美国国家公共电台 NPR--American Siamak Namazi is on a hunger strike in Iranian prison. Why now and for what?

American Siamak Namazi is on a hunger strike in Iranian prison. Why now and for what?

Transcript¹

Siamak Namazi, a U.S. citizen imprisoned² in Iran since 2015, has embarked³ on a hunger strike to mark the seventh anniversary of being left behind in a deal that freed other Americans.

In a letter delivered to the White House by his lawyer, the 51-year-old Iranian-American said he was beginning a seven-day hunger strike on Monday, which was also the seventh anniversary of the Iran nuclear deal.

"When the Obama Administration unconscionably left me in peril⁴ and freed the other American citizens Iran held hostage on January 16, 2016, the U.S. Government promised my family to have me safely home within weeks," Namazi wrote in his letter. "Yet seven years and two presidents later, I remain caged in Tehran's notorious Evin prison, holding that long overdue⁵ IOU along with the unenviable title of the longest held Iranian-American hostage in history."

Namazi implored⁶ President Biden to devote one minute of every day this week — one "for each year of my life that I lost in Evin prison after the U.S. Government could have saved me but didn't" — to thinking about the U.S. hostages held in Iran. They include Emad Shargi and Morah Tahbaz, who were both detained in 2018.

Namazi was arrested during a 2015 business trip and convicted of cooperating with a hostile government, meaning the U.S. The following year Iran released four American detainees as part of a prisoner swap⁷ with the U.S. (with another person released separately), but Namazi was not one of them. His own father, arrested in 2016 while trying to visit him, was allowed to leave the country for medical treatment last October.

Namazi feels he has been left behind, Jared Genser, the family's lawyer, told Morning Edition's Leila Fadel. He says Namazi's concerns are amplified⁸ after seeing the situation in Russia, where American detainee Paul Whelan is still being held despite the U.S. recently reaching a deal to release WNBA player Brittney Griner. (The Biden administration has said that efforts to free Whelan are ongoing).

Genser describes Namazi as "desperate, despondent⁹, heartbroken and also angry" all at the same time.

"He has been given a series of promises over many years by multiple U.S. administrations — President Obama, President Trump¹⁰, President Biden — that his case was a top priority and that they would get it resolved and they would be able to bring him home," he adds. "And it just simply hasn't happened."

While the family has met with Secretary of State Antony Blinken and National Security Adviser¹¹ Jake Sullivan, Genser says, they haven't gotten an audience with Biden despite asking for one since he took office — something Namazi also mentioned in his letter.

State Department spokesperson Ned Price said in a statement that the administration is aware of Namazi's hunger strike and letter to Biden, calling Iran's use of wrongful detentionas political leverage¹² "outrageous¹³" and reiterating¹⁴ that bringing its detained citizens home is a top priority for the U.S.

"Our thoughts are with him and his family, as we work ceaselessly to bring him along with fellow wrongfully detained U.S. citizens Emad Shargi and Morad Tabhaz home to their families and loved ones as soon as possible," Price added.

Genser says discussions are underway between the U.S. and Iran to resolve what he calls the current "hostage cases." And he acknowledges that while it's not an ideal time to be making deals with Iran (especially given Iran's crackdown on human rights protesters in recent months), there are calls Biden can and should be making — no matter how tough — to bring innocent civilians¹⁵ home.

"The one thing that I would say to President Biden is: You need to put aside any political considerations and the blowback of cutting a deal, which undoubtedly¹⁶ will result in criticism from many directions," Genser says. "And you have to do what's right. And you have to look to your own moral compass and understand the responsibility that you, as the former vice¹⁷ president under President Obama, has for having left Siamak behind seven years ago, having promised his family he'd be home within weeks."

Read more excerpts¹⁸ of Genser's conversation with Fadel below. This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

What I would say is that the first two years were literally¹⁹ like hell on earth. He was in the intelligence wing of the prison and was in solitary²⁰ confinement²¹, was subjected to daily interrogations, was repeatedly beaten and tased, was psychologically tortured on top of physical torture. He was told that his father had died of a heart attack and then it took a week until they told him that, "Sorry, just kidding. He didn't really die." He was also in ... a teeny room with a concrete floor and no bedding of any kind, not even a pillow.

... Once he was ultimately convicted and ... given a 10-year prison term, he was moved into the general ward²² of Evin prison where the conditions are better, but still not great. He shares a cell with multiple people. They have the ability to watch Iranian television, to get access to Iranian newspapers and to be with other prisoners as well. So it's less terrible than the first two years, which were extraordinarily²³ horrific, but nonetheless he's seeing his life waste away one year at a time. He's still in his early 50s and wants to get married, have children and all that has been irrevocably changed.

On what the hunger strike looks like and aims to achieve

He is going to drink water to stay hydrated ... His goal is not to secure his freedom from doing a hunger strike, but rather to draw attention to what is happening. This is the first time he's done this in the seven-and-a-half years that he has been imprisoned. And he just felt that now was the right time to do it, with repeated promises by the Biden administration that they would find a way to negotiate his freedom and all of them having come to naught²⁴. As you can imagine, he just feels like people just keep telling him what he wants to hear but take no action.

