm his cabinet, stressing that it would commit to “ensuring the civil rights of all Iranians.” But events that same day stood in sharp contrast to his message and made clear that repression continues.

In Nazarabad, Alborz province, a court sentenced Mashallah Karami, the father of executed protester Mohammad Mehdi Karami, to eight years and ten months in prison. according to pro bono legal group Dadban on Saturday.

The court also imposed a fine of 19 billion and 200 million rials (about $33,000) and ordered the confiscation of his assets, including a car and a house. Karami was charged with “acquiring property through illegal means” and “participating in money laundering.”

These allegations were related to public donations, which, as Karami's lawyer emphasized in an interview with Shargh News, were completely legitimate.

Dadban condemned the verdict, saying it appeared to be more of an attempt to suppress public support for the families of executed protesters than a legally sound decision.

Karami's son, 21-year-old Mohammad Mehdi Karami, was executed on January 7, 2023. Human rights groups condemned the trial as unfair and based on forced confessions. His execution came in the context of the 2022 nationwide “Woman, Life, Freedom” protests sparked by the death of Mahsa Zhina Amini in police custody.

Human rights groups have criticized Karami's detention as part of a broader campaign against families linked to the protests.

At the same time, Iranian bodybuilder Sahand Nourmohammadzadeh, another protester of the 2022 uprising, was forced to return to Kahnuj Prison in Kerman province.

Despite needing further medical treatment for his failing eyesight, he was sent back to the remote and inhumane facility where he is serving a ten-year sentence.

He was originally sentenced to death in November 2022 for “enmity against God” after allegedly damaging and setting fire to public property. However, following a retrial in April 2023, his sentence was reduced.

His lawyer Hamed Ahmadi warned that without appropriate treatment his client could lose sight in his right eye.

Nourmohammadzadeh was temporarily released in March 2024 for eye surgery, but he was returned to prison on Saturday before his treatment could be completed, raising serious concerns about his health in prison.

His father had previously stated that his son had been led to the gallows three times for mock executions, underscoring the psychological torment he had endured during his imprisonment.

In a farewell message on Instagram on Saturday before heading to prison to serve his sentence, Sahad said: “I am at a loss for words… Goodbye… I hope no one else ever has to feel this way…”

As the president seeks to gain support for his “national unity government,” the harsh treatment of protesters and their families underscores the widening gap between his promises and the reality of repression and raises doubts about the future of civil liberties in Iran.