Latest Udates on the Situation of Reza Shahabi

Latest updates on the situation of Reza Shahabi, an imprisoned member of the Board of Directors of The Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company

In a statement issued on Wednesday, August 23, 2023 by the Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company, the union has reported that the medical file of the imprisoned labour activist, Reza Shahabi, has once again been referred to the medical commission, and a letter was sent to his treating doctor on behalf of this commission to determine his situation.

Shahabi’s treating physician has emphasized that a surgery should have been performed last year (2022), and what he had ordered was not fulfilled. After taking another MRI from Reza Shahabi, the doctor has emphasized that Shahabi definitely needs surgery, for the severe narrowing of the spinal canal of the C4, C3 and C5 vertebrae, which is inflicting pressure on his spinal cord, and that is why he is experiencing increasing pain.

Through the follow-up with the prison authorities, Reza Shahabi has been told that he should do the surgery first and then they will give him a medical leave. This case has of course been objected by Reza Shahabi, given the fact that he received the same response years ago. Shahabi was promised the same thing during his neck surgery in 2012, when they actually sent him back to prison after the surgery, causing an infection and ineffective recovery. 

Reza Shahabi has told the prison authorities that if they really want to give him the medical leave, they should give it to him right now. He has explained to them that based on his experience, while he was previously in prison and had to go through his past operations, it is more effective to grant him a medical leave first, so that he can undergo the surgery under the supervision of his doctor and with support of his family, and this would allow him to recover at home after the surgery rather than being sent back to prison. During his past imprisonment period, when Reza Shahabi underwent his previous surgeries and was returned to the prison after the surgery, his surgical wound became infected and due to the lack of proper physical therapy and hydrotherapy facilities, his condition did not improve much.
Reza Shahabi's health situation has been neglected for a long time; due to the pressure on his vertebrae, his health can suffer from irreparable damage at any moments.

The Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company demands the judiciary and the prison authorities to look into Reza Shahabi’s medical situation as soon as possible and to approve his discharge so that this imprisoned labour activist can undergo medical treatment and surgery outside the prison under the supervision of his treating physician and his family. The Syndicate has emphasized numerous times in the past that it holds the prison and judicial authorities responsible for any serious threats to the health and well-being of Reza Shahabi. 

In the latest statement on August 23, 2023, the Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company has once again demanded the unconditional release of its imprisoned members Davood Razavi, Hassan Saeidi, Reza Shahabi, and other detained labour, teachers, and the human rights activists.

Source: 
The Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company
August 23, 2023

https://t.me/vahedsyndica/5406
The Syndicate's official channels:
Syndicate's official Telegram channel:
https://t.me/vahedsyndica
Syndicate's official account on Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/vahedsyndica/
Syndicate's official account on Twitter
Contact the Syndicate Telegram channel:
@Vahed_Syndica
Syndicate email:
vsyndica@gmail.com

Translated by: Zhaleh Sahand