Imprisoned Iranian On Solitary Confinement There Is No Return

Imprisoned Iranian on solitary confinement: "There is no turning back" A young Iranian has been imprisoned for ten years In conversation, he talks about torture during interrogations, that he has no regrets and hopes that the protests will continue.

The violence on the streets escalated: Tehran on September 19, 2022 Photo: ap His name here is Omar Rahimi He is a musician, just over 20 years old.

When people took to the streets in September to protest the death of Mahsa Amini and the Islamist system of rule, he was there He is arrested and sentenced to 10 years in prison and several dozen lashes.

He uses his prison leave to talk to the Wochentaz about his arrest, the brutal methods of the Iranian repression apparatus and the mood in the protest movement His name was changed by the editors because it is very dangerous for political prisoners in Iran to have contact with foreign media.

Wochentaz: Mr Rahimi, how did you come to take part in the protests? Omar Rahimi: My friends and I saw several calls for protests on social media and decided to take to the streets as well.

At first we went as a group, which is safer, but then I joined two other demonstrators They shouted anti-government slogans and threw stones at uniformed regime forces.

The regime forces shot at us and used tear gas, so I thought it was legitimate to throw stones at us In reality, however, the others were not demonstrators, but agents provocateurs.

How do you know? Because they were who later arrested me They called a friend who came shortly after on a motorbike.

From his appearance - unkempt beard, fanatical gaze - I immediately recognized that he is a Basij The Basiji form a volunteer militia of the Revolutionary Guards, they are heavily indoctrinated - and they are essential for the regime to put down protests.

He and the other two, whom I first expected to help, electrocuted me to the ground and took me in handcuffs to a place where they were temporarily holding other arrested protesters Then what happened? They kicked, spat on and insulted us.

They said things like, "You want to revolt, you sons of bitches? you want to riot you assholes? You skinny motherfuckers?” Then they took us to the secret service compound in a van belonging to a well-known food company For interrogation? Yes, but it wasn't a normal interrogation.

We were constantly being beaten on the way there, and then an agent told his colleagues to bring him a bottle He wanted to rape me anally.

Another agent stopped him I don't know if this was a deliberate mind game, but I've heard that protesters were actually raped with bottles, sometimes even stun guns.

What did they want to know from you? I got a questionnaire, it said things like: Why did you take to the streets? Which pages do you follow on Instagram? What is your cell phone password? Luckily I left my cell phone at home Because they didn't believe me straight away, someone hit me hard again.

It was a roleplay between good cop and bad cop One speaks gently to you and insists that he only wants to help you, the other hits and insults you.

At some point I just wanted to confess everything to the "good guy" so that the other person would leave me alone And after that you went straight to jail? There were several interrogations beforehand, which lasted more than a week.

During this time I was locked in a solitary cell without a window There was only one bright light that was always on, so I completely lost track of time.

There I had only myself and my fear, I kept thinking about what was going to happen outside in the meantime It was the hardest mental state I've ever experienced.

Normal prison was a relief You have been released on bail.

When do you have to go back to prison? My prison leave lasts a week, then I have to go back My sentence is now final, I was sentenced to more than 10 years in prison and several lashes for "violations against national security".

At first they wanted to convict me of "war against God" and as a leader of the protests, I would have risked the death penalty But those charges were dropped for lack of evidence.

Why did you take part in the protests? During the day, I was devastated when I found out about Jina Mahsa Amini Imagine your government constantly humiliating and mistreating you just because of your beliefs.

And then you hear your people being beaten and killed because of these absurd laws that only exist here At some point you can't stand it anymore, you rebel.

All I could think about was Mahsa and the thousands of other people who died needlessly because of this system That's why I took to the streets.

Do you regret it now? Not at all I met wonderful people in prison and learned a lot from them.

I'm proud of myself and the others who protested When some see a hero in me, it makes me happy and ashamed at the same time, because basically I didn't do anything special, just my duty.

I didn't want to be silent anymore, I didn't want my children to be able to ask me: Dad, why didn't you do anything at the time? What is your impression of the mood among the inmates? Those who took part in these protests are in constant contact with the others If one is released, the others will know immediately.

It's always a great pleasure Others, like me, have to see some get out of prison while they themselves have to stay.

We do our best to support each other and stay positive ourselves, but being in prison is tough Will the Iranians be able to change anything? When I see that people think I'm a hero, it encourages me, but at the same time I want those who applaud me take heart and do something.

Under this system, change is only possible if everyone wants it and fights for it Not just 40 or 60 percent of the people, but 100 percent.

Do you think that will happen? Yes I think so Soon even.

Why are you so sure? I get an incredible amount of support, not only from those around me, but also from strangers You think I'm a role model.

My own role model was Navid Afkari, the wrestler accused of killing a security guard during the 2018 protests He fought for justice to the end and was executed anyway.

Every new wave of protest produces new role models, and the more role models people have, the more people will dare to take to the streets themselves next time If people hadn't protested in 2019, we wouldn't have taken to the streets today either.

It's like a chain And the fear? Every revolution demands blood sacrifices.

If you want to win something, you have to be willing to lose something Freedom is a bit like death, you leave everything behind and go towards it.

And once you've started, there's no turning back .