Saleheh Hosseini, the wife of Behnam Mahjoubi, a political prisoner held in deplorable conditions without medical care, has written an open letter protesting her husband’s grievous situation.
According to the Campaign for the Defense of Political and Civil Prisoners, Behnam Mahjoubi is a dervish prisoner who has been serving his sentence since June 20th this year.
He has not been able to visit his wife and family even once in the past few months.
Saleheh Hosseini posted a letter of protest on her Twitter account asking the judicial authorities to remove her husband from “Amin Abad” psychiatric center as soon as possible.
The translated text of this letter is follows:
A month ago I wrote [on my Twitter page] that the doctor of Evin Prison had threatened my husband that he should take sleeping pills instead of medication, and that if he did not follow the doctor’s instructions, he would be transferred to Amin Abad psychiatric center. But during this time they did not give him any medicine and did not even notice to his infection with coronavirus.
Now, after a month I am writing a letter to say that my husband was transferred to Amin Abad psychiatric center while he was paralyzed due to stopping his medication. Why? Why did not you give him his medicine? We prepared the medicines ourselves every month; While preparing and delivering his medicines was your duty.
According to Behnam’s doctor outside the prison, taking medication for his illness, which was diagnosed as “panic disorder”, interferes with sleeping pills and can pose a physical danger to him. We also reported this issue to the prison. But they did not pay any attention and they gave him 14 to 17 sleeping pills every night, until suddenly half of his body stopped working. Because the prison did not provide Behnam with medicines, he had a seizure on the night of Saturday, September 26th and fell to the ground, paralyzing half of his body. He was moved to the medical center and first told that he would be sent to the neurology section of Razi Hospital. But suddenly he announced that he was being held in the “Abureihan” clinic of Amin Abad psychiatric center. We do not even know what medication was prescribed for him in the hospital. We do not know what they are doing with Behnam. Behnam’s associates were told that he had been transferred to the hospital at his own request.
After all, which wise man goes to the madhouse of his own free will? A month ago, I wrote in my first open letter that I had spoken out against all this injustice and blamed the Islamic Republic for my husband’s life. In this open letter, I, Saleheh Hosseini, call on the judicial authorities to remove my husband from Amin Abad as soon as possible and to provide him with his medication. Judicial authorities are accountable for taking Behnam to forensic medicine to determine that he is unable to endure imprisonment. I emphasize once again that Behnam’s life is in danger and I ask for help from all those who hear my voice.