Emadeddin Baghi
Encyclopedia
Emadeddin Baghi is a prominent Iran
ian human rights activist, prisoners' rights advocate, investigative journalist, philosopher and writer. He is the founder and head of the Committee for the Defense of Prisoners' Rights
and the Society of Right to Life Guardians in Iran, and the author of twenty books, six of which have been banned in Iran. Baghi was imprisoned in connection with his writings on the Chain murders of Iran
, which occurred in Autumn 1998, and imprisoned again in late 2007 for another year on charges of "acting against national security." According to his family and lawyers, Baghi has been summoned to court 23 times since his release in 2003. He has also had his passport confiscated, his newspaper closed, and suspended prison sentences passed against his wife and daughter. Baghi was rearrested on 28 December 2009 on charges related to an interview with Grand Ayatollah Hussein-Ali Montazeri. Baghi was released and then again rearrested on 5 December 2010.
, where intelligence agents interrogated him for three weeks. As Baghi’s health deteriorated considerably, on September 16, 2008, the authorities released him for medical treatment.
or the Qur'an
ic verses. Baghi has been interrogated and imprisoned several times for articles he wrote making the arguments collected in this book. The book has been banned in Iran, but has been translated into Arabic.
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
ian human rights activist, prisoners' rights advocate, investigative journalist, philosopher and writer. He is the founder and head of the Committee for the Defense of Prisoners' Rights
Committee for the Defense of Prisoners' Rights
Committee for the Defense of Prisoners' Rights, also translated as Defending the Rights of Prisoners, is an Iranian NGO dedicated to defending the rights of prisoners in the Islamic Republic of Iran. It was founded by human rights activist Emadeddin Baghi after he was sentenced to prison in 1999...
and the Society of Right to Life Guardians in Iran, and the author of twenty books, six of which have been banned in Iran. Baghi was imprisoned in connection with his writings on the Chain murders of Iran
Chain murders of Iran
The Chain Murders of Iran , or Serial Murders, were a series of murders and disappearances from 1988-1998 by Iranian government operatives of Iranian dissident intellectuals who had been critical of the Islamic Republic system in some way.The victims included more than 80 writers, translators,...
, which occurred in Autumn 1998, and imprisoned again in late 2007 for another year on charges of "acting against national security." According to his family and lawyers, Baghi has been summoned to court 23 times since his release in 2003. He has also had his passport confiscated, his newspaper closed, and suspended prison sentences passed against his wife and daughter. Baghi was rearrested on 28 December 2009 on charges related to an interview with Grand Ayatollah Hussein-Ali Montazeri. Baghi was released and then again rearrested on 5 December 2010.
Political arrests
Emadeddin Baghi's record as a political prisoner or defendant includes:- A three-year prison term passed in 2000 by a Revolutionary CourtIslamic Revolutionary CourtIslamic Revolutionary Court is a special court in the Islamic Republic of Iran designed to try those suspected of smuggling, blaspheming, inticing violence or trying to overthrow the Iranian government...
on charges brought by the intelligence ministry and the conservative-run state television of "endangering national security" for his writings about the serial murder of dissident intellectuals in Iran in the late 1990s. He served two years of that sentence, and one year was suspended.
- A one-year suspended term issued in 2003 by Judge Babayee of Branch 6 of the Revolutionary Court for "endangering national security" and "printing lies" in his book, The Tragedy of Democracy in Iran.
- A one-year prison sentence for "acting against national security", issued on 15 October 2007, when he was summoned by Tehran's revolutionary court on the charges of "propaganda against the Islamic Republic" and "divulging state secret information". This imprisonment was condemned by Iranian lawyer, human rights advocate and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin EbadiShirin EbadiShirin Ebadi is an Iranian lawyer, a former judge and human rights activist and founder of Defenders of Human Rights Center in Iran. On 10 October 2003, Ebadi was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her significant and pioneering efforts for democracy and human rights, especially women's,...
, and by the Paris-based Reporters Without BordersReporters Without BordersReporters Without Borders is a France-based international non-governmental organization that advocates freedom of the press. It was founded in 1985, by Robert Ménard, Rony Brauman and the journalist Jean-Claude Guillebaud. Jean-François Julliard has served as Secretary General since 2008...
