Narges Mohammadi is a human rights activist, former political prisoner, and spokesperson for the Association of Human Rights Defenders. She has repeatedly experienced detention by security institutions and long-term solitary confinement. Recently, along with several other civil activists and former political prisoners, she filed a complaint at the judiciary office regarding the detention of suspects in solitary cells. In an interview with the monthly magazine “Peace Line,” Ms. Mohammadi discussed the effects of solitary confinement on the mental health of detainees and her personal experiences in prison. The text of this interview is presented below.

What is your description of solitary confinement? What psychological and emotional effects does solitary confinement have on a prisoner?

According to the definitions of torture found in international human rights texts, any physical or mental harm or pressure inflicted on an individual beyond their capacity is considered torture. Since individual cells are designed to inflict mental and psychological pressure on the imprisoned individual and make the space unbearable for them, the imprisoned individual is forced to confess against themselves and others in the form of lies; or they accept accusations that may even lead to a death sentence or heavy prison sentences; or they are forced to give interviews under unbearable mental and psychological pressure, where they comply with what the interrogators want from them. All of this shows that unfortunately, white torture is being practiced in the prisons of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the form of solitary confinement, and we have witnessed its disastrous consequences over the past forty-three years.

To understand the psychological and emotional pressure that is imposed on an individual in solitary confinement, I try to start with the physics of individual cells. An individual cell refers to a very limited space that varies in different detention centers. For example, in 2001 when I was imprisoned in Evin Prison, the individual cells were so small that only one person could fit inside. It was the size of a person’s height when lying down and the width of an open hand. Of course, there were also cells that could not be opened from both sides. Some prisoners were kept in those cells.

Therefore, the four walls are usually painted with a cream or light color. After a while, the eyes get irritated by these colors because they are constant and there is no variety. The walls are very close to a prison cell. There is a high ceiling that usually does not have a window. For example, in the Eshrat Abad prison, there was a very small space of thirty to forty centimeters near the ceiling, where no light could enter. The only way to tell if it was day or night was through that small space. In individual cells like cell 209, it is true that the windows were very high near the ceiling, but behind them were iron sheets with small holes that made it impossible to see or tell what was outside. But through those small holes, one could only tell if it was day or night. Some individual cells in small towns are even more limited and deprived. For example, I remember when Zinab Jalalian told me about individual cells in

Individual cell physics is designed in such a way that, with absolute space and silence, the senses of vision and hearing and all the senses that make up the human being are disturbed and regulated through them, and life is lived. For example, absolute silence, which may last for months for some people, is very disturbing. This silence can be somewhat delusional. Deprivation of air, deprivation of sunlight, deprivation of walking in an environment outside the cell, sometimes puts so much pressure on a person that they really cannot tolerate those conditions. Add to this the fact that neither books nor newspapers are given to you, and there is no music, radio, or television. There is no paper or pen either. In the true sense, nothing exists. In the same way that the body is under pressure, by limiting vision, hearing, and other five senses of the human being, the brain is also under control and pressure. This means that no data enters your mind. No news or information,

Therefore, I want to say that considering the limitations, both physical and mental, that a prisoner faces in solitary confinement, the imprisoned person in solitary confinement gives in to the interrogator’s demands in order to be released from this situation. If it is accompanied by mental and psychological pressures or threats from the interrogators, meaning that if you are constantly threatened in the cell that if you do not comply with what they want, for example, your family members will be arrested and this place will be transferred. Your spouse, sister, brother, child, or parents. Or imagine that interrogators gain access to your personal information through their mobile phones, laptops, or other personal belongings they come across, and by threatening to disclose this private information if you do not comply with the interrogators’ demands, they put the prisoner under mental and psychological pressure.

For someone who is imprisoned in solitary confinement, they cannot talk to anyone and in that space, they experience loneliness, isolation, emptiness, and helplessness. These pressures can overwhelm them. Therefore, from a psychological perspective, in terms of eliminating input of information and data, both physically and mentally, the individual can lose their mental and emotional balance and may even develop mental and emotional disorders. They may experience serious sleep disorders or anxiety disorders, and some of the prisoners in solitary confinement that I have spoken to have said that they had delusions while in solitary confinement, such as hearing voices or seeing things. All of these create a set of conditions for the individual in solitary confinement that they are forced to take action, whether they want to or not, in order to escape from this situation. These actions are often done under pressure and torture, and unfortunately, they are used as evidence in the courts of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and judges make rulings based on them. In fact, human rights

The detained individual during the detention period is faced with long-term interrogation and uncertainty; they don’t even know how long they will be kept in this cell. The interrogator also wants to break them in the same way you mentioned and have an impact on their spirit and mind in the direction of breaking them. In many cases, prisoners have said that days and weeks have passed without any contact with them in solitary confinement and the interrogator did not approach them. Some have said that in some situations, even though they did not act on the thought, they have considered suicide. But there have also been cases where they have gone as far as attempting suicide. The question here is how does the thought of suicide gain strength in solitary confinement and the prisoner is willing to end their life to escape from these conditions?

