For the first time, a women’s rights advocate, Alieh Eghdamdoust, has been jailed for three years solely for participating in a peaceful demonstration on behalf of equal rights for women in 2006, in which 70 others were also arrested.

“Publicly expressing support for women’s rights has effectively been criminalized in Iran, as the authorities felt no need to cite trumped-up security or other charges in the case,” said Hadi Ghaemi, spokesperson for the Campaign. “If Alieh Eghdamdoust can be jailed for simply exercising her internationally guaranteed human rights, hundreds of others may meet the same fate.”

Iranian authorities arbitrarily shut down the Defenders of Human Rights Center, the main supplier of bro-bono legal defense and other support for the women’s rights movement. Attacks on Nobel Peace Laureate and human rights lawyer Shirin Ebadi, the Center’s founder, and confiscation of her files, indicate a more aggressive crackdown on the women’s rights movement.

Over the past year, numerous members of the Million Signatures Campaign and other groups working peacefully and legally to change Iran’s discriminatory laws have been arrested, searched, interrogated, prevented from meeting, and subjected to travel bans preventing them from traveling abroad.

The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran’s full report is available at:

http://www.iranhumanrights.org/2009/04/whrdreport/

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Introduction

I. Women’s Rights Defender’s Jail Sentence Begins–A New Chapter in the Persecution of Women’s Rights Activists

II. Women’s Human Rights Defender and 2003 Nobel Peace Laureate Shirin Ebadi Targeted

III. Pressure on the Activists of the One Million Signatures Campaign Continues Unabated

IV. Freedom of Assembly Curtailed

V. Stringent Control of Women Human Rights Defenders by the Courts and Intelligence Ministry

References

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Introduction

As the Islamic Republic of Iran celebrates its thirtieth anniversary, human rights abuses are on the rise. Women’s rights activists advocating for legal reforms and the protection of women’s rights have been increasingly targeted. Since our last report,¹ the most prominent human rights defender, Shirin Ebadi, has come under fire; a prison sentence of a woman’s rights activist has been implemented for the first time in the history of the Islamic Republic of Iran; and other women’s rights activists have been targeted, harassed, arrested, summoned, tried and barred from travel. The following report covers the pressures on women human rights defenders since June 2008.

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I. Women’s Rights Defender’s Jail Sentence Begins–A New Chapter in the Persecution of Women’s Rights Activists

Alieh Eghdamdoust,² 57, is the first women’s rights activist in Iran to have her prison sentence implemented. Her sentencing was based solely on her activities promoting women’s rights. On 12 June 2006, Eghdamdoust was arrested along with 70 others during a peaceful protest in Hafte Tir Square in Tehran in support of women’s rights. She spent approximately a week in prison. Subsequently, she was charged with security violations, including acting against national security through participation in an illegal protest and disruption of public order.³ In her first trial, Eghdamdoust was sentenced by the 15th security branch of the Revolutionary Courts to a three-years and four months mandatory prison sentence and 20 lashes. The appeals courts upheld three years of the mandatory prison sentence, reducing her original sentence by four months and 20 lashes.

On 1 February 2009, Eghdamdoust was transferred under guard supervision to the Office of Implementation of Sentences at the Revolutionary Courts, where she began serving her three-year sentence.⁴ According to her lawyer, Nasim Ghanavi, Alieh’s participation in the peaceful protest in Hafte Tir Square was legal, based on the constitution, which allows for public protests. Additionally, Ghanavi points to the fact that Alieh was a political prisoner in the 1980s and that the court considered this background when issuing a sentence against her. According to Ghanavi the only option left for Eghdamdoust is to request a Judicial Review, allowable under the 18th Amendment of the Law Regulating Public and Revolutionary Courts.⁵ Likewise, other women’s rights activists have been acquitted on similar charges,⁷

The sentences of some of the others in this case have been appealed and rulings have been issued by the appeals court, while others are still awaiting the outcome of their appeals ruling. Bahareh Hedayat,⁸ a student and women’s rights activist, was initially sentenced to a two year suspended prison sentence (a probationary sentence that can be changed to a prison term at any time) for the period of five years,⁹ which was upheld by the appeals court. Masoumeh Zia was initially sentenced by the 28th branch of the Revolutionary Courts to a one-year mandatory prison sentence and a three million Rials (approximately $300) fine by the 1060 Branch of the Tehran Public Court in lieu of lashings and imprisonment.¹⁰ The appeals court reduced the initial prison sentence to a one year suspended prison sentence for the period of three years and reduced the fine to two Million Rials (approximately $200). During the course of the three years Zia is expected to introduce herself to the local police station every four months.¹¹ Bahman Ahmadi Amouie, a journalist present at the scene of the protest, was initially sentenced to a six months suspended sentence in court, which was upheld by the appeals court.¹² Azadeh Forghani, as reported in our previous report on women’s rights activists,¹³ had been issued a suspended sentence of two years that was reduced to a two Million Rial fine (approximately $200) in appeals. The status of the appeals rulings or appeals hearings of the others charged in this case is still unclear.