. Baghi had been protesting a wave of public hangings that was part of a campaign by the authorities to improve "societal security". A year before his arrest and trial, Baghi had written an open letter to the heads of the reformist parties, scolding them for their silence over the increased number of hangings.
- Baghi was among the numerous journalists and reformists detained by the government of Iran on 28 December 2009 in the wake of violent crackdowns on Ashura protests.
Organizations
Emadeddin Baghi founded two Iranian nongovernmental organizations — the Society for the Defense of Prisoners' Rights in 2003, and the Society of Right to Life Guardians in 2005. The two organizations produce reports on the situation of Iranian prisoners and gather data about death penalty cases in Iran.Health problems
Baghi suffers from severe heart and kidney ailments. On August 7, 2008, a prison doctor recommended strongly that he be taken to a hospital to receive treatment for his illnesses. On the same day, the authorities transferred Baghi to solitary confinement in Section 209 of Evin PrisonEvin Prison
Evin House of Detention is a prison in Iran, located in Evin, northwestern Tehran. It is noted for its political prisoners' wing, where prisoners have been held both before and after the 1979 Iranian Revolution...
, where intelligence agents interrogated him for three weeks. As Baghi’s health deteriorated considerably, on September 16, 2008, the authorities released him for medical treatment.
Awards and recognition
- In 2004 he was awarded the Civil Courage PrizeCivil Courage PrizeThe Civil Courage Prize is a human rights award which is awarded to "steadfast resistance to evil at great personal risk — rather than military valor." It is awarded by the Trustees of The Train Foundation annually and may be awarded posthumously....
, sharing it with ZimbabweZimbabweZimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
an opposition politician Lovemore MadhukuLovemore MadhukuLovemore Madhuku was born on July 20, 1966. He is married to Annamercy and has two children, a daughter Tendai and a son Nyasha .- Education :...
, but was prohibited from leaving Iran to accept it. - In 2005 he was awarded the Human Rights Prize given by the French Government in recognition of his work campaigning against the death penalty.
- In April 2008, Baghi was named International Journalist of the Year by the British press, but was forbidden by the Iranian government to visit London to accept the award.
- In 2009, Baghi won the Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights DefendersMartin Ennals Award for Human Rights DefendersThe Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders, called also "the Nobel Prize for human rights", was created in 1993 to honour and protect individuals around the world who demonstrate exceptional courage in defending and promoting human rights...
. This award is given annually in Geneva by a coalition of 10 international human rights organizations, including Amnesty InternationalAmnesty InternationalAmnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
, Human Rights WatchHuman Rights WatchHuman Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...
and Front LineFront Line (NGO)Front Line or The International Foundation for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders is an Irish-based human rights organisation founded in Dublin, Ireland in 2001 to protect human rights defenders at risk, i.e...
, to a leading defender of human rights who is currently in danger. Again Baghi was denied permission to attend the award ceremony by the government of Iran. - Amnesty InternationalAmnesty InternationalAmnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
has named him a prisoner of consciencePrisoner of consciencePrisoner of conscience is a term defined in Peter Benenson's 1961 article "The Forgotten Prisoners" often used by the human rights group Amnesty International. It can refer to anyone imprisoned because of their race, religion, or political views...
.
Works
Among Baghi's published books are The Tragedy of Democracy in Iran and Clerics and Power. One of Baghi's more notable books is The Right to Life, in which he argues that there is no such absolute requirement for the death penalty within ShariaSharia
Sharia law, is the moral code and religious law of Islam. Sharia is derived from two primary sources of Islamic law: the precepts set forth in the Quran, and the example set by the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh jurisprudence interprets and extends the application of sharia to...
or the Qur'an
Qur'an
The Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
ic verses. Baghi has been interrogated and imprisoned several times for articles he wrote making the arguments collected in this book. The book has been banned in Iran, but has been translated into Arabic.
External links
- emadbaghi.com
- Hope for Democracy in Iran by Emadeddin Baghi Washington Post, October 25, 2004