Masoud Lavasani
masoud lavasani مسعود لواسانی | |
|---|---|
 Lavasani in Evin prison in 2010 | |
| Born | August 1, 1979 |
| Occupation(s) | Blogger and Journalist |
Masoud Lavasani (Persian: مسعود لواسانی), (born 1979)[1] is an Iranian journalist[2] and blogger. Lavasani was the culture editor of the newspaper Aftab Yazd in Tehran and has also worked for Shargh, Hamshahri and Etemad as well as the Mehr News Agency.[3]
Masoud Lavasani was arrested on June 30, 2009, following the disputed 2009 Iranian Presidential election. He was charged with "Engaging in propaganda activities against the regime". Judge Pir Abassi in the Revolutionary Court sentenced him to eight and a half years in prison. He was also issued a lifelong ban from journalism. In the Appeals Court Massoud Lavasani's sentence was reduced to six years in prison and a ten-year ban from journalism.[4][5][6]
Career
[edit]Nevertheless, among cultural circles and the publishing industry, Masoud Lavasani is a familiar name. Book publishers remember him from his vigorous reports and interviews before and during the 2007 Tehran book fair, when he challenged the fair management over its policies and stubbornness to choose Mossalla, as the fair venue. When he was denied entry to the fair as a result of his reporting, he did not hesitate to leap over the fences at night and take pictures of clogged pipes and damaged books for the Mehr News agency. The pictures clearly proved that Tehran's Mossalla was not the proper venue for the fair. Finally, because of his book fair coverage, as well as his other reports, he was fired from the Mehr News, where he worked.[7]
Masoud Lavasani was arrested and taken to Evin on September 26, 2009. During his detention in solitary he endured harsh psychological torture and pressure. He became weak and sick inside the bitter cold and filthy cell. These days he is being held in the basement of ward,[8] where prisoners are watched day and night with closed-captioned cameras, constantly mistreated and taken to the prison yard every morning at 7am to do their mandatory exercises in cold temperatures.
In His Biography
[edit]- LAVASANI started working with the Iranian press at the end of 90’s. He worked for Jam e Jam newspaper in Tehran, in addition, wrote short stories in the Mini Mall. He wrote cultural reports, Movie’s Reviews, Book Reviews in newspapers such as Hamshahri (Tehran), Etemad (Tehran), Ketab e Hafteh weekly.
- From February of 2004 until September 11 of 2007, he worked for the MEHR news agency as a reporter in the culture and literature. After that, he worked for the Aftab Yazd newspaper until end of December of 2007. He worked in couple of Weekly magazines and monthly one’s under the title of the secretary and editor of the magazines. Until September of 2009 he worked as a freelance journalist for various newspapers.
- Now, he is analyzing the cultural issues, and reports on censorship of books, newspapers, media pressure against journalists. At this point he is working specifically on the subject of tolerance, its impact on the community, education, coping strategies, tolerance. His studies are about the issues of Iran and Afghanistan, the Middle East and Turkey have largely dominated the news and tolerance in these countries. He is trying, through news, reports, analysis of events due to lack of tolerance levels of family, community and the world, that the consequences of intolerance, family quarrels, tribal, national and international.[9]
Arrest and Imprisonment
[edit]November 29, 2009, judge Pir-Abassi of the 26th branch of the Revolutionary Court handed down an 8-year prison sentence to Lavasani.[10][11] His charges included conspiracy and acting against national security, insulting the Supreme Leader, disseminating lies through his weblog[12][13] and emails and so on and so forth. Currently his weblog, the box of ants' memoirs, has been deleted by the interrogators and is not accessible.[14]
Lavasani had originally been sentenced to an 8+1⁄2-year imprisonment during his initial trial. The sentencing was delivered to Mr. Lavasani on April 15, 2009. Masoud Lavasani received a six-year[15] jail sentence combined with a ban from engaging in any press-related activities for a period of 10 years. Lavasani's general condition is quite precarious and, in spite of an agreement for his conditional release on a 500,000 USD bond,[16] which was very difficult to arrange, Intelligence and judicial officials are still blocking his release. Mr. Lavasani is denied the right to visit his two-year-old child as well as his wife and parents. Mr. Lavasani is being held under tough conditions in the basement section 350 of Evin Prison.[17][18]
Javad Moghimi, Lavasani in conversations with friends about the Guardian he said:
- He says his close friend Masoud Lavasani, a political correspondent for Fars News, is in prison on hunger strike.[19]
Hunger Strike
[edit]Lavasani's hunger strike is to protest the limitations placed by prison guards at Evin prison. News media reported that: Also, Masoud Lavasani's bad physical condition due to pressure at Evin prison as well as harsh interrogations has caused the concern of his family and those close to the journalist.[20]
- Detained Masoud Lavasani Still in Evin Clinic
Lavasani's wife Fatemeh Kheradmand has written a note referring to the first occasions she had seen Lavasani's tears and his injured body due to tortures, and added that she knows Maous Lavasanis is being hospitalized in Evin clinic[21]
- The media wrote :
According to the latest reports, Lavasani, a detained journalist, has had a nervous breakdown in prison.[22] 07/05/2010 GVF—Advarnews has reported that after more than nine months of imprisonment, journalist Masoud Lavasani has been released from prison for a short leave.[23][24][25]
References
[edit]- ^ "Three political prisoners spend their birthdays behind bars today | Iranian.com". iranian.com. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
- ^ "Lavasani's story in iranwire". Retrieved March 23, 2024.
