Saturday, December 31, 2011

Two years have passed since Bahareh Hedayat’s arrest, and she’s still locked up behind bars

http://persian2english.com/?p=23309

This photo of Amin Ahmadian and Bahareh Hedayat was taken several months ago when Bahareh was released on furlough for a few days.

Persian2English – Three full days had passed from the 2009 mass Ashura protests (December 27) when student activist Bahareh Hedayat, who was 28 years old at the time, was arrested and transferred to the notorious Evin prison. It was during these turbulent times in Iran that bright and goodhearted people like Bahareh had to pay the ultimate price for the shared struggles many Iranian citizens are forced to face.

Reliving Bahareh’s Arrest

It was December 30, 2009. Bahareh (a member of the Tahkim Vahdat Iranian student alumni organization), her husband Amin, and one of their mutual friends had paid a visit to Dr. Abdollah Ramezanzadeh, a former government spokesman who was released from Evin prison a week earlier. When they were returning home from the visit, Bahareh had laughed out loud and said, “If I’m captured this time, I won’t be released any time soon.”

They got off at Enghelab Square and began to walk. They were being followed. Mehdi Arabshahi, another Tahkim member, had been arrested two days prior, and Bahareh was concerned for the others. Her husband Amin had convinced her to make a trip to Mashhad city the next day to avoid the dangers in Tehran.

It was around sunset. Bahareh went home to grab some warm clothes for Mashhad. She was tired. She said that she didn’t want to go. While she was gathering her belongings, a reporter from Radio Zamaaneh called her, and Bahareh gave her last interview. The Iranian authorities had the house under surveillance, without the knowledge of Bahareh and Amin.

When they left the house and reached the corner of the street, two people approached them, and asked Bahareh, “Ms. Hedayat?” She was composed in her reply: “No, you are mistaken.” We took a few more steps forward when a car blocked our way. Bahareh and Amin this time recognized the Iranian authorities in the vehicle.

It was approximately 9:00pm. Amin and Bahareh were both arrested and taken back to their home. After the Iranian authorities searched the residence for three hours, they returned Amin’s identification card to him. Bahareh laughed and her eyes were glistening. She said, “This means that they are not taking the both of us- only I am going.”

They weren’t allowed to say goodbye to each other. She took off her watch and her wedding ring at the front door and handed them to Amin.

It was past midnight. She was seated inside the car, and from behind the window Amir noticed her smile- it was bitter. As the car drove away, Amin saw Bahareh holding up her fingers and giving the V sign (for peace and victory).

The minute Amin turned on his mobile phone, student activist Ali Malihi called him. He said, “Amin, why is your phone off?” Amin replied, “They took Bahareh, Ali.”

Today is December 31, 2011. Bahareh Hedayat was arrested two years ago today. She is still held in Evin prison. She is sentenced to nine and a half years in prison for speaking out against the injustices in Iran.

Watch this video to find out more information on the reason behind Bahareh’s arrest

 

Bahareh was arrested because the Iranian authorities fear information-spreading

Bahareh Hedayat is also a member of the One Million Signatures Campaign (I.e. Change for Equality)

Timeline of events in Bahareh Hedayat’s life after her arrest

December 31, 2009 | Bahareh Hedayat was arrested

February 19, 2010 | Jafari Dolatabadi (the Tehran Prosecutor) personally indicts Bahareh Hedayat

February 28, 2010 | Two months of interrogation end for Bahareh Hedayat

March 10, 2010 | Bahareh Hedayat’s case file still not registered at the court

March 21, 2010 | Detained Tahkim Vahdat members transferred to Evin prison’s general ward 

April 9, 2010 | Detained activist Bahareh Hedayat nominated for Student Peace Prize

May 7, 2010 | Update: Court hearing held for Bahareh Hedayat

May 21, 2010 | Bahareh Hedayat and Milad Asadi receive heavy sentences from Revolutionary Court

May 29, 2010 | Latest News on Bahareh Hedayat and other Imprisoned Students

July 25, 2010 | Student activist Bahareh Hedayat sentenced to nine and a half years in prison

September 2010 | Bahareh’s & Milad’s court hearing for their defense canceled

December 5, 2010 | Bahareh Hedayat writes letter from prison for Student Day, December 7th

