Several non-governmental organizations from countries such as Spain, France, Germany and Belgium are calling on politicians of the European Union to work for the release of Belgian aid worker Olivier Vandecasteele, who was sentenced this Tuesday in Iran to 40 years in prison and 74 lashes for charges of espionage and other crimes in a closed-door trial.
After negotiations to obtain his release in exchange for former Iranian diplomat Assadollah Assadi were rejected by the Belgian Constitutional Court, this group of organizations, in view of the allegations against Assadi, is asking the European Union to intervene to secure the release of Vandecasteele to secure.
“The European Union – the world’s second largest financier of international humanitarian aid – has a decisive role to play in breaking the closed-door situation between the two countries. ability to evolve in sometimes very sensitive political and cultural environments such as Afghanistan and Iran One of the first steps the EU can take is to ensure that contact with an independent medical team is possible A thorough medical check-up, in the context of ending the hunger strike is critical to the safety of Olivier Vandecasteele. The reality supports the legitimacy of the EU to act on behalf of a humanitarian who is being held against his will”refers to a document sent to newsrooms.
Iran’s judicial portal indicates that a Revolutionary Court has sentenced 41-year-old Olivier Vandecasteele to 12 and a half years in prison for espionage, 12 and a half years for collaborating with hostile governments and 12 and a half years for money laundering .
The Belgian was also fined $1 million (930,000 euros) and sentenced to an additional two and a half years for currency smuggling.
According to the Associated Press (AP) news agency, it was not clear whether the allegations are related to anti-government protests that have rocked Iran over the past four months. The Iranian authorities blame the unrest on foreign powers, without providing evidence.
The protests began after the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who was detained by customs police for allegedly improperly wearing the Islamic veil imposed on women in the country. The young Kurdish woman died on September 16, three days after she was arrested.
Iran has detained a number of foreigners and dual nationals over the years, often sentencing them in secret trials that human rights groups say were not treated fairly. Critics accuse Iran of using these captives as a bargaining chip with the West, something Iranian officials deny.
According to Iranian law, Vandecasteele would be eligible for parole after 12 and a half years. The judicial portal said the convict can still appeal the sentence.
Vandecasteele’s family said last month that the Belgian had been in an Iranian prison for months and was on a hunger strike. They added that the humanitarian worker has been denied access to a lawyer of his choice and is suffering from serious health problems.
Belgium has urged its citizens to leave Iran and warned they risk arbitrary arrest or an unfair trial.
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, today accused Tehran of using the death penalty against demonstrators to intimidate the Iranian population into not demonstrating.
So far, at least 2,000 people have been charged with various crimes by the Iranian judiciary for participating in the protests, and four of those sentenced to death by the revolutionary courts have been executed.
More than 500 people have been killed in the clashes and 20,000 have been arrested, according to the Oslo-based non-governmental organization Iran Human Rights.
Source: DN