- ^ "Lavasani's profiles in Al Monitor". Retrieved March 23, 2024.
- ^ "CyberDissident Database". Retrieved March 23, 2024.
- ^ Prisoner update: Six years in prison & ten-year ban on journalismhttp://www.rahana.org/archives/44918 for Masoud Lavasani Archived 2011-10-19 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Masoud Lavasani's Sentence Reduced to 6 Years on Appeal". Retrieved March 23, 2024.
- ^ The Masoud Lavasani Story: An Imprisoned Father Who Will Not See his Son for 8 years
- ^ "101 Journalists Protest Exile of Ahmad Zeidabadi". journalismisnotacrime.com. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
- ^ "Sign up | LinkedIn".
- ^ "دشمنان رسانه در ایران (1)، قاضی یحیی پیرعباسی".
- ^ Tehran Bureau The public relations department of the Tehran Public and Revolution Prosecutor's Office said that Abdollah Ramezanzadeh and Seyyed Masoud Lavasani would be tried this week.
- ^ "مجید انصاری معاون روحانی در راهپیمایی۲۵خرداد ۱۳۸۸ Iranian protest Jun 15th 2009, Tehran, Iran". Retrieved March 23, 2024 – via www.youtube.com.
- ^ Subscriptions another page that film was released in his newsreels Lavasani
- ^ "MRiran - All Information about Online Shop". www.madyariran.net. March 23, 2024. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
- ^ "EA WorldView - Archives: April 2010". www.enduringamerica.com. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
- ^ Tomlinson, Hugh (March 23, 2024). "Crippling bail is new weapon in regime's war on journalists". Retrieved March 23, 2024 – via www.thetimes.co.uk.
- ^ "TechPocket". TechPocket. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
- ^ Masoud Lavasani transferred to Evin clinic The Guardian, 4 July 2010
- ^ Madlena, Chavala; Stickler, Angus (July 5, 2010). "Javad Moghimi's story reveals the peril of being a journalist in Iran". Retrieved March 23, 2024 – via The Guardian.
- ^ Prisoner update: Masoud Lavasani on hunger strike for fifth day Archived 2012-04-02 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Detained Journalist Masoud Lavasani Still in Evin Clinic". Retrieved March 23, 2024.
- ^ "Detained Journalist, Masoud Lavasani Suffered a Nervous Breakdown". Retrieved March 23, 2024.
- ^ Journalist Masoud Lavasani released Archived 2012-04-02 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Blogger, journalist Mosoud Lavasani returns to Evin prison Archived 2011-09-24 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "No news of Masoud Lavasani, journalist sentenced to incarceration". Retrieved March 23, 2024.
External links
[edit]- Journalists in Trouble The List, March 1, 2010 Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
- Hundreds of Iranian Journalists Demand the Release of Their Jailed Colleagues
- Iran: Health of prisoners of Conscience at Iranian Government's Mercy: Joint statement Amnesty International & Reporters Sans Frontieres
- 50 journalists Iran must free Written by Mehdi Bassiri
- Ref World (6 April 2010) Publisher: Committee to Protect Journalists
- journalism is not a crime journalismisnotacrime.com will document these human rights abuses, raise awareness of the situation of press freedom in Iran and support Iranian journalists by providing them with legal and psychological assistance.
