Saeid Torabian who is in charge of the Public Affairs Office of the Tehran and Suburbs Bus Union, has been transferred from the Solitary Confinement of the Revolutionary Guard Prison to Ward 3 of the Karaj Gohardasht Prison.
Saeid Torabian is held in the 11thhall of Ward 4 of Gohardasht Prison which lacks air conditioning and a water cooling system. The Prison Ward is so overcrowded that the prisoners are hardly able to breathe.
According to the Human Rights and Democracy Activists, lack of health-care facilities has created many problems for the prisoners. Currently, Reza Shahabi, Ebrahim Madadi, and Mansour Osanlou, 3 other bus union activists, are held in this prison.
In a letter to ILU, the International Transport Workers’ Federation has objected to the detainment of the worker’s rights activits in Iran. The Federation has in particular objected to the detainment of Said Torabian and Reza Shahabi and has requested the release of the two men and the other activists.
In an interview with RadioFarda, Mehdi Kouhestani, an advisor to the International Transport Workers’ Federation has objected to the fact that there is no information as to the whereabouts of Torabian and the alleged charges brought against him. He further stated that what the authorities have done is unlawful. According to him, Shahabi has contacted his family twice but there has been no information as to Torabian’s condition. Torabian is suffering from heart problems and it is necessary for him to take his medications because of the heart attack he had last year. There has been no information as to whether he has received his medication in the past five weeks. According to Iran’s law, a detainee must be permitted to contact his family within 24 hours. Furthermore, he must be informed of the alleged charges and his family should be informed of his whereabouts. Parviz Khorshid, Torabian’s attorney, has not been able to visit his client and the authorities have told him that they will not provide him with the case files before their interrogations are finalized.