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Petition Tag - azerbaijan
Currently, lots of civil and cultural Azerbaijani activists have been arrested by the Iranian intelligence service. Since environmental activists in Tabriz, Urmia and other cities started to protest against Iranian parliament indifferences regarding Lake Urmia’s drought, the number of prisoners has been significantly increased. Most of them physically were tortured and some of them have been taken to unknown places.
"Abbas Lisani" is one of the Azerbaijani civil rights activists who several times have been arrested and imprisoned by Iranian regime. Lately Mr. Lisani was arrested on 10th September 2011 in his house and was taken to Ardabil's intelligence service center. According to the prisoners, who recently released, he was tortured and bitten by prison authorities. It is said that, other prisoners heard his painful voice when he was tortured.
"Abbas Lisani" is said to suffer from stomach problem, and pain in his ribs, which is allegedly a result of torture inflicted during previous periods of detention. He has started his hunger strike against unlawful condition of his arrest. However in his latest contact he told that ended his hungry strike. Said his wife Mrs. Rughayye Lisani. As result of Mr. Lesani’s gloomy situation, Mrs. Lisani suffers from nerve's disease and her health situation is undesirable.
Now Mr.Lisani's life is in serious danger. His family phone line is monitoring by "Iranian intelligence service" and whoever wants to visit his family are threatened by Iranian security forces.
We refer to human rights activists and organizations to inform other related organizations in order to condemn Iranian regime and ask to release Mr. Lesani by providing him sufficient aids regarding his health situation.
Alireza Farshi, a university professor and an Azerbaijani civil rights activist was arrested in Tabriz on Friday 13th April 2011, presumably to enforce the six-month jail sentence he received last year.
Ministry of Intelligence and Security officers (MOIS) arrested Farshi during a Tabriz rally May 22, 2009 at which Farshi and other rally participants chanted slogans demanding Azerbaijani rights such as “schooling in Azerbaijani Turkish.” Police officers responded with physical attacks and arrests. Amnesty International issued a report on June 9, 2009 condemning the human rights violations of the protesters in Tabriz—15 people, including Farshi—who had been injured and arrested. MOIS agents then deceptively requested that Didar visit her detained husband, at which time she was also arrested. The couple was released on bail after they held for 3 months and 30 days. They were tried three months later. Farshi also banned from teaching at Azad University of Jolfa in August 2010.
The Association for the Defense of Azerbaijani Political Prisoners, ADAPP, believes that, he is a prisoner of conscience, held solely for the peaceful civil, cultural and linguistic rights activities.
Hussein Nasiri, an Azerbaijani civil rights and environmental activist was arrested on April 2nd 2010 during a gathering for an environmental campaign to save lake Urmia.
He is currently kept at the Tabriz central prison after a long detention in solitary confinement by security forces in Iran north-west province of Azerbaijan and finally brought to the court after more than five month of detention. He is in prison for vague charge of “propaganda against the system."
Nasiri has been tortured while in Tabriz Intelligence Ministry Detention Center. According to reliable sources, He is suffering from serious medical conditions due to injuries from torture and is deprived of the right of access to medical care.
The Association for the Defense of Azerbaijani Political Prisoners, ADAPP, believes that, he is a prisoner of conscience, held solely for the peaceful civil, cultural and environmental activities.
4. Release the imprisoned Iranian Azerbaijani writers and poets 
Writers expressing themselves in Azeri are deprived of linguistic freedom consisting of freedom of speech and freedom to write in their mother tongue and face perpetual problems having their work published in Azeri.
The arrested writers are being held in solitary confinement in Evin prison in Tehran, and are at risk of torture and other ill treatment.
5. Free the imprisoned Iranian Azerbaijani writers and poets
In September 2008, the following poets and writers were arrested and imprisoned merely because they wrote in their mother tongue:
Azeri: Alireza Sarrafi, Hasan Rasedi, Akbar Azad, Saeid Muganli, Mehdi Neemi, Hamid Arghish. They are now in solitary confinement in Evin prison.
They are deprived of Linguistic freedom consisting of freedom of speech and freedom to write in their mother tongue, facing perpetual problems having their work published in Azeri Freedom to have their children educated in mother tongue.
These issues apply to all Azeris in Iran. Between 16 and 23 million Azeris live in Iran.
