Farshid and His Family
In spite of the ruling by an Islamic Court, the prosecution and the prison authorities at Evin Prison in Tehran have cruelly and illegally denied Christian convert “Farshid Fat-hi” his freedom; it is unclear why they have done this.
According to Farsi Christian News Network, (FCNN), it is now more than 290 days since 32 year old Farshid Fat-hi Malayer was unlawfully detained and imprisoned in the notorious Evin prison. He was arrested on 26th December 2010 by the agents of the State Security of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Tehran, and taken to Evin prison where he has been held even since.
Even though most of the other imprisoned Christian converts whose detention had been reported in domestic and international news media in the Islamic Republic have been freed, Farshid’s continued incarceration is as yet to even be clarified.
A relative of Farshid’s in Turkey has understood that officials from Branch 6 of the Revolutionary Prosecuting Authorities, based at Evin Prison, had dropped the initial charges of apostasy and conversion to Christianity, and that he had now been charged with the crime of “political activity”.
About seven months ago, on the eve of the Iranian New Year, the Revolutionary Prosecutor set an enormous bail for his release of $200,000. His family were eventually able to raise the money so that they could obtain the Islamic Revolutionary Court’s order for Farshid’s freedom.
However, after completing the necessary paperwork in prison, itself a lengthy process involving many hours, and just as he was about to leave the prison, a man who gave his name as “Naseri” stopped him just inside the gates, and took him back into Evin Prison’s much feared Ward 209.
Scattered reports coming out of this infamous ward, speak of the harsh conditions this young Christian has to endure for his steadfast resistance to all that the Islamic justice system can throw at him. Agents of the Islamic Republic’s Ministry of State Security, posing as “experts” and “prosecutors”, continue to pressure him to reveal the names of other converts and baptised people that he knew, insisting also that he should confess to having been in contact with “enemy states” and “secret organisations”.
The spokesperson for the European Committee for the Defence of Iranian-Christians informed FCNN that, for some unknown reason, Tehran’s Islamic Revolutionary Court had so far refused to reveal the contents, or even the substance, of their charges against Farshid to his lawyer, wife or relatives. It is clear that the main force behind this illegal activity are the agents of the Islamic Republic’s Ministry of State Security, operating under cover of the Tehran Prosecutor’s office at Evin.
The spokesperson added that Farshid had been arrested and specifically charged for proselytizing Muslims, Christian activities and the “crime” of organizing and forming house churches; the new charges of “political activism” are as unlawful as the original charges, and a complete fabrication.
Farshid himself is a new convert to Christianity, and an excellent example of selfless devotion, who had been acting according to his Christian beliefs. No one who knew him would ever countenance that he had been engaged in any form of political activism. His beloved wife and their two young children, 7-year-old daughter Rosana and 3-year-old son Barbad, have faced considerable suffering, as well as great financial hardship in the time that Farshid has been imprisoned.
Under near-constant scrutiny, pressure and persecution, the Christian community of Iran is outraged at his continued imprisonment by the Islamic Regime in Evin prison, one of the most notorious prisons of our time.
Farshid Fat-hi has been under unlawful detention for more than 290 days now with his family enduring their own hellish conditions.
This song, “Our Father is Walking With Us”, is a song written for the persecuted, and especially for imprisoned, Iranian Christians; it has just been posted on www.sama.tv. Would you would join with us, and the whole Iranian Christian community, to pray for our brother Farshid and his family? Please pray for his speedy release and return home, as well as for the many other believers, so many unknown, who are also suffering for their faith; may their sacrifice bring rich glory to our Lord, Jesus Christ. God bless you.
