Rasoul Bodaghi, a member of the board of directors of the Iran’s Teachers’ Trade Association (ITTA), Islamshahr branch, and the inspector of the association in the Coordinating Council of Iranian Teachers’ Trade Associations, has been sentenced by Branch 26 of Tehran Revolutionary Court, to four years in prison.
He was imprisoned on the charge of “gathering and collusion with the intention of disturbing the national security” and one year in prison on the charge of “propaganda activities against the state.”
He has been sentenced to a one year travel ban, a two year ban on residing in Tehran and its neighbouring provinces, and a two year ban on membership in political parties and social groups. He had previously spent seven years in prison for his activities in organizing teachers’ protests and defending their rights.
On December 11, 2021, the house of Rasoul Bodaghi was raided by security officers in Tehran, during which he was physically assaulted and arrested. During the arrest, security officers confiscated his and his wife’s communication devices. He was also denied the right to wear appropriate clothing.
He was held in Evin 209 Ward, until December 21, when he was released on bail from Evin prison and the only court session was held on April 4, 2022. The arrest was occurred in the context of nationwide peaceful protests by teachers, starting December 11, 2021.
This is not the first time Rasoul Bodaghi has been persecuted for defending teachers’ rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of association in Iran. He was earlier arrested on September 2, 2009, and sentenced on 4 August 2010 to six years in prison.
He was also banned from social activities for five years by Branch 15 of the Revolutionary Court under the charges of “assembly with the intent to disrupt national security” and “propaganda against the state.”
In September 2015, at the end of his jail sentence, Branch 28 of the Revolutionary Court sentenced Rasoul Bodaghi to a further three years in jail under the charge of “propaganda against the state” and “insulting the supreme leader”. He was later released on April 28, 2016.
Front Line Defenders (FLD) is seriously concerned by the sentencing of Rasoul Bodaghi, urged the Iranian authorities to immediate and unconditional quash the convictions against him. It also urged that acase targeting all human rights defenders, including teachers rights defenders in Iran and guarantee in all circumstances that they are able to carry out their legitimate human rights activities.
