For 2nd day rally held in Iran capital demanding freedom for political prisoner

Relatives and supporters of Iranian workers’ rights activist Jafar Azimzadeh, who is on a hunger strike in prison in Iran, rallied for a second day on Tuesday outside the Iranian regime's Majlis (Parliament) in Tehran to demand his freedom.

Mr. Azimzadeh is on Day 33 of an indefinite hunger strike in Tehran’s notorious Evin Prison against the regime's clampdown on union activities in Iran.

Protesters, including teachers and workers, held up banners which read: "Imprisoned laborer Jafar Azimzadeh has been on hunger strike for over a month" and "The life of Jafar Azimzadeh is in danger."

Another banner read: "We call for urgent attention to Jafar Azimzadeh's demands."

A similar protest was held by Mr. Azimzadeh's supporters on Monday, May 30, opposite the Parliament as the 105th annual International Labour Conference commenced in Geneva.

The protesters in both rallies decried the indifference of the regime's judiciary to Mr. Azimzadeh's deteriorating state of health.

Also on Monday about 100 of Mr. Azimzadeh's supporters held a gathering in Sanandaj, western Iran, to protest his unlawful detention.

Mr. Azimzadeh, who was arrested on November 8, 2015, is currently serving a six-year prison sentence in Ward 8 of Evin Prison for engaging in peaceful and legitimate trade union activities.

Mr. Azimzadeh's health is reported to have deteriorated significantly and he has twice been transferred to hospitals, but on each occasion was sent back without any medical treatment.

On May 21, Mr. Azimzadeh was temporarily taken to hospital after complaining of kidney problems. He refused to be administered liquid serum and was transferred back to prison in his current state after midnight.

On May 28, he was taken by wardens to Tehran's Tajrish Hospital but was returned within 20 minutes without being allowed an ultrasound examination.

On May 27, Mr. Azimzadeh sent an open letter to the International Labor Organization (ILO) from prison in which he lambasted the Iranian regime's mistreatment of workers.

The Tehran bus drivers’ union, the Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company (Sherkat-e Vahed), in a statement on May 24 warned about the deterioration of Mr. Azimzadeh’s health and called for his release from prison.

Mr. Azimzadeh’s wife has said that he has lost considerable weight, his blood pressure has dropped, and he is suffering from loss of vision and serious kidney pain.

A key demand of Mr. Azimzadeh and other workers’ union activists is for the authorities to drop the charge of “gathering and colluding to commit crimes against national security” and other national security charges in cases of union activities.

Mr. Azimzadeh sent a statement out of Evin Prison following the release on bail of fellow political prisoner Ismail Abdi, Secretary General of Iran’s Teachers’ Trade Association (ITTA), vowing to continue his hunger strike until the "demands of millions of teachers and workers" are met.

The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) in a May 24 statement once again called on all defenders of human rights, particularly the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, UN Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel and inhumane punishments, the Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran, and the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, to take urgent and effective action to secure the release of political prisoners on hunger strike in Iran, including Mr. Azimzadeh.