Sayyid Mostafa Tajzadeh () is an Iranian

reformist Reformism is a political tendency advocating the reform of an existing system or institution – often a political or religious establishment – as opposed to its abolition and replacement via revolution. Within the socialist movement, ref ...

politician and a senior member of

Islamic Iran Participation Front The Islamic Iran Participation Front (; ''Jebheye Mosharekate Iran-e Eslaami'') was a reformist political party in Iran. It was sometimes described as the most dominant member within the 2nd of Khordad Front. The party took 189 of the 290 seats ...

, as well as

Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution of Iran Organization Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution of Iran Organization (MIRO; ) is a reformist political organization in Iran. It is a small yet influential organization, and participates in political activities similar to a political party. Historian Ervand Ab ...

. He was imprisoned at

Evin Prison Evin Prison () is a prison located in the Evin neighborhood of Tehran, Iran. The prison has been the primary site for detaining Iran's political prisoners since 1972, before and after the Iranian Revolution, in a purpose-built wing nicknamed "E ...

from 2009 until 2016. Tajzadeh was briefly Acting Minister of Interior under administration of President

Mohammad Khatami Mohammad Khatami (born 14 October 1943) is an Iranian politician and Shia cleric who served as the fifth president of Iran from 3 August 1997 to 3 August 2005. He also served as Iran's Minister of Culture from 1982 to 1992. Later, he was critic ...

after impeachment of

Abdollah Nouri Abdollah Noori ( ) is an Iranian Shia cleric and reformist politician. Despite his "long history of service to the Islamic Republic," he became the most senior Islamic politician to be sentenced to prison since the Iranian Revolution, when he was ...

, advisor to President

in his last two years of administration, a deputy at

Ministry of Interior An interior ministry or ministry of the interior (also called ministry of home affairs or ministry of internal affairs) is a government department that is responsible for domestic policy, public security and law enforcement. In some states, th ...

and

Ministry of Culture Ministry of Culture may refer to: * Ministry of Tourism, Cultural Affairs, Youth and Sports (Albania) * Ministry of Culture (Algeria) * Ministry of Culture (Argentina) * Minister for the Arts (Australia) * Ministry of Culture (Azerbaijan)Ministry o ...

. He is also a member of Association of Iranian Journalists.

Political career

In 1975, Tajzadeh went to the United States to study and became a member of

Muslim Students Association The Muslim Students Association, or Muslim Student Union, of the U.S. and Canada, also known as MSA National, is a religious organization dedicated to establishing and maintaining Islamic societies on college campuses in Canada and the United Sta ...

, active against

Shah of Iran The monarchs of Iran ruled for over two and a half millennia, beginning as early as the 7th century BC and enduring until the 20th century AD. The earliest Iranian king is generally considered to have been either Deioces of the Median dynasty () ...

. With the start of the

Iranian Revolution The Iranian Revolution (, ), also known as the 1979 Revolution, or the Islamic Revolution of 1979 (, ) was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty in 1979. The revolution led to the replacement of the Impe ...

in 1978, he left university and returned to Iran. Tajzadeh served as the Political deput of the Ministry of Interior of Iran in the government of

, and under the Minister

Abdollah Noori Abdollah Noori ( ) is an Iranian Shia cleric and reformist politician. Despite his "long history of service to the Islamic Republic," he became the most senior Islamic politician to be sentenced to prison since the Iranian Revolution, when he was ...

, since 1997, after being introduced to Noori by

Gholamhossein Karbaschi Gholamhossein Karbaschi (, ; born 23 August 1954) is an Iranian politician and former Shia cleric who was the Mayor of Tehran from 1990 until 1998. He is considered politically reformist and is a close ally of former president Mohammad Khatami. H ...

and

Mohammad Atrianfar Mohammad Atrianfar (; born 1953 in Isfahan (city), Isfahan) is an Iranian journalist and Iranian reformists, reformist politician, currently the head of the "Policymaking Council" of the daily newspaper ''Shargh''. He is a member of the Executive ...

. The first Iranian elections for the

City and Village Councils of Iran The Islamic Councils (), formerly known as the Provincial Societies () are local councils which are elected by public vote in all cities and villages throughout Iran. Council members in each city or village are elected by direct public vote to a ...

happened under Tajzadeh. Later, he became an Adviser to the

President of Iran The president of the Islamic Republic of Iran () is the head of government of the Iran, Islamic Republic of Iran and the second highest-ranking official, after the Supreme Leader of Iran, supreme leader. The 1980 Iranian presidential election, fi ...

