Free Iranian Journalist Reza Jelodarzadeh!

The chief editor of the suspended weekly Sobhe Azadi, Reza Jelodarzadeh was sentenced by the revolutionary court to one year in prison on charges of anti-regime propaganda. Jelodarzade was also accused of harming national security and plotting the downfall of the regime but was aquitted of these charges.

On May 26, 2012, he turned himself in to the notorious Evin Prison to begin serving his unjust prison sentence. In a final appeal to people of goodwill around the world, he simply asked: "PRAY FOR ME". Full text of his farewell to freedom:

' "We” or maybe I should say: “I” am crazy. When I used to argue with my father (god bless his soul) saying “Dad … I don’t want to become a doctor, I like Hafez … I want to become a poet …” At the time, I hadn’t thought about this side of the story. Swear the god … and afterwards … when I was only a kid, who still hadn’t had a bloody single hair grown on his face, I went to the war front. Instead of wanting to become a poet, now I wanted to become a martyr! And Instead of becoming a martyr I got wounded in the battle and got totally wrecked. For this reason I got my diploma with 2 years of delay because I wasn’t feeling well at all. My poor mother suffered so much. I did not become a poet, and I became a so called “journalist”! How miserable I was. It was the god damn John Stuart Mill’s fault. I don’t know… perhaps my brother in law is to be blamed for having left a copy of the book On Liberty in our house ….

'It’s time to get ready now and go to have a one-year rest … I thank everyone who became the promoters and the cause of my upcoming one-year rest. From the good old “Mash Nabi” in our neighbourhood who always used to give political speeches to me and others in my age group, to my uncle god bless his soul, even though he only used to criticize and swear at things. From our local butcher Karbalayi Mahmoud who used to tell me “if you ever become a journalist, write a protest in your paper asking why they constantly increase the price of meat?” to the British John Stuart Mill with his old book. From my brother in law with his distracted mind to the judge assigned on my case with his religious duties and his punishing sentence. I thank everyone all and all. Now I have to get up and get my injections and my medicines before heading for Evin. It wouldn’t be correct to have the “brothers” take the trouble to come all the way to my home to arrest me and take me away with them.

'Farewell to all of you my dear friends until round about this time next year. Hopefully I will return and we meet up again on this very same page. Oh god … Pray for me' …