More: they are one of the reasons why some of us have begun to deal with them and, every time those pictures come to mind, one of the reasons why we keep doing it. To seek justice in the name of Amir and the other kids like him, murdered on the street or died under torture just because they had taken the streets to protest peacefully after the disputed presidential elections of June 2009; but also to allow other Iranian kids like Amir to have a different fate; and - finally – to make the torturers and murderers of Amir, one day, be accountable for his as well as for other youngsters’ death in the summer of 2009.
There are many Amir’s photos like the one on the left. They are part of the everyday life of a boy in full strength and life, eager to enjoy it and build a future, but also to claim the respect of his rights as a young citizen of the his country and to ask, like millions of Iranians in that summer: "Where is my vote?"
Amir used to write songs and studied Technology management at Azad University in Qazvin. He loved acting and attended an acting course at the Karnameh Institute.
The photo on the right was "stolen" in the hospital on July 9, 2009, the day Amir was arrested during a demonstration in Tehran. Basiji and plainclothes agents had beaten him, before arresting him. It was the police itself to take him to the Firuzgar hospital and to contact the father of Amir. At the insistence of the family, in the night between 9 and July 10, Amir was transferred to a private hospital and underwent exams. It turned out that he had no serious problems.
The next morning, dismissed from the clinic, Amir was taken (with his family) to the police station 148 of Tehran. As he presented no major injuries, he was taken over by the agents.
It was the last time his family saw him alive.
For two weeks the family of Amir had no news of him. Questioned about his conditions and his whereabouts, officers responded evasively and elusively.
On July 25, 2009, finally, Amir's father was summoned to the police headquarters and sent to the Kahrizak Forensics facility, to identify the body of his son, who had died at least 12 days before.
Amir had been taken to Kahrizak since July 10. A witness described the last days of life of Amir Javadifar in Kahrizak: "A person named Javadifar was thirsty and had trouble eating. We put bread in his mouth in very small pieces to help him eat. He was very weak and couldn’t walk fast. They kept beating him. He told me that he couldn’t see with his right eye. This was on the third day we were at Kahrizak. His eye was infected. We tried to take care of him and put him near the door to get some air.”
Amir's death occurred just while he and other prisoners were being transferred from Kahrizak to Evin prison. “Javadifar had lost consciousness…. " - the same witness said - “We had to carry him [to a bus]…. He died in the bus. We saw his body in the [Evin] courtyard.”
Here we recall Amir Javadifar, but we could also tell the story of Mohsen Ruholamini (25 years) or that of Mohammad Kamrani (18) who both died too, in those days three years ago, because of the torture suffered in Kahrizak. And we could as well tell the stories of journalists Mehdi Mahmoudian and Mohammad Davari, who because of describing and denouncing the existence of a secret torture center in Kahrizak (where kids arrested during demonstrations in Tehran were taken), are being detained for almost three years.
However, in order to describe what happened in Kahrizak in those hellish days of summer 2009, we’d rather use the words contained in the second report issued on March 6, 2012 by the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran, Ahmed Shaheed (pp. 22 and 23 ). The report collected accounts from other prisoners detained at Kahrizak.
“They [the protesters detained] were transferred to Kahrizak Prison and placed in a 70 sq. meter cell with no ventilation and one toilet with about 124-146 other prisoners, some of whom were incarcerated for violent crimes, such as murder and rape. These prisoners were said to dole out punishments to the protestors. It was also said to be so crowded in the cell that individuals had to take turns sleeping while others stood. Authorities reportedly pumped gas exhaust fumes into the cell when they wanted the prisoners to be quiet.
The detainees were taken outside barefoot the next day, directed to form a circle, and told to walk around the searing asphalt yard while squatting. Everyone suffered burns to their feet and those unable to perform this task suffered from burns to the hands and knees as a result of crawling on the asphalt. Those that were unable to follow this order were reportedly beaten with PVC pipes.
A prisoner was ordered to pick protestors to be hung from the ceiling in order to ”teach others a lesson and to make them cooperate.” Mr. Alizadeh was randomly chosen, hung from the ceiling by his feet, and beaten. Mr. Alizadeh passed out from the 20 minutes beating. After being unhooked, Mr. Alizadeh stated that he immediately endured another beating from a prisoner on orders from the authorities, and sustained multiple head wounds as a result. His wounds went untreated until after he was transferred from Kahrizak Prison.
By the third day all the wounds sustained during beatings were infected, and most of the detainees reportedly had eye infections. The heat in the cell was described to be “intense”, and the witnesses stated that people were passing out as a result, including a prisoner named AMIR JAVADIFAR who reportedly had broken bones when he arrived in his cell. The detainees pounded pound on the door and until a guard agreed to let them out for a 15 minute fresh air break. Several individuals were sent to the prison yard to seek medical treatment for their infections and broken bones at that time. However, their request for painkillers and treatment for their injuries were reportedly ignored. AMIR JAVADIFAR was allegedly told to stop pretending to be sick by the physician on duty. All four witnesses reported that MOHSEN ROOHOLAMINI, and MOHAMMAD KAMRANI were also refused medical treatment. All three men reportedly died from their injuries.
The detainees were prepared to be transferred from Kahrizak to Evin Prison on the fifth day. The Head of the Detention Center reportedly beat the prisoners for “not getting dressed fast enough”. The witnesses stated that AMIR JAVADIFAR died during this transfer to Evin Prison as a result of negligence. The detainees complained to authorities about his breathing and that his condition appeared serious, however, no medical treatment was provided until CPR was performed by another detainee when Mr. JAVADIFAR stopped breathing”.
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