Arash Saghar Remains in Ward 209, Five Months after his Arrest

Arash Saghar

The Humanrights House of Iran: Arash Saghar, a Mousavi campaign worker in eastern Iran, remains in ward 209 of Evin Prison 5 months after his arrest

RAHANA – 5 months after his arerst, Arash Saghar remains in limbo in the notorious ward 209 of Evin prison, according to one his friends. Saghar was a senior Mousavi campaign worker in Sunni regions during the June 2009 presidential election. He is reportedly being interrogated over his relationship with Molavi Abdolhamid, the leader of Iran’s Sunni minority.
Saghar who is a native of Gonbad Kavoos was Mousavi’s campaign liaison officer with the region’s Sunni population. He was arrested on November 22, 2009 and his refusal to cooperate with his interrogators has resulted in his continuing detention. Following his arrest, Saghar was fired from his work.  In the past months, holding political prisoners in limbo has become common practice. In the cases of Bahareh Hedayat and Bahman Amooyi, the authorities, for weeks, either claimed ignorance over who was in charge of their cases or that their files were nowhere to be found. As a result, visits made to the prosecutor’s office with the objectives of seeking information or request visitations have become shrouded in confusion for the families of political prisoners.
Arash Saghar is among the lesser known post-election detainees. He has been accused of espionage for the Republic of Turkmenistan.  No independent source has commented on whether the espionage accusation has been backed by evidence, nor is it clear if the activist has had a due process.

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