December 28, 2010 | Bahareh Hedayat’s physical condition deteriorating after one week on hunger strike

January 21, 2011 | Visitation bans for Bahareh Hedayat and Mahdieh Golroo Continue

February 4, 2011 | Bahareh Hedayat, Majid Tavakoli, & Mahdieh Golroo summoned by Iranian Judiciary

March 26, 2011 | Birthday campaign launched for Bahareh Hedayat, husband speaks out after prison visit

June 2, 2011 | Bahareh Hedayat’s husband arrested for speaking to media at funeral ceremony

June 26, 2011 | Imprisoned student activist Bahareh Hedayat writes letter to husband

November 5, 2011 | Bahareh Hedayat and other students issued additional prison sentences

Friday, December 30, 2011

TRIBUTE VIDEO FOR ZIA NABAVI'S 28TH BIRTHDAY

Zia Nabavi is a high-achieving student who is forced to endure illegal detention in the gruesome Karoun prison in Ahvaz, Iran.

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AsREDWNxQjA

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Zia Nabavi’s Latest Handwritten Notes from Prison | Part 1


Zia Nabavi is a "starred" (barred) student activist who is held in illegal prison exile.

——————————————————————————————
DECEMBER 21 IS ZIA NABAVI’S BIRTHDAY!
You can prepare a personalized message of support, then post it for Zia on FACEBOOKAMNESTY INTERNATIONAL ALSO SUPPORTS Zia ON HIS BIRTHDAY. Read the latest news on Zia Nabavi, “starred” student activist illegally imprisoned in exile.
——————————————————————————————

http://persian2english.com/?p=23299

Translation by Siavosh Jalili, Persian2English
Written by 
Seyed Ziaoldin (Zia) Nabavi

“He who marries the spirit of this age will find himself a widower in the next.” Dean William Inge.

PART 1.1. Humankind has traveled a long, uneven, and diverse path in creating culture and civilization. In this journey, it has created an enormous amount of knowledge, value, and law preexisting to new comers born and thrown into this collection. On the other hand, as human beings, in order to be civilized and cultured, we have to create a brief, intense, and complete version of humankind’s journey throughout our lives by adapting to the process of socialization. This personal journey is how we become a human being who is in sync with society and the time. It is important to note two points about the end result of the socialization process:

[1) People live in diverse environments, so the end result will differ as well.

2) A person is an active player in their socialization, so he or she cannot simply conform to norms and customs passively. In other words, people are not just identical molds and templates. An individual's environment and creative abilities affect how she or he adapts to norms and customs.]

People, due to their special traits- be it physical, behavioral, personality, moral, etc.- usually have the ability to get creative on their path. That is why in every era, society, and family, [we have witnessed] people leading diverse lifestyles. Among those with distinctive styles, my favourite person is someone who wishes to travel the same path as humankind’s [by] standing on their own feet and relying on their own reasoning and experience.

[My favourite people] re-evaluate, rank and rate all the knowledge they have acquired. However, living like this is sometimes dangerous, laborious, and even stupid. It is laborious because one has to ponder everything repeatedly. It is dangerous because there is no distinct ending point. It is stupid because, at times, people simply and strangely ignore the most prominent accomplishments of humankind. Nevertheless, some people can only endure this lifestyle- and if they are questioned about [their choice], they would answer that [a life of thinking, reflecting, and re-thinking] is worth all the labour and troubles that come with it.

PART 1.2. Politics has been an attractive concept that has cast a peculiar and particular charm on my life since May 1997 [the landslide victory of reformist Mohammad Khatami in the Iranian Presidential election]. I always wanted to find the equivalent of politics in my personal life, and be able to define it under my personal life experience. During my years as a university student, and in the context of my activism within the Islamic Student Association, I discovered an opportunity to realize this experience, define it within my personal experiences, and somehow form an independent political view. Through these activities, I was able to understand the importance of many concepts I had studied and read in the past, and reconsidered many concepts that I had accepted. Moreover, I was able to conceptualize some of my personal experiences in the public realm.

Once before my arrest, I tried to offer a theoretical summary of the results of my experience. The outcome of this effort was an article titled, “The Critique of political-philosophical presumptions of political activism”. Now, when I reflect on that work, it does not satisfy me at all. The problem is, that along with politics, I am also interested in other subjects- like philosophy, psychology, sociology, ontology, and literature- and some of these subjects have a more important place in my mind than politics.

