An open letter to the world human rights community and Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, from PetitionOnline:
Delaram Ali is a woman’s activist who has been given a custodial sentence for 28 months with 10 lashes for taking part in a protest meeting in June 2006 in Iran. In an interview with the official newspapers she expressed her anger at the fact that the security guards were not penalized for beating and maltreating her. Delaram’s imprisonment has led to a mass protest action in Iran. Despite all the protests and the efforts of her solicitor, Mrs Shirin Ebadi, the Islamic regime condemned her to jail sentence.
The Islamic regime has escalated its wave of arrests, kidnapings, and terror of women and workers’ activists in recent months. This is the only way the regime tries to silence dissent in the country.
Hanna Abdi, a 21 year old female student at the University of Payam Noor Bijar is another victim of this wave of suppression. Hanna is one of the activists of the “One Million Signature” movement, a campaign to raise public opinion against anti women legislations in Iran. Hannah was taken from her family home in September 2007 in Sanandaj. Her computer and documents about the campaign were later confiscated.
Ronak Safar Zade and Hanna Abdi is Hanna’s friend who has disappeared for more than a month with no trace. Ronak’s mother is desperately looking for her to no avail. The only response has been intimidation from the authorities.
There are many more women activists who are in jail for speaking out their minds and criticizing the anti women values and laws of Islamic Republic of Iran. Organization for Women’s Liberation strongly condemns the suppression and arrest of women and workers’ activists. The Islamic Republic of Iran must be put under international pressure for violating the most basic human rights. Organization for Women’s Liberation has launched this campaign to free all political prisoners. We urge all women’s, workers’ and human rights organizations to join us in our campaign to publicly condemn the Islamic Republic of Iran and free the activists.
We the undersigned condemn Islamic Republic of Iran for violating human rights in Iran. We condemn the arrest, imprisonment and maltreatment of all women’s and workers’ activists. We demand the immediate release of all activists and all political prisoners in Iran.
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