In individual cells, most people who stay for a long time think about death or suicide, which in my opinion is a very important component to prove the torture of individual cells in terms of the psychological and mental pressure it puts on the person imprisoned in the individual cell. I divide the individual cell into two parts. One part is the physical conditions and elimination of sound, sunlight, and any possibility for human daily life. The other part is deliberate and planned. From the type of treatment by the prison guard to the interrogations that the person imprisoned in the individual cell faces, it confronts the person with a great crisis. Sometimes a person doubts their own humanity. Sometimes a person’s political and ideological positions and all their beliefs are shaken and doubted. In other words, the person slowly loses things that make up their personality and identity, such as who I am, what I have done, and what I am doing here; they become confused, disoriented, and uncertain about all of this. Sometimes

You have experienced both individual cell and then transfer to the general ward. When a prisoner is brought from solitary to general, how is it to face someone who may not have had any contact or conversation with anyone for days or months? Based on your personal experience, how was this encounter and what image do you have of those days in your mind?

There are individuals who can tolerate solitary confinement and resist it, and enter the general population with a sense of resilience. But in most cases, when someone comes out of solitary confinement, they experience confusion and disbelief. Some of them become severely depressed. I always told my friends to pay attention to the eyes of someone who comes out of solitary confinement. Their eyes show fear and anxiety; restlessness and agitation caused by the psychological and emotional pressure of solitary confinement are clearly visible in their eyes. In my opinion, the first thing you could see and guess about these individuals is their gaze; it was a state of fear and anxiety that was reflected in their eyes. For example, when one of my friends came out of solitary confinement, he had severe sleep disturbances. Another friend, when he came out, was extremely anxious and restless. He couldn’t sit still. He couldn’t last more than a few minutes sitting in a chair or anywhere else. He would constantly go down to the lower level, the

Most individuals who have experienced solitary confinement feel that even after being released, the negative psychological effects still exist. There are even people who, after one or two years, still have sleep disorders or, when leaving their home environment and traveling, cannot sleep properly in a new environment. What is your personal experience? Were you able to find the right path for treatment after going through solitary confinement and being released? Does the government provide treatment facilities for citizens who have been in solitary confinement to heal themselves? Is there space for treating these disorders in Iran? Are these cases even treatable or improvable?

I specifically want to talk about individuals who have been in solitary confinement for long periods of time. Those who have been in solitary confinement for several months or years. Even if the person resists and does not confess or accept false and unjust accusations, the reality is that the white torture and confinement in solitary cells have long-term damaging effects on the body, mind, and spirit of the prisoner. These individuals, due to receiving heavy sentences, are transferred to general wards where they do not receive proper treatment and are not sent to see a doctor. As a result, they are not able to recover and are transferred back to prison. In any case, the prison environment is full of pressure and stress, so there is no possibility of treatment in general wards. However, if some of them are released on bail, they are still under the jurisdiction of the courts and the interrogations continue. They are constantly summoned by security institutions. This means that they do not escape the pressure of solitary confinement completely. Each

Can one protest to individual cells by filing a complaint? I know that you and a group of civil activists and former political prisoners recently filed a complaint at the judicial office regarding the detention of suspects in individual cells. Is it possible to file a complaint when the detained person is transferred from an individual cell to a public ward, or when they are released from prison, in order to expedite the treatment process? Regardless of the fact that those responsible for this should be brought to trial.

The coincidence that happens is that when individual cell damage victims come to public institutions and face discomfort, they are faced with serious damage to their mind, soul, and body, and they think about treatment and at least follow-up. In reality and practice, the prison system, considering that if it is possible to record these interventions, follow-ups, and treatments for the individual, this process will also document and prove against security institutions, individual cells, and torture, preventing this action. In other words, a group of independent doctors do not have this possibility. The doctors of the prison are also under the control and supervision of security devices. Some of these doctors enter cells 209, 2a, 240, and 241. I have witnessed that when doctors enter security cells, security officers usually accompany them in many of these situations. For example, I remember once when I needed a doctor, the interrogator was standing next to the doctor above me. He said that the doctor who was above

Did this issue happen in section 209?

Yes, I was in cell 209. I remember the doctor who had a white medical coat on treated me with such violence that my interrogator had to leave the room. They made me lie down on the ground and on the mosaic instead of sleeping on the bed. They even grabbed my hands from both sides and hit me, threatening that if I didn’t let them inject me with this ampoule, they would tie my hands to the bed frame with chains and tie my feet as well, and I wouldn’t be able to move and they would do it. So I want to say that what happens in solitary cells is part of the same white torture, whether it’s the physical condition of the cell, the interrogation methods, or the medical treatment, it all completes it. So when a person is brought to a public cell, the prison’s healthcare and doctors and the system that handles the medical files of prisoners there can be like a judicial case that has no legal effect. Meaning,

Are the psychological effects of individual cells different for men and women in the Islamic Republic, given the conditions prevailing in security prisons? Can we see differences in the behavior of individuals towards women, for example in discussions about clothing or menstruation and its impact on the interrogation process? Sexual abuse during interrogation of a detained individual or the threat of revealing their private information by the interrogator.

Individual cell is torture for every living being. Every living being needs air. It needs sound. It needs sunlight. When you take these things away from a living being, you disrupt their daily life and existence. When they restrict human social relationships. When they take away speaking, listening, and gathering from the human and take them into isolation and emptiness, the reality is that they separate the human from their humanity. Therefore, individual cell is torture for every human. There is no doubt. Psychology also considers white torture as one of the most terrifying forms of torture. This torture targets the soul and mind of the human and causes disturbance. But the fact that there can be added pressure for women in individual cells, in my opinion, both the interrogation system and the system of keeping women in individual cells provide the possibility for this added pressure for the interrogator. The experience of suppression, humiliation, and harassment has always been the experience of women in our society, especially in a religious government and a patriarch

Thank you for the time you have given to the peace line.