The discrepancies and differences in the manner in which the cases of Ali and Eghdamdoust have been treated by the courts is of great concern, and at a minimum signifies that the courts do not follow a similar process in reviewing and assessing similar cases before them. Additionally, the lawyers representing Eghdamdoust have pointed out that they had never been officially served with papers regarding the final ruling in Eghdamdoust’s case, preventing them from filing a petition with the courts requesting a Judicial Review.¹⁴

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II. Women’s Human Rights Defender and 2003 Nobel Peace Laureate Shirin Ebadi Targeted

Over the past year, Shirin Ebadi has been targeted by the conservative press and slandered. In December, this harassment took on a different and more violent form, targeting both Shirin Ebadi and the NGO she runs, the Defenders of Human Rights Center (DHRC), and resulted in the Center’s closure. Both Ebadi and the lawyers working for the DHRC represent, on a pro-bono basis, individuals accused of political crimes. Many of the women’s rights activists charged with security crimes have been represented by Ebadi and the team of lawyers working with the DHRC. The pressures placed on Ebadi and the DHRC are a sign of the worsening human rights situation in Iran. If Ebadi, given her international notoriety and position, is not immune from this type of pressure, then other women human rights defenders (WHRDs) are at increasing risk for harassment and crackdowns. The pressures on Ebadi may also be a signal to other human rights defenders as presidential elections near, pressing them into silencing their voices of dissent and criticism.

• Closure of the Defenders of Human Rights Center: On Sunday, 21 December 2008, plain clothes and uniformed police and security officials raided the offices of the Defenders of Human Rights Center, a human rights organization headed by Nobel Peace Prize winner Shirin Ebadi, preventing a celebration of the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the Center and sealing their offices. According to reports from those present at the scene, the raid on the office included both physical and verbal violence.¹⁵ The Center is the main human rights organization in Iran, providing pro-bono services to those accused of political crimes, providing support to families of imprisoned political activists and providing regular reports on the situation of human rights in Iran.¹⁶ The closure of the DHRC signals a shift in the approach of security forces and attests to the lack of tolerance on their part, not only for dissent by political and social activists, but also for any defense, even legal defense in court, provided to these individuals.
• Raid on the private office of Shirin Ebadi: On 29 December 2008, the private law offices of Shirin Ebadi were raided by officials who identified themselves as tax officials. The computers in the office were seized. Especially worrisome was the confiscation by the officials of private client files containing information on clients accused of political crimes.¹⁷
• Mob attack on the home of Shirin Ebadi: On 1 January 2009, a mob of approximately 150 people demonstrated in front of Shirin Ebadi’s home chanting slogans such as: “Israel commits crimes and Ebadi provides support.” The outside façade of Ebadi’s home was vandalized and slogans were written on the building walls. The plaque for Ebadi’s law office was torn from the outside wall and stomped.¹⁸ Despite the fact that police were present at the scene, they took no steps to stop the mob from committing these acts or to disperse the protesters.¹⁹
• Arrest of Jinous Sobhani, Secretary of the DHRC: On 14 January 2009, Jinous Sobhani, who served as a secretary for the DHRC and the Center for Mine Victims, an NGO also headed by Shirin Ebadi and housed in the offices of the DHRC, was arrested. Prior to her arrest, security agents showed up at her home at 6:00 am and searched the premises, seizing her personal belongings.²⁰ No reason was provided for the arrest of Sobhani, who is member of the Baha’i Faith. Baha’is have come under increasing attack in recent months, with a number of them being arrested. Ebadi has taken up the legal representation of a number of Baha’is, for which she has been targeted for harassment by the conservative press. On 11 March 2009, Jinous Sobhani was released on approximately $70,000 (7 billion Rial) bail pending the setting of her court date.

