Maryam Baghi1
In the name of truth2
Whispered to me last night
How blessed the one who is now free
Alas afflicted hen’s heart
Entangled in hunter’s restrain
Do not utter these words, I said
Alas for you and I today
Our objective is to speak the truth
At the end our way will be triumphant!
On behalf of my family, I would like to thank and show gratitude to all those who have organized this meeting, all the journalists who out of respect for pen and thought have called upon others to join, and also all civil society activists that are present in this meeting.
In addition, I would like to thank the governing board of the Association of Iranian Journalists for making this meeting possible. In the past 25 years, since 1981, my father has always as a writer been a member of the Press’ large family and today the one year sentence for which he has apparently been imprisoned is for articles that he has written for the country’s reputable newspaper.
We have repeatedly expressed our objections to my father’s imprisonment through his lawyer as well as the family. My father continues to serve his one year sentence in prison but, for another case regarding the activities of a civil society institution (Society for Defending Prisoners’ Rights), is under interrogation and pressure in a closed cell, prevented from being moved to a general ward or freed on bail set by the magistrate. We object to this situation.
My father, in a short twenty minute meeting, proudly announced that he is ready for a public defense in a just court and demanded the convening of such a court as soon as possible on the basis of Article 168 of the Constitution.
My father sees himself as a prisoner of pen, thought, and his just actions (civil society, press and human rights activities). Yesterday, in the year that was named the year of “security and unity,” he was imprisoned by being accused of writing articles that apparently caused distress in the sleep of some, and was sentenced to prison. Today in the year that has been called a year of “national unity and Islamic solidity” he has again been sent to prison on the basis of the accusations of the same case. Of course, in truth, today the main accusation against him relates to the case of him being the conscious witness of civil society, watching the activities of the government, preparing and writing reports about the situation of those accused, and trying to reduce the sufferings of the accused and convicted. Unfortunately the names chosen for these years have been turned into misnomers due to the irresponsibility of some and it is precisely in these years that the rights of individuals are undermined.
In his short meeting, my father had concerns that went beyond him. He was worried about the arrest of students and was wondering whether in the period of his imprisonment execution orders were issued or implemented. Even in prison he was a vigilant watchdog over the performance of prison wardens and rulers and this concern is not a new concern but a perpetual issue for him. He has always considered the instrument of prison as ineffective. Last night I was glancing at my father’s daily journal and was reviewing his writings after freedom from his last imprisonment. I noticed that, whether inside or outside of the prison, he always worried about the behavior of those who ignored and continue to ignore individual human rights. He respected human beings and saw them as endowed with rights irrespective of their position as the accused or convicted and without attention to their aims and principles. Two days after his release from his last prison, he wrote:
If I disregard my joy in seeing my family happy, how can I be happy while so many individuals are imprisoned? Free-spirited thinkers such as Dr. Aghajari (who is serving multiple sentences and is imprisoned 30 kilometers from Hamedan which is hard for his family as well), Mr. Youssefi, and Mr. Eshkevari, competent researchers such as Abbas abdi and Hossein Ghazian, lawyers such Dadkhah, Soltani and Zarafshan, friends such as Akbar Ganji, prominent leaders of the student movement such as… Tabarzadi, and others such Sadr and Rostamkhani spend their prison sentences in places far away from their own cities. Siamak Purzand, the aged journalist, Mr. Eshraghi, the young and talented journalist, and many others whose memories fail my pen, and many others who I unfortunately do not know are in chain. Currently (2002) 110 journalists are imprisoned in the world. How can one be happy? My only happiness was in the suspension of house arrest for Ayatollah Montazeri. My feeling is like a person that has been transferred from solitary confinement to a general ward. The imprisonment approach to confront opposing thought is a worn out approach and in the contemporary world this knife is no longer sharp…They have to understand that the force of prison has not given answers anywhere in the world. Today there are countries with governments that are two to three hundred years old and are generally democratic and they have stayed in power because of this and they also have confidence in their future. But countries that are managed by force and prison, which one has endured and which one see a future for itself? The Islamic Republic is endowed with this exceptional chance that has come out of a great revolution with democratic mechanisms placed in its constitution. I hope this chance is not discredited. No government can be proud of imprisonment and I hope that the judicial officials act with more far-sightedness… I am not remorseful about prison and I hold no grudge in my heart. If necessary for pushing forward democracy and spirituality in Iran, I am ready to return to prison….
Now he has returned to prison for the same democracy and spirituality and with the same beliefs, of course even firmer. Unfortunately in the past few days there has been pressure on the press for covering the news about my father. They cannot even accept this limited coverage and are attempting in the same way they have done with my father to isolate the society. However, the convening of this meeting – even if it is not covered by the press – is reflective of the fact that the memory of Baghi remains (yad-e Baghi baghi ast). My father, in prison, never forgot anyone, did not drop a prisoner from his pen, and partook in everyone’s sorrow.
Whether remember me or not
I do not ease your memory
My eyes await you
Night time
When shadows take on black tint
My eyes await you
Friday, November 30, 2007
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