Iran – Human rights defender Mr Navid Mohebbi held in incommunicado detention, tried “on camera”

On 14 November 2010, human rights defender and blogger Mr Navid Mohebbi, aged 18 years, was tried in a private court sitting of a revolutionary court in the city of Amol, Mazandaran Province, on charges relating to his activities as a human rights defender. He is currently being held in incommunicado detention, and as yet a date for sentencing has not been announced. Navid Mohebbi has campaigned for women's rights in cooperation with the One Million Signatures movement, collecting signatures for a petition calling for changes in laws which discriminate against women. He kept a blog:
http://navidmohebbi3.blogfa.com/

On 18 September 2010, Navid Mohebbi was arrested at his home in Amol by officials from the Iranian Intelligence Ministry. He was reportedly beaten at the moment of his arrest. Since then, he has been held in a cell with common offenders and denied access to lawyer and family visits. On 14 November 2010, Navid Mohebbi was brought before a revolutionary court in Amol. His lawyer, Mina Jafari, was not permitted to attend the court proceedings. Navid Mohebbi was accused of "activities contrary to national security" and "insulting the Islamic Republic's founder and current leader (...) by means of foreign media".

In the past, Navid Mohebbi has been summoned by the Iranian Intelligence Service for questioning on numerous occasions. In 2008 he was interrogated because of his efforts to organise an event for International Women’s Day.

Front Line is concerned for the physical and psychological integrity of human rights defender Navid Mohebbi, while being held in incommunicado detention, and fears that there is a greater risk that being held under such conditions, he may be subjected to ill-treatment.

Front Line urges the Iranian authorities to:

Immediately and unconditionally release human rights defender Navid Mohebbi and drop all charges against him, as Front Line believes he is being detained solely as a result of his legitimate work in the defence of human rights;

Grant Navid Mohebbi immediate access to due process as stipulated under international law, in particular access to his lawyer Mina Jafari and family;

Carry out an immediate, thorough, and impartial investigation into the arrest, and detention of Navid Mohebbi, and ensure that his treatment while in detention adheres to all those conditions set out in the “Basic Principles for Treatment of Prisoners” adopted by General Assembly resolution 45/111 of 14 December 1990;

Guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of Navid Mohebbi, and all other human rights defenders in Iran, particularly by ensuring that adequate and effective security measures are provided to protect human rights defenders at risk;

Ensure that all human rights defenders in Iran, carrying out their legitimate work in the defence of human rights, are able to operate free of restrictions and reprisals, including judicial harassment.