Last week a Revolutionary Court in Iran sentenced Abed Tavancheh, a ‎student activist from Amir Kabir University in Tehran, to an eight month ‎suspended imprisonment. We spoke with Abe Tavancheh about the ‎sentence, what has happened to him and his family, the increasing ‎suppression of the student movement in the country and especially the arrest ‎and intimidation of leftist students last year. ‎

Rooz (R): In your opinion, why were you convicted? Will you appeal the ‎court’s ruling? ‎

Abed Tavancheh (AT): The court and interrogators were sensitive about ‎two issues: one was blogging and journalism, and the other was numerous ‎interviews that were conducted at a time when for a long time we had no ‎news about the whereabouts of six prominent leftist student activists – ‎Behrouz Karimizadeh, Saeed Habibi, Yaser Pirhayati, Peyman Piran, Mehdi ‎Gerayelou, and Majid Ashrafzadeh. For a prolonged period no official ‎institution took responsibility for their arrest. The conclusion that I drew ‎from the court was that any kind of telephonic connection with political ‎activists outside the country is a security crime and is considered acting ‎against national security, and any remark or comment in criticism of or ‎opposition to the present political regime is equated with opposing the ‎Islamic Republic of Iran and an insult to its divine beliefs. Regardless of the ‎reasoning, the judgment in my opinion is unjust and illegal and I will ‎certainly appeal the decision with a comprehensive defense brief and the aid ‎of expert attorneys. ‎

R: After your release you were permanently barred from continuing your ‎education. Which institution is responsible for that decision? ‎

AT: Unfortunately, after my release from Ward 325 of Evin prison, when I ‎went to the university to register for classes, campus security prevented me ‎from entering the university. Soon after that I received an incomprehensible ‎letter in this regard, the signature on which seemed inconsistent with the ‎letterhead or the institution issuing the letter, and I was permanently barred ‎from continuing my education. ‎

R: It was reported in the news that you are planning on filing a suit against ‎your interrogators and those who inflicted pressure and pain on you during ‎your arrest. Can you share these pressures with us and talk about whether ‎you intend to pursue this matter in court? ‎

AT: There were many instances of pressure: Solitary confinement, physical ‎beating, insults, long interrogation sessions, coercion to extract forced ‎confessions, pressing fictitious charges, unsanitary condition of the solitary ‎cells, the absence of an attorney during interrogation, pressuring my family, ‎monitoring my, my family and even friends’ phone conversations, ‎interrogations exceeding 10 hours a day, and tens of others of issues that fall ‎outside these categories. ‎

R: In the past six months, dozens of leftist student activists have been ‎arrested and many continue to remain behind bars. What in your opinion ‎prompted the intelligence and security apparatus to go after leftist student ‎activists all of a sudden? ‎

AT: The regime’s red lines were broken one after another by leftist students. ‎The leftist student movement has infiltrated even small universities in local ‎towns. Another key reason is that leftist students are very active, more so ‎than others, in institution building and mobilization. Leftist students have ‎established strong connections with the labor movement, and because they ‎are involved in social activities and volunteer work, they are aware of ‎society’s harsh realities and thus they have become more committed to their ‎cause. The more the authorities clamp down the more radicalized the leftist ‎movement has become while also becoming more powerful. The mass ‎arrests of the past six months clearly demonstrate rising power of the leftist ‎student movement. The massive support of the labor movement, ‎international organizations, leftist parties all over the world, students from ‎across Iran, has confused and bewildered the security and intelligence ‎apparatus. Amazingly, leftist activists, whether those who are in prison or ‎those who are free, have gained a lot of experience from these clamp-downs. ‎