The pressure of forced labor in Tabriz Prison drove one of the female inmates to cut her wrist. But prison authorities claimed that she had done so because of family problems.
Massoumeh Bahrami cut her wrist on Sunday, January 3, 2021, and was transferred to the prison’s clinic. Ms. Bahrami, 28, is imprisoned on drug-related charges.
Tabriz Prison’s authorities reportedly forced female inmates to wash all the blankets and carpets of their ward in the courtyard in the severely cold weather of Tabriz. The frail women were also forced to move their beds to the yard and paint them.
The women were compelled to do forced labor in Tabriz Prison while the weather was -1 degree Celsius during the day and -4 degree Celsius at nights.
Many of the female inmates have become seriously ill because of the cold.
Massoumeh Bahrami, a frail woman, was among the inmates forced to do forced labor. The pressure of several days of forced labor in cold weather coupled with the orders of prison guards drove her to the point where she attempted to cut her wrist.
The prison atmosphere has been tense since then. Prison authorities have pressured Massoumeh Bahrami to say that the reason she cut her wrist was her family problems.
Female inmates are under tremendous pressure in the Prison of Tabriz are deprived of the minimum facilities and resources. The food quality is very bad and the items sold by the prison’s store are very expensive and low quality. These women are not allowed to have a kitchen and a stove to cook their own meal.
They are permitted to have phone calls for only 5 minutes every day. Instead, prison authorities make them take pictures with the portraits of Qassem Soleimani by promising them to receive telephone time as a bonus.
