Despite his critical health condition and urgent need for hospitalization, Evin Prison authorities have prevented prominent political prisoner Abolfazl Ghadyani from being transferred due to his refusal to wear handcuffs.
Critical Health Crisis and Denial of Hospitalization: Life of 80-Year-Old Political Prisoner at Risk
Iran Human Rights Society, Tuesday, June 3, 2025 – Political prisoner Abolfazl Ghadyani, suffering from a severe lung infection, has been denied access to essential medical care. Evin Prison authorities have blocked his transfer to a hospital, citing his refusal to wear handcuffs—a humiliating and coercive measure—despite the serious threat to the life of this 80-year-old prisoner.
According to informed sources, Ghadyani’s health is described as “critical,” and any delay in transferring him to specialized medical facilities could lead to irreversible consequences. However, prison authorities, disregarding medical priorities, humanitarian principles, and minimum standards for prisoners’ rights, have insisted on handcuffing this elderly political figure, obstructing his treatment.
Humiliation and Punishment Instead of Treatment: A Recurring Tactic in Suppressing Dissent
This action highlights the regime’s policy of humiliation, punishment, and gradual attrition of political prisoners in security-controlled facilities. Such measures are particularly harsh against outspoken critics of the ruling system. In a recent letter from prison, Ghadyani warned, “This corrupt regime will sooner or later come to an end,” a testament to his courage and commitment to freedom and justice despite immense personal costs.
Deliberate Neglect of Political Prisoners’ Health: A Quiet but Planned Killing
Denying Ghadyani medical care is just one example of the ongoing policy of “white torture” in the regime’s prisons, which includes denying treatment, cutting off family contact, grueling interrogations, and psychological pressure to force submission or confessions. Over the years, numerous cases of silent killings of political prisoners due to deliberate medical neglect have been documented. Recent examples include Alireza Shirmohammadali, Baktash Abtin, and Shahin Naseri, who lost their lives due to authorities’ intentional negligence. This pattern reveals medical deprivation as part of a strategy to gradually eliminate opponents.
As human rights organizations repeatedly warn about the plight of prisoners of conscience in Iran, regime authorities continue to systematically violate prisoners’ rights, escalating the repression of political activists. This approach constitutes a clear crime against humanity in the realm of civil and political rights.
Human Rights Violations in Abolfazl Ghadyani’s Case
Article 10 – Right to Humane Treatment of Prisoners: According to Article 10 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), all persons deprived of liberty must be treated with humanity and respect for their inherent dignity. Denying an elderly and ill prisoner like Abolfazl Ghadyani access to medical care is a blatant act of cruelty, humiliation, and violation of this fundamental principle. Forcing him to wear handcuffs for hospital transfer, intended to degrade and punish, contravenes human dignity and international norms.
Article 9 – Right to Liberty and Security of Person: This article guarantees everyone’s right to liberty and security, and detained individuals must not be subjected to torture or inhumane treatment. Holding an elderly prisoner with a severe lung infection, like Ghadyani, without access to proper medical care constitutes psychological and physical torture, clearly violating Article 9 of the ICCPR.
These actions underscore the urgent need for international oversight of the situation of political prisoners in Iran and immediate action by global institutions to address systematic human rights violations. Silence in the face of the gradual death of prisoners equates to complicity in an ongoing crime.
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