HRANA News Agency – The authorities continue to reject the medical furlough request of Mehdi and Hussein Rajabian, two artist brothers imprisoned in Evin prison who suffer from various diseases as well as complications after the hunger strike. Despite the progress of MS of Mehdi Rajabian, he has been given only painkillers so far. Hossein Rajabian also suffers from kidney disease and he, like his brother has been denied of medical furlough.
According to the report of Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), despite the progress of Mehdi Rajabian’s MS, he is held in prison without treatment.
Not long ago, he requested medical furlough but was told that the officer responsible for his case opposed the request.
A source close to the prisoner told HRANA’s reporter, “Doctors at the clinic of the prison do not prescribe the appropriate medication for the disease of Mehdi except painkillers.”
Hossein Rajabian also suffers from kidney disease and he, like his brother has been denied of medical furlough.
HRANA had reported on December 30, 2016 that the doctors in Imam Khomeini Hospital confirmed that Mehdi Rajabian, imprisoned artist in Evin Prison is suffering from MS. Close relatives of Mr. Rajabian believe that the lack of medical treatment in prison was the cause of the disease.
A close source to the imprisoned artist by announcing the news told HRANA’s reporter: “Mr. Rajabian’s family and friends who were aware of his medical condition had already announced that if Mahdi’s medical problems would not been addressed, it would lead to MS. But they did not care and abandoned him without medication.”
The source explained: “Before going to prison, his doctor said he should be monitored. But in this prison term he was taken to the hospital just for an MRI and returned to prison. Nothing more.”
It is worth noting that Mehdi Rajabian who had been sent to furlough after a month of hunger strike, was returned to Evin prison without finishing his treatment. At the same time his brother Hossein Rajabian, who is also an artist and filmmaker, was on hunger strike in prison and suffers from infection and kidney pain.
Hossein Rajabi also was dispatched to 72 hours medical furlough on December 5, and end to his hunger strike. In the last week of the strike was severe kidney infection and pain.
These two imprisoned artist brothers in Evin prison who are punitively separated and kept in ward seven and ward eight of this prison, had gone on hunger strike from Friday, October 28.
Rajabian brothers have written a letter about what happened to them during the past few months in the prison, in the case of a protest hunger strike last month and “deception” by a judicial authority, denial of meeting with the lawyer and their other violated rights and asked all the artists in the world, to express a “peaceful reaction, in dignity of art” and do not leave them alone.
These two brother were tried in branch number 28 of the revolutionary court by judge Moghiseh and sentenced to 6 years in prison and fines on charge of sacrilege and propaganda against the regime.
These sentences were reduced in branch number 54 of court of appeal to three years and 200 million IRR fine.
Rajabian brothers submitted themselves to Evin prison on June 5 to serve their sentences.
Amnesty international demanded the cancellation of the sentences of these artists in a statement and announced that Hossain Rajabian, filmmaker and the two musicians, MehdiRajabian and Yousef Emadi were sentenced to imprisonments for their artistic activities and if imprisoned, they would be considered as prisoners of conscience.
Mehdi Rajabia, Hossain Rajabian and Yousef Emadi had been arrested in their office in Sari in October 2013. They were kept in an unknown location for 18 days, and went under harassment and tortures including electric shock, and then were transferred to ward 2-A of Evin prison.
After two months in solitary confinement and interrogation in ward 2-A, they were released on a bail of 2 billion IRR.
According to an informed source they were under pressure for TV confessions against themselves during interrogations, and the interrogator had threatened them that if they would not comply, they would be sentenced to lifetime prison.
These three artists were sentenced to 6 years in prison and fine, in the primary court, on charge of propaganda against the regime and blasphemy, in branch number 28 of the revolutionary court in December 2015.
An informed source told HRANA’s reporter, “The trial took few minutes and the presence of a lawyer was meaningless and there was no opportunity for any defense”.
The appeal court was held in January 2016 in branch number 54 by judge Babayi.
They were deprived of having lawyer throughout all of the process of their cases and even in the appeal court the judge has told them that having a lawyer was “meaningless” and they had to explain everything themselves. Despite their explanation that their confessions were taken under pressure, they were used as evidences against them.