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III. Pressure on the Activists of the One Million Signatures Campaign Continues Unabated

The One Million Signatures Campaign is a grassroots initiative working to raise public awareness about the impact of discriminatory laws on society and collecting signatures in support of a petition addressed to the Iranian Parliament asking for the reform of these laws. Since its inception in August 2006, and despite its peaceful and civil nature, the members of the Campaign have come under fire and have been summoned to court, summoned for interrogation, detained, sentenced to prison, had their meetings broken up by police, their homes searched and property seized and some have been banned from travel. This report highlights the pressures on Campaign activists since May 2008, the date of our last report on women human rights defenders.²¹

1. Arrest of Campaign Members

• Nafiseh Azad, Bigard Ebrahimi and Shahin Ebrahimi: On 30 January 2009, three members of the Campaign were arrested in the Tochal Mountains north of Tehran, while collecting signatures in support of the Campaign petition asking for the reform of laws that discriminate against women. Bigard Ebrahimi and Shahin Ebrahimi were released on a third party guarantee of 200 Million Rials (roughly $20,000)²² within a day. However, a temporary arrest order was issued for Nafiseh Azad, who was detained in Vozara Detention Center for six days and released on 4 February 2009. During the time of her detention, security police came to the home of Nafiseh Azad, which she shares with two roommates, Elnaz Ansari and Aida Saadat, also members of the Campaign, in order to search the premises and seize property. The search of the home turned violent, and police beat both Elnaz Ansari and Nafiseh Azad’s husband, who had accompanied police to the home of his wife in Tehran where she lives and attends university. Azad’s husband, Vahid Maleki, was handcuffed during the search of his wife’s home and during the scuffle. Azad was released on 500 million Rial Bail (roughly $50,000) in the form of a third party guarantee. During these six days she was detained at Vozara Detention Center, which is intended as a temporary detention center and has poor sanitary conditions.²³ Azad was charged with actions against national security through the spreading of propaganda against the state.²⁴
• Esha Momeni: Esha Momeni, a graduate student at California State University Northridge and a member of the One Million Signatures Campaign in California, was arrested on 15 October 2008 while on a visit to Iran. During this time, Esha had conducted video interviews with several members of the Campaign as part of her graduate school thesis. After her arrest, Esha was transferred to Evin Prison Section 209, which is managed by the Intelligence Ministry. She was released on 10 November 2009.²⁵ According to Hassan Hadad, the Prosecutor General of the Revolutionary Courts, Esha Momeni faces charges of “spreading propaganda against the state.”²⁶ Esha was released on 2,000 million Rial bail, in the form of a property deed, put up by her family. Despite claims by the Judiciary spokesman, Mr. Jamshidi, Esha has been banned from travel and cannot return to the United States to continue her studies.²⁷ The arrest of Esha constitutes not only the continuation of pressure on women’s rights activists, especially members of the One Million Signatures Campaign, but is also part of a systematic campaign of intimidation and a crackdown against dual nationals. Iranian-Americans in particular are seen as facilitators of connections and contacts between activists on the ground and the West. The pressures on dual nationals intensified with the arrest of several prominent Iranian Americans, including Haleh Esfandiari and Kian Tajbakhsh, in April 2007.

2. Pressure on Ethnic Minority Women’s Rights Activists

• Hana Abdi, who was arrested on 6 November 2007, was released from prison on 26 February 2009. Abdi was arrested in the city of Sanandaj in Kurdistan Province, and initially sentenced to serve five years in prison in exile in a border town in West Azerbaijan Province. On appeal, the sentence of Abdi was reduced to 18 months. Abdi was released after serving the duration of her sentence.²⁸ Sentences to be served in exile have been implemented in the case of minority rights activists and women minority rights activists including Hana Abdi and Zeinab Bayazidi. These sentences are intended to inflict greater hardship on these activists and their families, while weakening the support they may receive from their local communities. During the time of her imprisonment, Hana Abdi spent several months in solitary confinement and was transferred to several different prisons, as some did not have facilities for political prisoners. In the end, Abdi was transferred to a prison in Meshkin Shahr.²⁹ While Abdi has served her sentence in this case, she has another case pending against her in relation to a hunger strike while in prison. Fatemeh Goftari, another female Kurdish rights activist was sentenced to a year in prison in relation to a similar charge.³⁰
• Zeinab Bayazidi, a women’s rights activist, member of the Kurdistan Human Rights Organization and of the One Million Signatures Campaign, was arrested on 9 July 2008 in the City of Mahabad, Kurdistan Province, after being summoned to the local office of the Intelligence Ministry. In a closed-door trial, without access to a defense lawyer, Bayazidi was charged with “acting against national security,” “supporting a Kurdish political organization,” “spreading of propaganda against the state,” “conducting interviews with foreign media,” and “membership in an illegal organization.” Bayazidi was sentenced to serve four years in prison in exile in the city of Zanjan. Her appeals process, which took only two days to complete, was unusually speedy and suffered from legal irregularities. Bayazidi is currently serving her prison term in Zanjan, although her lawyer has requested a Judicial Review in her case in accordance with the 18th Amendment of the Law Regulating Public and Revolutionary Courts.³¹ Bayazidi was served with court documents indicating that her suspended prison sentence of six months for the period of four of years in an unrelated case had been changed to a mandatory sentence,³² increasing her total time in prison to four years and six months.³³
• Ronak Safazadeh, a women’s rights activist, member of Azar Mehr NGO and a member of the One Million Signatures Campaign, was arrested on 10 October 2007, and remains in prison in the city of Sanandaj in Kurdistan Province. No sentence has been issued in the main case pending against Safazadeh.³⁴ An initial court hearing was held in the case against her in March 2008, but no sentence was issued. A second hearing is reportedly scheduled for Saturday 28 February 2009.³⁵ Safazadeh was, however, tried in a secondary case for illegally crossing the border and for having in her possession illegal satellite equipment. She was sentenced to 9 months imprisonment in this case.³⁶

