Reformist politician Mostafa Tajzadeh
Leading ‘reformist’ politician, Mostafa Tajzadeh, who has been jailed since July, has written to Iran’s ruler Ali Khamenei to protest how IRGC intelligence agents treat prisoners.
Tajzadeh was arrested early on charges of “assembly and collusion against state security,” an accusation routinely used to jail critics, even those who do not oppose Islamic Republic in principle.
In the letter published Monday, he criticized his "illegal" detention in solitary confinement in ward 2-A of Evin prison, which is under the control of the intelligence agents of the Revolutionary Guard, saying he wanted to inform Khamenei about the "arbitrary actions of these agents.”
He further stressed the lack of respect for the "legal rights of prisoners" and said that despite the court’s orders and verdicts, "the intelligence officers have full authority to break the law and not comply with the current regulations."
Tajzadeh was deputy-interior minister during the presidency of reformist Mohammad Khatami in 2000s and became an outspoken critic of hardliners’ policies in recent years. He spent seven years in prison after months of nationwide protests to the results of 2009 presidential elections reinstating Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in a second term.
In the past three years, Tajzadeh has become even more critical of hardliners and even Khamenei. From his public comments it was apparent that he remained loyal to the concept of an Islamic Republic but otherwise criticized almost every aspect of the political system Khamenei has nurtured.