On the other hand, all these concepts and domains have always been conglomerated in my mind- I don’t look at them separately, I take a synthetic approach . In fact, I am attempting to use my experiences (shaped partly by a collection of events, relationships, studies, deeds, thoughts, emotions, etc.) to attain my own understanding of these concepts and find their common points and differences and sort them out in my mind. This task has become my greatest mental preoccupation- and [it appears that] I am never meant to reach a point of satisfaction in this regard. However, the summary of my practical experience within my student activism became possible through the Advocacy Council for the Right to Education (ACRE). Unlike my theoretical experience, I am fully satisfied with the practical experience [I have gained through the ACRE]. I must state that, without displaying any modesty, the ACRE is the one task I have undertaken [that I can defend the best].

I have heard from my friends numerous times that my name is now more known not because of my student activities but rather because of the letters I have written from prison. This does not please me at all. To be honest, I don’t dislike my writings, but they have never become dear and respectable to me. In general, I do not think that a person’s writings or words should become a source of self-respect for that person. In fact, it is possible that if I read this text to you in a few months, I would find parts of it laughable, and revise and change the text entirely. However, when I take a look back at my experience in the ACRE, there has been no point in my activities that I would want to correct, except one thing: perhaps I would have decided not to found the ACRE in the first place, because I now know the consequence for this action is 10 years in prison exile.

PART 1.3. In this part, I would like to discuss the impact prison experience has had on my political perspectives [which has now changed]. I felt the  need to write on this subject after brief talks I had with friends before imprisonment. Some of my friends referred to the paradigm shift I had previously written about. They were either critical of these changes or wanted a more detailed explanation. Since deeper and broader explanation requires more time, I decided to write it down in a way that may be useful to others as well.

With respect to politics, I personally think that my cognitive and mental structure has not undergone any effective changes. In prison, I have the opportunity to think more about the fundamental concepts which politics stands on, and better understand and grasp the significance of these concepts.

Part 2 will be published shortly.

Iranian Liberal Students and Graduates release statement for Zia Nabavi's 28th birthday

On December 21st, numerous students in Iran will be forced to spend the third consecutive *Yalda in prison because they defended the violation of a basic human right: the right to education. These students should be in university classrooms, but instead they are locked up behind bars because the Iranian regime, following suit with its long list of human rights violations, also deprives students from receiving post-secondary education. For example, **starred student activists Zia Nabavi, Mahdieh Golroo, Majid Dorri, and numerous others are among the imprisoned.

Yalda night falls on Zia Nabavi's 26th birthday. We, the Iranian Liberal Students and Graduates, send our best wishes to Zia and his family and friends. We declare to defend the right to education for all students in Iran who are discriminated against and/or deprived of their education.

We hope that, by next year, Zia Nabavi and the other students will be released from prison to be by the sides of their families. We hope that the oppressive nights come to an end and the dawn of freedom arrives.

*In Iran, the winter solstice has been celebrated for centuries and it is called Shab-e Yalda, which refers to the birthday or rebirth of the sun. Yalda is a Syriac word and means birth...The ceremony is traced to the primal concept of Light and Good against Darkness and Evil in the ancient Iranian religion. This night with Evil at its zenith is considered unlucky. It is the longest night of the year. From this day forward, Light triumphs as the days grow longer and give more light. http://www.art-arena.com/yalda.htm

 **The system of issuing stars against students was developed by Iran’s Ministry of Advanced Education so students with disciplinary issues would get penalized. After a student collects a certain number of stars, he or she is banned from education. The system is primarily used against student activists. Regime officials, including Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, deny the existence of starred students.

“Starred” student activist endures more abuse in gruesome Iranian prison

Starred student activist Zia Nabavi is illegally held in prison exile. In Iran, a starred student is banned from pursuing higher education because he or she spoke out against educational discrimination, a practice denied by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

http://persian2english.com/?p=23274

By Siavosh Jalili and Maryam Nayeb Yazdi

Persian2English – On Friday, Zia Nabavi, the starred” education advocacy activist held illegally in exile, was violently transferred along with 59 other political prisoners to another section (ward 8) of Karoun prison (in Ahvaz city) which holds people held on theft and drug-related charges.

