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Esmail Abdi, Former Mathematics Teacher and Former Secretary General of the Iranian Teachers’ Union Now Serving 6 Years in Evin Prison

June 8, 2017

Esmail Abdi, the former Secretary General of the Iranian Teachers’ Trade Association is serving a six year sentence in Evin Prison charged with “propaganda against the state” and “collusion against national security.”  Dr. Abdi has been denied an attorney during the investigatory phase of his trial.  He is being detained for peaceful political and trade union activities.  Recently, Dr. Abdi’s health has deteriorated due to the effects of a hunger strike.

June 1, 2017

Ayatollah Sadegh Larijani
Head of the Judiciary
c/o Public Relations Office
Number 4, Deadend of 1 Azizi
Above Pasteur Intersection
Vali Asr Street
Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran
Email: info@bia-judiciary.ir
Fax: +98 21 879 6671 | +98 21 3 311 6567

Your Excellency:

The Committee of Concerned Scientists is an independent organization of scientists, physicians, engineers and scholars devoted to the protection and advancement of human rights and scientific freedom for colleagues all over the world.

We write to express our deep concern for Esmail Abdi, a former mathematics teacher and the former secretary general of the Iranian Teachers’ Trade Association (ITTA). He is currently serving a six-year sentence in Evin Prison for “propaganda against the state” and “collusion against national security.” In May, his health has seriously deteriorated due to an ongoing hunger strike.

Esmail Abdi was denied a lawyer during the investigation phase of his trial, in violation of international recognized fair trial standards. He has been harassed by security forces and the courts since 2006, and he has now been jailed since November 2016 for nothing more than peaceful political and trade union activity.

The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), and the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), both of which Iran has ratified, are explicit that your government is required to protect the rights to freedom of expression and association, and the right to participate in trade unions.

We urge you to demonstrate respect for these rights and these fundamental treaty obligations and see to it that Esmail Abdi is immediately and unconditionally released. We also strongly urge you to ensure that he receives adequate medical treatment that conforms to internationally recognized medical and ethical standards of confidentiality, autonomy, and informed consent.

Thank you for your attention to this matter, and we look forward to receiving your response.

Sincerely,

Joel L. Lebowitz, Paul H. Plotz, Walter Reich, Eugene M. Chudnovsky, Alexander Greer,
Co-Chairs, Committee of Concerned Scientists

cc:
Abbas Ja’fari Dolatabadi
Prosecutor General of Tehran
Office of the General and Revolutionary Prosecutor
Corner (Nabsh-e) of 15 Khordad Square
Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran

Hassan Rouhani
President
Pasteur Street, Pasteur Square
Tehran, Iran

Ayatollah Sayed ‘Ali Khamenei
Office of the Supreme Leader
Permanent Mission of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the United Nations
622 Third Avenue, 34th Floor
New York, NY 10017
Fax: (212) 867-7086 I Phone: (212) 687-2020
Email: iran@un.int

Filed Under: CCS Cases, Iran Tagged With: Esmail Abdi, Evin Prison, Iran, ITTA

Who We Are

Co-chairs

Joel L. Lebowitz, Rutgers University

Paul H. Plotz, M.D., Washington, DC

Walter Reich, George Washington University

Eugene Chudnovsky, Lehman College

Alexander Greer, Brooklyn College

Vice-chairs

Astronomy – Arno Penzias, New Enterprises Associates*

Biology – Max E. Gottesman, Columbia University

Chemistry – Zafra Lerman, MIMSAD Inc.

Computer Science – Rachelle Heller, The George Washington University

Computer Science – Jack Minker, University of Maryland, College Park

Engineering – Philip Sarachik, NYU Polytechnic School of Engineering

Mathematics – Simon Levin, Princeton University

Medical Sciences – J. Joseph Blum, Duke University

Honorary Board Members

Nancy Andrews, Duke University

David Baltimore, California Institute of Technology*

Alan J. Bard, University of Texas

Jacob Bigeleisen (deceased), SUNY, Stony Brook

Raoul Bott (deceased), Harvard University

Owen Chamberlain (deceased), University of California, Berkeley

Stanley Deser, Brandeis University

Edward Gerjuoy, University of Pittsburg

David Gross, (2004 Nobel Prize in Physics), Kavil Institute for Theoretical Physics, University of California, Santa Barbara*

Pierre Hohenberg (deceased), New York University

Walter Kohn (deceased), University of California, Santa Barbara*

James Langer, University of California, Santa Barbara

Peter Lax, New York University

Louis Nirenberg, New York University

Marshall Nirenberg (deceased), National Institutes of Health*

Honorary Board Members

John C. Polanyi, University of Toronto*

Stuart Rice, University of Chicago

Sir Richard J. Roberts, (1993 Nobel Prize in Physiology & Medicine), New England Biolabs*

Myriam Sarachick, City College of New York

Harold Scheraga, Cornell University

Sylvan Schweber (deceased), Brandeis University

Maxine Singer, Carnegie Institution of Washington

Alfred I. Tauber, Boston University

Steven Weinberg, University of Texas, Austin*

Myrna Weissman, Columbia University

Rosalyn S. Yalow (deceased), Mount Sinai School of Medicine*

* Nobel laureate

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