, Mohammad Khatami, from November 21, 2004 until the presidency of

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (born Mahmoud Sabbaghian on 28 October 1956) is an Iranian Iranian principlists, principlist and Iranian nationalism, nationalist politician who served as the sixth president of Iran from 2005 to 2013. He is currently a mem ...

. He started working in the

Islamic Republic The term Islamic republic has been used in different ways. Some Muslim religious leaders have used it as the name for a form of Islamic theocratic government enforcing sharia, or laws compatible with sharia. The term has also been used for a s ...

government as an employee of the

Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance The Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance (, ''Vezârat-e Farhang va Ershâd-e Eslâmi'') ("Ministry of CIG") is a ministry responsible for managing access to media that, in the view of the Iranian government or the ministry, violates Iranian ...

in May 1982. He went up to become a vice minister when Mohammad Khatami was the Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance. He left the ministry after a while, and worked for the newspaper

Hamshahri ''Hamshahri'' (; ) is a major Iranian national Persian-language newspaper in Tehran (whose municipal government owns the newspaper). History and profile ''Hamshahri'' is published by the municipality of Tehran, and founded by Gholamhossein ...

until 1997. Tajzadeh was one of seven leading reformists who filed a lawsuit against several commanders of the

Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), also known as the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, is a multi-service primary branch of the Islamic Republic of Iran Armed Forces, Iranian Armed Forces. It was officially established by Ruhollah Khom ...

(IRGC) for their alleged intervention in Iran's presidential elections.

Government work ban

In March 2001, while he was Political deputy at

faced with charges of

election fraud Electoral fraud, sometimes referred to as election manipulation, voter fraud, or vote rigging, involves illegal interference with the process of an election, either by increasing the vote share of a favored candidate, depressing the vote share o ...

2000 Iranian legislative election Parliamentary elections were held in Iran on 18 February 2000, with a second round on 5 May. The result was a solid victory for 2nd of Khordad Front and its allies, the reformist supporters of President Mohammad Khatami. Campaign A total of 6,08 ...

after a clash with

Guardian Council The Guardian Council (also called Council of Guardians or Constitutional Council, ) is an appointed and constitutionally mandated 12-member council that wields considerable power and influence in the Islamic Republic of Iran. The constitution ...

. He was barred from all government employment for three years, but did not appeal the verdict. Mostafa Tajzadeh

Imprisonment

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says that it has more than ten million members a ...

reported that he was arrested in June 2009, amidst the

2009 Iranian election protests After incumbent president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad declared victory in the 2009 Iranian presidential election, protests broke out in major cities across Iran in support of opposition candidates Mir-Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi. The protests con ...

. He was convicted of "assembly and collusion against national security" and "propaganda against the regime", sentenced to 6 years in prison and a 10-year ban on political and press activities by Branch 15 of the Tehran

Islamic Revolutionary Court Islamic Revolutionary Court (), also known as the Revolutionary Tribunal (''Dadgahha-e Enqelab''Bakhash, Shaul, ''Reign of the Ayatollahs'', Basic Books, 1984, p.59-61) is a special system of courts in the Islamic Republic of Iran designed to try ...

. He was imprisoned in

from 2009 until 2016. In 2014, while still in prison, he faced new charges and was convicted of another 1 year in prison.

Personal life

Tajzadeh is a

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

student in

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

University of Tehran The University of Tehran (UT) or Tehran University (, ) is a public collegiate university in Iran, and the oldest and most prominent Iranian university located in Tehran. Based on its historical, socio-cultural, and political pedigree, as well as ...

and has two daughters. His wife is Fakhrossadat Mohtashamipour, the niece of cleric Ali Akbar Mohtashami-Pur. He has also lived in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

for 31 months.

References

External links

Mostafa Tajzadeh's blog (in Persian)

A short biography
Tajzadeh's short autobiography (in Persian) {{DEFAULTSORT:Tajzadeh, Mostafa 1956 births Living people Vice ministers of Iran Iranian prisoners and detainees Islamic Iran Participation Front politicians Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution of Iran Organization politicians Presidential advisers of Iran People convicted of action against national security by the Islamic Republic of Iran People convicted of spreading propaganda against the system by the Islamic Republic of Iran Iranian politicians convicted of crimes Members of the National Council for Peace Political prisoners in Iran University of Tehran alumni