***
Several months ago, Zia Nabavi had written an open letter to Mohammad Larijani, the Head of the Human Rights Council for Iran’s Judiciary, detailing the gruesome conditions in Karoun prison’s ward 1, the area reserved for political prisoners. Shortly after the publication of the letter, Zia and other political prisoners were transferred to Ahvaz Clinic, a detention center with slightly better conditions. However, sometime between July to September, Zia and numerous others were secretly transferred back to ward 1 in Karoun prisonAccording to the latest reports, Zia and many other political prisoners are crammed into a small space in ward 8, and the conditions are far worse- in terms of hygiene and population density- than ward 1. Additionally, 15 of the transferred political prisoners have no bed to sleep on.
***

Initially, the political prisoners, including Zia Nabavi, had resisted the transfer to the drug-addict ward, however, when the Iranian Special Guards forces violently invaded their cell, they were forced to move. Ward 1 is now being used to hold prisoners with tuberculosis.

The 60 political prisoners have announced that they will launch a mass indefinite hunger strike if they are not immediately transferred to a ward especially for political prisoners.

December 21 is Zia Nabavi's birthday. You can send him a birthday message through Faceook. Click on this image for more information.

Last month when Zia Nabavi was still in Ahvaz Clinic, he wrote a letter about how the overall prison experience has changed his perspective on political concepts. In the first section of the letter, he explains how his main concern altered during imprisonment: “If my main preoccupation before my arrest and imprisonment was freedom, my largest concern inside prison is security and safety…once in prison, I found democracy valuable [only] when interpreted and defined as the “rule of law”. Throughout the different stages of my incarceration and interrogations, the most important political question I have pondered is: how can a person be bound to respect limits and boundaries, [to avoid] the infliction of harm on others?

The young education advocacy activist demonstrates how he had to replace a more complicated notion and interpretation of freedom with a more basic concept of the rule of law, once he found himself stripped of his liberty and security: “If before prison my preoccupation with complex aspects of freedom tied me to post-constructionists like Gilles Deleuze and Michel Foucault, the prison experience has made me sympathetic to John Locke and Thomas Hobbs- their main preoccupations were the law and the social contract.”

Zia Nabavi describes his conditions in Karoun prison: “At times I feel like I am living on the brink of what distinguishes a human’s life from an animal’s.”

Zia Nabavi claims that his “biggest talent in social relationships” is his ability to speak the same language as people with differing interests and tastes from him. He says: “…during my student years, I was the connecting point between people who had different, and at times opposing views.” He continues that he discovered the concept of sympathy when he was not allowed to talk or express his views during detention and interrogations. Zia believes that “when two people are involved in a conflict, they should not bring each other down to the subject of the conflict…because [a conflict] situation has the potential of exploding into violence.”

Zia Nabavi then goes on to share his take on the various political and civil activists he met in prison. He concludes with the thought: “I have developed a very critical view toward political dissidents and the opposition in the [Iranian] society…[They] are not bad people…but it does not mean that they can be considered democratic [in their conduct and their views].”

At the end of the first section of his letter Zia Nabavi offers three characteristics he believes that a democratic person must possess:

1- The ability to enter the public domain, and take responsibility to solve the common problems of [the civil society].

2- The ability to commit to critical discussion, and respect and yield to the collective wisdom in the public decision-making processes.

3- The ability to respect the privacy of individuals, and recognize and sympathize with their differences in this area.

In the second part of his letter, Zia Nabavi engages in self-criticism, and offers an analytic critique of the issues he discussed in the first part of his letter.

The full translated text of Zia Nabavi’s letter will be published shortly.

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Amnesty USA: Student Activist Zia Nabavi Marks Another Birthday in Prison

8

Students would ordinarily celebrate if they found out that they received a star, and be even more delighted if they got three stars. But in Iran receiving stars is cause for distress and consternation. Being assigned three stars from Iranian authorities means that students are permanently barred from pursuing their university education in Iran.

