Kurdish political prisoner Hassan Rastegari Majd was flogged with 20 lashes on charges of disrupting a prison order in Orumiyeh Prison, a source told the Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN).
Branch 104 of the second Criminal Court of Orumiyeh sentenced Majd to three months in prison and 20 lashes on charges of disturbing public order.
After the prison sentence was finalised for him, the flogging sentence was carried out at branch 4 of the Criminal Enforcement on 1 June 2017.
The source said the lashing sentence was carried out while he has another 50 lashes for the same charges in the coming weeks, as he was sentenced by branch 107 of the second Criminal Court of Orumiyeh.
He had two separate cases in different courts for one charge and in total he was sentenced to nine months in prison and 70 lashes.
The plaintiff of his first case is Hossein Gharebaghi from Orumiyeh and for the other case he was sentenced to flogging with an ordinary prisoner. They were both sentenced as part of a joint case for the flogging.
The source added: “on 31 May 2016, Hussein Gharabaghi, head of the psychotherapy in Ward 2 asked Majd to give his bed to another prisoner but Majd had objected. This political prisoner was then severely beaten with the collaboration of the head of the ward and held in solitary confinement for 5 days with a number of political prisoners and ordinary prisoners. After these incidents a new case was opened for him. Two weeks later, on 14 June 2016, a prisoner charged with financial-related crime in the psychotherapy ward called Rashid Zolfalizadeh, insulted and disrespected the Kurdish political prisoners at the instigation of prison authorities and an argument had happened between the two prisoners. Then, he was beaten by the same prisoner and prison guards in front of Gharabaghi and other prisoners. His fingers were broken. He was later taken to solitary confinement cell instead of the the clinic.”
According to the source, he returned to the ward after the fight and the political prisoners and general crime prisoners of the ward once again beat him.
The inspection of prisons, did not consider the issue, despite the complaints and testimony from prisoners, even a new case has been opened for him on charges of disturbing the prison order and propaganda against the government.
On 18 September 2016, he was sentenced to another year in prison on charges of propaganda against the state in Branch 2 of the revolutionary court of Ourmiyeh by judge Shaikh.
The new case was opened for him while his complaint regarding being beaten by prison authorities and wardens was not included in the case.
The source said that Hassan Rastegari Majd had gone on hunger strike to protest against his juridical condition and the cases were made for him in prison on 3 December 2016. He was transferred to Branch 104 of the second Criminal Court of Orumiyeh from his solitary confinement cell on his 27th day of hunger strike, 17 December 2016.
While the prisoner ended his hunger strike on its 32nd day when the judicial authorities pledged some promises, on 11 Jan 2017 he was sentenced to 20 lashes and three months in prison. The branch 107 of the second Criminal Court of Ourmiyeh in March 2017 also sentenced him to 6 months in prison and 50 lashes on charges of disrupting the prison order and intentional beating in a joint case with Rashid Zolfazizadeh.
Hasan Rastegari Majd was arrested with 15 other protesters, during gathering to support the Syrian Kurdish city of Kobane on 27 October 2014. He was taken to Orumiyeh Central Prison and there the prison officials transferred him to ward 3 and 4. He served about a year in those wards before he was moved to the psychotherapy ward and the ward of prisoners with charged drug related crimes.
The revolutionary court sentenced him to 19 years in prison in total on charges of disturbing public order, acting against national security, illegal staying in the country and collaborating with Kurdish opposition groups (including Kurdistan Workers’ Party) in August 2015. The appeal court confirmed the verdict.
