Farhad Meysami (born November 17, 1969) is an Iranian physician, teacher and civil activist. He believes in non violence and civil disobedience. He was sentenced to five year sentence in August 2018 for crimes such as “spreading propaganda against the regime”. He was released in February 2023 after a four-month hunger strike that grew international attention.
Background
Farhad Meysami graduated from Tehran University of Medical Sciences, and opted for a career in high school education. He later established a publishing company, Andisheh-Sazan, which grew in the late 1990s. Andisheh-Sazan was particularly known to high schoolers for its test preparation books published for the Iranian university entrance exam (in Iran:Concours). At the peak of its growth, Meysami shut down the company and engaged in human rights activism in Iran. He was arrested on July 31, 2018, and went on a hunger strike on August 1, 2018.
Detention and hunger strikes
Meysami was arrested at his personal library and transferred to ward 209 of Evin prison in Tehran. He went on a hunger strike on August 1, 2018 to protest against "unjustified accusations, the illegal procedure following his detention, and denial of his right to access an independent lawyer". He was not able to publicly announce his hunger strike before the 19th day of his strike, as he was being held in solitary confinement until that day. The allegation brought against Meysami is acting against the national security, a rather common accusation against political and civil rights activists in Iran. Apparently, Meysami's support for the “Girls of Enghelab Street”—a series of protests against compulsory hijab in Iran— is being used to corroborate the charges against him. To provide the material evidence for the accusation the security forces have confiscated pin-back buttons from his library in Tehran. The pin-back buttons have “I do not agree with compulsory hijab” marked on them in Persian.
Reza Khandan, a friend of Meysami's who had several phone conversations with him after his detention, published the following lines on his Facebook on behalf of Meysami, explaining the reasons behind his hunger strike: My hunger strike is out of respect for my own dignity and the dignity of those who have been detained on baseless accusations; those who are being interrogated while they have no access to a proper and legitimate legal representation. I will not, under any conditions, succumb to the demands of this illegal procedure.
Denial of the right to access a lawyer
Meysami was denied access to an independent lawyer. Arash Keikhosravi, an Iranian lawyer, was barred from registering as his lawyer due to the section 48 of the recently amended the Criminal Procedure Code. Many Iranian prisoners have been affected by Section 48, including the prominent lawyer and human rights activist Nasrin Sotoudeh. Section 48 states that those accused of national-security crimes must choose their lawyer from a single list of 20 lawyers picked by the head of the judicial system of Iran. Human rights organizations have argued that it means there are only a few government picked lawyers who are allowed to represent political prisoners at court. This new policy gives further license to infringe on the rights of defendants.
Hunger strike of Nasrin Sotoudeh
On the 25th day Meysami's hunger strike, his imprisoned friend and human rights activist, Nasrin Sotoudeh, went on hunger strike to support Meysami. Reza Khandan, husband of Nasrin Sotoudeh, published her open letter about the reasons behind her strike on his Facebook page:
Dear fellow citizens,
After having arrested myself two months ago, the agents of the ministry of the national security have now arrested our fellow citizen Dr. Farhad Meysami. Furthermore, they have searched my house as well as my relatives’ and friends’ houses, seeking to “discover” and confiscate badges opposing the compulsory hijab. […] Until now, none of my correspondence with the authorities has led to any results. Therefore, I see no other option than entering on hunger strike from August 25th to protest against the arrest of and judicial pressure on my friends and family.
In hope of the establishment of law and justice in our dear country, Iran.