Sayed Ziaoddin (Zia) Nabavi is one of the many courageous Iranian student activists who we remember as he spends his 28th birthday behind bars on December 21.

http://blog.amnestyusa.org/middle-east/student-activist-zia-nabavi-marks-another-birthday-in-prison/

Iranian advocacy council: “For the 6th consecutive year, student activists are banned from pursuing higher education”


http://persian2english.com/?p=23275

The Advocacy Council for the Right to Education’s Declaration on *Starred Students
For the sixth consecutive year, [Iranian authorities] have banned students from pursuing higher education.

Translated by Arash Azizi, Persian2English
Statement by the ACRE, originally published in June 2011

The Advocacy Council for the Right to Education (ACRE) has stated that the [star system], the practice of banning student activists of the right to education, has been [predominant] in Iran for the past six years. The ACRE has issued a declaration against the practice of banning students and imprisoning them, stating that the process violates all “domestic and international laws”. The following is the full text of the ACRE declaration: [In the translation, some parts containing legal details have been omitted-Arash Azizi]

For the sixth consecutive year, since Mahmood Ahmadinejad has been in office, numerous student activists, who completed their Master’s entrance examination, were banned from pursuing their education.

The ACRE declares that a number of student activists from various universities across Iran, namely in Tehran, were illegally banned from receiving this year’s Master’s examination results. In the days leading to the announcement of the Master’s examination results, numerous students were summoned, threatened, and intimidated by Iranian security authorities. These students were told that if they took any follow-up actions, they would be dealt with harshly. Banned or “starred” students were also summoned prior to the examination date. The students were summoned to the admission’s office of the National Assessment organization to fill  out forms about their personal beliefs and history in political activities. They were interrogated by Iranian security forces directly in the university examination building. Some student activists who did receive their test scores, said their results were tampered with to be made much lower than what was stated in their mid-term report cards.

The ACRE is suspicious about the reliability of the National Assessment, and believes this organization has lost its most important capital: public trust.  The National Assessment organization has denied education to students who received exemplary test results (in 2009), refused to issue report cards to numerous students (in the years 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011), and tampered with the examination results of other student activists (2011).

The ACRE strongly condemns the practice of banning students and depriving them from their basic right to education. The ACRE demands an end to this inhumane and illegal practice. The ACRE, basing itself on the domestic laws of Iran and international laws, regards the actions of the [National Assessment] to be criminal, and demands trial for the perpetrators of this criminal act.

A Brief History of banning students in the 6 years of Ahmadinejad’s administration:

In 2006, student activists, who read the news of their acceptance in the National Assessment organization’s newsletter and attempted to register for higher education, noticed a number of stars on their registration forms. Three stars meant that the student was banned from their studies.

In 2007 and 2008, when the process for announcing the results of the Master’s examination became accessible online, student activists who received exemplary results on their exam were denied their mid-term report card and banned from registration for their Master’s. However, in June 2009, on the day that the exam results were announced, and only a few days before the Iranian Presidential election, the Iranian authorities finally allowed these banned students to receive their mid-term report cards and pursue registration for their Master’s. Then, in August 2009, when these students went online to receive their final exam results, they noticed they had been labelled “academically weak”. Final report cards were not issued to these students, and there is no record of their registration on the National Assessment’s official website.

When these starred students went to meet officials in person, they were told verbally that they had been banned from pursuing their education. In 2010 and 2011, more banned students went through the same process of education deprivation.

From 2006 to 2011, dozens of student activists, who received exemplary results on their Master’s exam, have been banned from registering for their Master’s or pursuing other forms of education.

Starred Students in Prison

Since Mahmoud Ahmadinejad entered office, numerous student activists who were taking part in the Master’s Examination were banned from their studies. In the 2009 Iranian Presidential debates, Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karoubi protested against the banning of students. Even though banned students had gathered in front of the TV set where the debate was taking place, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad still denied the [existence of starred students] under his administration.

To prove their existence and expose Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s lies, starred students gathered several times in front of the Ministry of Advanced Education, the state television and radio building, the University of Tehran, and the National Assessment building.  Following the Iranian Presidential election, dozens of banned students were arrested and issued long prison sentences.

Zia Nabavi, Majid Dori, Peyman Aref, Mahdieh Golroo, Zahra Tohidi, Shiva Nazar Ahari, Alireza Khoshbakht, Somayeh Rahidi, Navid Khanjani, Ali Qolizadeh, Ashkan Zahabian, Emad Bahavar, Esmaeil Salmanpoor, Majid Tavakoli, Hojjat Arabi and many other banned students were arrested in the days and months following the election. Some of these students are still imprisoned.