On what he thinks Biden could do to secure Namazi's release

I think the bottom line is that he needs to do what's necessary to bring Siamak and the other American hostages home, and the administration would know much better than me what the options would be to do that ... There are a range of possibilities that could be there, which would include a prisoner swap or an unfreezing of some amount of Iranian funds and putting it into a humanitarian²⁵ channel that could only be used strictly²⁶ for humanitarian goods. These are the kinds of things that have been done in the past and certainly would be an option now.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 imprisoned   

下狱，监禁( imprison的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He was imprisoned for two concurrent terms of 30 months and 18 months. 他被判处30个月和18个月的监禁，合并执行。
• They were imprisoned for possession of drugs. 他们因拥有毒品而被监禁。

3 embarked   

乘船( embark的过去式和过去分词 )； 装载； 从事

参考例句：

• We stood on the pier and watched as they embarked. 我们站在突码头上目送他们登船。
• She embarked on a discourse about the town's origins. 她开始讲本市的起源。

4 peril   

n.(严重的)危险；危险的事物

参考例句：

• The refugees were in peril of death from hunger.难民有饿死的危险。
• The embankment is in great peril.河堤岌岌可危。

5 overdue   

adj.过期的，到期未付的；早该有的，迟到的

参考例句：

• The plane is overdue and has been delayed by the bad weather.飞机晚点了，被坏天气耽搁了。
• The landlady is angry because the rent is overdue.女房东生气了，因为房租过期未付。

6 implored   

恳求或乞求（某人）( implore的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She implored him to stay. 她恳求他留下。
• She implored him with tears in her eyes to forgive her. 她含泪哀求他原谅她。

7 swap   

n.交换；vt.交换，用...作交易

参考例句：

• I will swap you my bicycle for your radio.我想拿我的自行车换你的收音机。
• This comic was a swap that I got from Nick.这本漫画书是我从尼克那里换来的。

8 amplified   

放大，扩大( amplify的过去式和过去分词 )； 增强； 详述

参考例句：

• He amplified on his remarks with drawings and figures. 他用图表详细地解释了他的话。
• He amplified the whole course of the incident. 他详述了事件的全过程。

9 despondent   

adj.失望的，沮丧的，泄气的

参考例句：

• He was up for a time and then，without warning,despondent again.他一度兴高采烈，但忽然又情绪低落下来。
• I feel despondent when my work is rejected.作品被拒后我感到很沮丧。

10 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

11 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

12 leverage   

n.力量，影响；杠杆作用，杠杆的力量

参考例句：

• We'll have to use leverage to move this huge rock.我们不得不借助杠杆之力来移动这块巨石。
• He failed in the project because he could gain no leverage. 因为他没有影响力，他的计划失败了。

13 outrageous   

adj.无理的，令人不能容忍的

参考例句：

• Her outrageous behaviour at the party offended everyone.她在聚会上的无礼行为触怒了每一个人。
• Charges for local telephone calls are particularly outrageous.本地电话资费贵得出奇。

14 reiterating   

反复地说，重申( reiterate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He keeps reiterating his innocence. 他一再申明他无罪。
• The Chinese government also sent a note to the British government, reiterating its position. 中国政府同时将此立场照会英国政府。

15 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

16 undoubtedly   

adv.确实地，无疑地

参考例句：

• It is undoubtedly she who has said that.这话明明是她说的。
• He is undoubtedly the pride of China.毫无疑问他是中国的骄傲。

17 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

18 excerpts   

n.摘录，摘要( excerpt的名词复数 )；节选（音乐，电影）片段

参考例句：

• Some excerpts from a Renaissance mass are spatchcocked into Gluck's pallid Don Juan music. 一些文艺复光时期的弥撒的选节被不适当地加入到了格鲁克平淡无味的唐璜音乐中。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He is editing together excerpts of some of his films. 他正在将自己制作的一些电影的片断进行剪辑合成。 来自辞典例句

19 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

20 solitary   

adj.孤独的，独立的，荒凉的；n.隐士

参考例句：

• I am rather fond of a solitary stroll in the country.我颇喜欢在乡间独自徜徉。
• The castle rises in solitary splendour on the fringe of the desert.这座城堡巍然耸立在沙漠的边际，显得十分壮美。

21 confinement   

n.幽禁，拘留，监禁；分娩；限制，局限

参考例句：

• He spent eleven years in solitary confinement.他度过了11年的单独监禁。
• The date for my wife's confinement was approaching closer and closer.妻子分娩的日子越来越近了。

22 ward   

n.守卫，监护，病房，行政区，由监护人或法院保护的人（尤指儿童）；vt.守护，躲开

参考例句：

• The hospital has a medical ward and a surgical ward.这家医院有内科病房和外科病房。
• During the evening picnic,I'll carry a torch to ward off the bugs.傍晚野餐时，我要点根火把，抵挡蚊虫。

23 extraordinarily   

adv.格外地；极端地

参考例句：

• She is an extraordinarily beautiful girl.她是个美丽非凡的姑娘。
• The sea was extraordinarily calm that morning.那天清晨，大海出奇地宁静。

24 naught   

n.无，零 [=nought]

参考例句：

• He sets at naught every convention of society.他轻视所有的社会习俗。
• I hope that all your efforts won't go for naught.我希望你的努力不会毫无结果。

25 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

26 strictly   

adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地

参考例句：

• His doctor is dieting him strictly.他的医生严格规定他的饮食。
• The guests were seated strictly in order of precedence.客人严格按照地位高低就座。