Open letter from 87 psychotherapists and psychologists in the UK to:
The UK government
UKCP, BACP, BPC, BABCP, BPS, Anna Freud Centre and EMDR Association, Institute of Psychoanalysis
During the recent waves of demonstrations across Iran which started following the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22 years old woman over the Hijab rules, the Islamic Republic in Iran has started arresting thousands of women and men across Iran. The regime has also started to attack schools; arrest young students in their schools, streets, and even their homes; and send young students to prison. Some have been tortured and killed. According to Amnesty International at least 23 children have been killed by security forces in the recent protests.
The Islamic Republic’s Education Minister in Iran, Yousef Nouri, has announced that these young students are sent to a forced “reforming” program before being released from prison and allowed to return to their homes and schools. What is labelled as a “reforming” program is nothing but psychological torture on a large scale perpetrated on these young students. This psychological torture is highly traumatic and likely to have significant short-term and long-term psychological impacts.
Background information:
The demonstrations in Iran continue. The demonstrators, taking their lead from women, have continued to fundamentally challenge the Islamic Republic with its misogynistic, theocratic, oppressive and dictatorial iron fist, which has governed through imprisonment, torture and executions for 43 years. The Islamic Republic’s guards have a proven track record of utmost brutality and violent attacks on demonstrators, including children. Arresting and sending young students to a “reforming” program, as a condition of release, is a part of a wider violent and brutal crackdown of demonstrators across Iran.
We the undersigned:
- Urge the UK government to take immediate action and use its power to pressure the government in Iran. The UK government should demand that this “reforming” program, by the regime in Iran, be stopped and all detained students be released immediately and unconditionally.
- Urge UKCP, BACP, BPC, BABCP, BPS and other counselling and psychotherapy organisations to endorse the above demand.
- Susie Orbach: psychotherapist, psychoanalyst, writer, and social critic
- Tirril Harris: psychotherapist-UKCP
- Paul M Terry: psychotherapist, author
- Andrew Samuels: psychotherapist, writer, former chair of UK Council for Psychotherapy
- David Morgan: consultant psychotherapist, psychoanalyst
- Gaynor Maxwell-Scott: psychotherapist, group analyst-BAPPS, BPC, UKCP
- Mick Cooper: professor of Counselling psychology, author, trainer-UKCP
- Ruth Calland: Jungian Analyst, Ex-Chair of the British Jungian Analytic Association
- Zara Heber Percy: Jungian Analytical Psychotherapist-UKCP
- Ruth Williams: UKCP BCP Jungian Psychoanalyst, psychotherapist, supervisor and author
- Suzi Sparham: group analyst psychotherapist-BAPPS, UKCP
- Jane Rosoman: psychotherapist-UKCP
- Holly Cassidy: psychotherapist-BACP, UKCP
- Gemma Maconie: counsellor-BACP
- John W Adams: counsellor-BACP
- Holly Cassidy: psychotherapist-BACP
- Lynne Holmes: counsellor and psychotherapist-UKCP
- Dr. Gottfried M. Heuer: Jungian psychoanalyst, Neo-Reichian body-psychotherapist
- George Taxidis: Jungian analyst and lecturer
- Barry Orr: clinical psychologist
- Brett Grellier: clinical psychologist
- Chia Barsen: psychotherapist-UKCP
- Dr Karen Adler: psychotherapist-UKCP
- Charlotte Sills: psychotherapist-UKCP
- Janice Acquah: psychotherapist-UKCP, BACP
- Sian Fletcher: counsellor, psychotherapist-BACP
- Susan Davies: CBT psychotherapist-BABCP, EMDR association
- Ian Mc Cabe: chartered psychologist, Jungian analyst
- Mike Toller: psychotherapist-BACP
- Dr Hannah Rogers: clinical psychologist, CBT therapist, EMDR therapist -BABCP
- Fiona Aitman: psychotherapist-BACP
- Ceri Lush: psychotherapist
- Jan Harvie-Clark: psychoanalyst-BPA, BPC
- Rosalind Simpson: psychosexual psychotherapist and supervisor-UKCP, BACP, COSRT
- Dobrochna Zajas: CBT and EMDR therapist-BABCP
- Janina Joffe: psychotherapist-BACP, BPC
- Sandra Hilton: counsellor- BACP
- Jennifer Heymann: psychotherapist and counsellor-BACP
- Denise Ramos: clinical psychologist, analyst
- Dr Tess Browne: clinical psychologist, EMDR practitioner
- Carole Sweeney-Mingo: counsellor-BACP
- Saba S: psychotherapist
- Rosemin Shariff: counsellor-BACP
- Anthony Naylor: counsellor-BACP, COSRT
- Floriana Bua: psychotherapist and counselling psychologist-BACP, BPC
- Sara Correia: clinical psychologist
- Danuta Orlowska: Clinical Psychologist
- Dr Jessica Muir: highly specialist clinical psychologist for staff support-Women’s Services
- Carolyn Emanuel: counsellor-BACP
- Claudia Camhi: CBT and family and systemic psychotherapist-UKCP
- Marek Sarnecki: psychotherapist-BACP
- Indira Caroline Graham: psychotherapist-BACP
- Nixon Stewart: psychotherapist
- Nicholas Oliver: psychotherapist
- Yulia Herzog: psychotherapist-BACP
- Jane Clark: psychotherapist-BACP
- Dulcie Muir: counsellor
- Suzi Harvey: psychotherapist-BPC
- Charlotte MacKean: psychotherapist-BPC, BACP
- Antonella Bonetti: counsellor-BPC, BACP
- Christine Des Clayes: psychodynamic counsellor-UKCP, BACP
- Tuula Rasen: psychoanalytic psychotherapist-BPC, BACP
- Tom Warnecke: psychotherapist-UKCP
- Victoria Todd: psychotherapist-BACP
- Ann Heyno: psychotherapist and Lecturer
- Geeta Gajwani: psychotherapist- BACP, BPC, APP, APPCIOS
- Susie McLinden: psychotherapist-BACP, BPC
- Jacqueline Glynn: psychotherapist-BACP, BPC
- Mark Anderson: psychodynamic psychotherapist-BACP
- Rita Odumosu: psychodynamic counsellor-BACP
- Victoria Gath: psychodynamic psychotherapist-BACP
- Shole Salehi a.k.a. Shiva Mahbobi: psychotherapist, EMDR practitioner-BACP, UKCP
- Dr Claudio Pestana: Consultant Psychologist-BPS, BABCP
- Dr Andrew Beck: consultant clinical psychologist, former president of BABCP
- Saeed Khalilirad: CBT therapist, psychotherapist- BACP, BABCP, UKCP
- 12 other psychotherapists have signed the letter which is sent to the UK government and the psychological organisations, but they do not wish their names to be published in the media.
[END]