The ACRE demands freedom for all imprisoned students, namely Zia Nabavi, Majid Dorri, and Mahdieh Golroo, and an end to the harassment of Baha’i students across the country.

Banning students from education is an apartheid crime and against the Constitution of the Islamic Republic and international obligations of the Iranian state. The Iranian constitution regards the right to education as an elementary right “for all the Nation”, and regards the realization of this elementary right as a responsibility for the state. Also, the Iranian government, based on numerous international obligations, needs to provide education for all Iranians without any discrimination based on beliefs surrounding politics, religion, sexuality, etc.

Banning students from their right to education is an obvious infringement of a number of articles of the Islamic Republic’s Constitution, like Articles 3 (Clauses 3, 9 and 14), 19, 20, 22, 30, 36, 37, and especially Article 23, which explicitly says: “The investigation of individuals’ beliefs is forbidden, and no one may be molested or taken to task simply for holding a certain belief.”

Banning students takes place in Iran even though – in addition to Clause 3 of Article 3 and Article 30 of the Constitution, which states that promoting Higher Education and expanding Free Higher Education for all the Nation is the government’s obligation- there are Articles 3 (Clauses 9 and 14), 20, 22, 30, 36 and 37- which state that the government must provide fair means to all parts of the Nation, regardless of their religion and political beliefs, and without discrimination, grant them all humane, political, social and cultural rights.

Article 9 of the Constitution also explicitly states: “In the Islamic Republic of Iran, the freedom, independence, unity, and territorial integrity of the country are inseparable from one another, and their preservation is the duty of the government and all individual citizens…Similarly, no authority has the right to abrogate legitimate freedoms -not even by enacting laws and regulations for that purpose- under the pretext of preserving the independence and territorial integrity of the country.”

Articles 19 and 20 state: “All people of Iran, whatever the ethnic group or tribe to which they belong, enjoy equal rights; color, race, language, and the like, do not bestow any privilege. All citizens of the country, both men and women, equally enjoy the protection of the law and enjoy all human, political, economic, social, and cultural rights, in conformity with Islamic criteria.”

Legally speaking, “Nation” is a universal word and can’t have any exceptions. It includes all people of Iran, regardless of their colour of skin, race, language, religion and belief.

It is thus clear that the right to education and especially Higher Education in universities is not only a legitimate freedom but, based on Clause 3 of Article 9 and Article 30 of the Constitution, is part of the inalienable humane, political, social and cultural rights of all people of Iran. It is part of the government’s obligation to the “Nation”.

Depriving students from their education based on discrimination violates the Iranian government’s international obligations.

The government of the Islamic Republic of Iran joined the International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid (ICSPCA) in 1984, and based on the act that ratified it (in the Parliament, 24 January 1985), it is obligated to this convention. Based on Article 2 of the ICSPCA: “Any legislative measures and other measures calculated to prevent a racial group or groups from participation in the political, social, economic and cultural life of the country and the deliberate creation of conditions preventing the full development of such a group or groups, in particular by denying to members of a racial group or groups basic human rights and freedoms, including the right to work, the right to form recognized trade unions, the right to education, the right to leave and to return to their country, the right to a nationality, the right to freedom of movement and residence, the right to freedom of opinion and expression, and the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.”

Based on its Article 5: “Persons charged with the acts enumerated in article II of the present Convention may be tried by a competent tribunal of any State Party to the Convention which may acquire jurisdiction over the person of the accused or by an international penal tribunal having jurisdiction with respect to those States Parties which shall have accepted its jurisdiction.”

The ACRE asks the Iranian authorities to respect the Constitution and their own international obligations, and stop the denial of the students’ right to education. We also ask for the release of imprisoned students whose only crime is demanding their elementary right to education. They should be granted this right.

EDITOR’S NOTES

*Starred Students: The Ministry of Advanced Education in Iran uses a “star” system to crack down on student activists. Through this approach, the students considered to have “disciplinary” issues are assigned stars, and are subsequently banned from university. Iranian officials, however, deny the existence of starred students, even though the students have been vocal about their situation.

Read a report from 2010 on Iranian students starred and imprisoned