Regime Repeating Saddam’s Injustice Against Me

Political prisoner Abdollah Momeni is a senior member and spokesperson for the Advar Tahkim group, Iran’s largest reformist student organization. In an exclusive interview with Rooz, Momeni’s wife Fatemeh Adinehvand said that the Iranian regime was repeating the injustice that Saddam Hossein inflicted on her by killing her husband.

Abdollah Momeni married his brother’s wife after his brother was announced missing in action in 1985 during the 8-year Iran-Iraq war. After several years of activism in Iran’s student movement, Momeni is in now prison again; a harsh experience for him. His wife spoke with Rooz about here husband’s ordeal. Recalling the signs of torture she saw on her husband’s face, Fatemeh Adinehvand said, “I couldn’t believe what they had done that to him…. I thought that the regime was repeating Saddam Hussein’s injustice against me.”

Here are the excerpts of the full interview.

Rooz: What is your worst memory of the past year, since Mr. Momeni has been in prison?

Fatemeh Adinehvand (Adinehvand): When I saw Abdollah for the first time after his arrest in Evin Prison’s yard, and also when they aired his confessions on TV, were very difficult ones. I don’t know how I survived the ordeal. When they were airing his confession on national television, I just said, “Come and see your dad.” I didn’t react in front of the kids but they became very sad.

Rooz: The way you described the moment when you saw Mr. Momeni for the first time after his imprisonment was very touching. How did those moments pass, and what were you feeling?

Adinehvand: I have endured a lot of pain in my life, but that moment may have been the most painful. When Abdollah got out of the car, his face was pale and puffy; he was only bones and skin. He couldn’t even get out of the car by himself. I wouldn’t have taken the kids with me if I knew Abdollah was in that condition. I couldn’t believe what they had done to him. It was as if my entire life was marching in front of my eyes. I thought that the Iranian regime was repeating the suffering that Saddam Hossein had inflicted on me and was ruining my life again. Abdollah was crying. The only thing he said was that he wanted to talk about his condition only after he was out of prison. We couldn’t speak properly. Neither was Abdollah able to and nor was it the right time. Somebody was recording us too.

Rooz: How do you deal with his absence these days?

Adinehvand: The first time he was arrested, I couldn’t come to terms with the fact that Abdollah was in prison for political activism. In 2005 Abdollah was in prison for 45 days and that was so difficult for me. In 2007, when he was arrested for 35 days, I convinced myself that I have to come to terms with this issue. Dealing with issues logically is better than letting it eat you up from the inside.