3. Search of Homes
Security officials have repeatedly gone to the homes of members of the Campaign to break up their meetings. These women’s rights activists have been repeatedly told by security officials to refrain from holding meetings in their homes. Because Campaign activists have been systematically denied public space in the form of conference halls and office space to convene their meetings, they are forced to hold meetings in their homes. Additionally, several members of the Campaign have had their homes searched and property seized in the past few months.

• Sussan Tahmasebi: On 26 October 2008, five security officials entered the home of Campaign member Sussan Tahmasebi and proceeded to search her property and confiscate personal belongings, including handwritten notes, papers and her laptop computer. The agents entered Tahmasebi’s home after presenting a court order. Tahmasebi was also served with papers to appear in court for interrogation. She was interrogated on several occasions, the first of which lasted over five hours. The search of Tahmasebi’s home occurred after she was stopped at the airport and prevented from traveling.³⁷
• Parastoo Alahyaari: The home of Parastoo Alahyaari, a member of the Campaign, was searched on Saturday 18 October 2008, and her laptop, CDs, books, picture albums and Campaign materials in her possession were seized. Two security officers from the Gisha Police station went to the home of Alahyaari, a member of the Volunteer Committee of the Campaign in Tehran, to search her home and seize property while asking about her whereabouts, as she was at her office at the time. Upon receiving a phone call from her mother, Alahyaari returned home, where she was presented with a summons to appear in court immediately. The security officials escorted Alahyaari to the Revolutionary Courts, where she was interrogated by Mr. Sobhani, the investigative judge in charge of her case. Because Parastoo had a business trip planned for that same day, she was released. On Friday 17 October 2008, Alahyaari, along with other members of the Volunteers Committee, was in Laleh Park, when the group was approached by police and security officials who asked them to disperse. Prior to allowing these women’s rights activists to leave the Park, the police asked Alahyaari and another member of the Volunteers Committee to submit identification cards.

4. Travel Bans
Several women’s rights activists, especially those involved in the One Million Signatures Campaign have been targeted by officials and prevented from travel abroad. This is apparently part of a larger effort to isolate Iranian human rights defenders from the international community.

• Nasrin Sotoodeh: On 10 December 2008, Nasrin Sotoodeh, lawyer and women’s rights activist, was banned from travel and her passport confiscated as she was leaving the country to participate in an award ceremony in her honor scheduled to take place on 12 December in Merano, Italy.³⁸ Sotoodeh was selected as the recipient of the International Human Rights Prize, awarded by the organization Human Rights International. Sotoodehwas able to pass through the passport control check point, indicating that she did not have a travel ban. After going through passport control at Imam Khomeini International Airport, her name was announced over the airport PA system. Officials identifying themselves as agents of the Office of the President informed Sotoodeh that she had a travel ban and prevented her from travel. Sotoodeh was provided with a receipt and a summons for appearing in court to follow-up her travel ban.
• Sussan Tahmasebi: On 26 October 2008, Sussan Tahmasebi, a member of the One Million Signatures Campaign, was stopped at the airport and prevented from traveling. The manner in which she was detained at the airport was similar to that of Nasrin Sotoodeh, indicating that she also did not have a travel ban prior to being stopped at Imam Khomeini International Airport. After she was stopped at the airport, five agents went to her home to search the premises and seize property. Tahmasebi had been prevented from travel on three other occasions over the past two and half years. Her travel ban was lifted in February 2009.

Other women’s rights activists have also been targeted in a similar manner, including Parvin Ardalan, who was stopped in March 2008 on her way to Sweden where she was to receive a human rights prize, as well as Mansoureh Shojaie and Talat Taghinia. Since then, several human rights activists have filed a complaint against the authorities with respect to these travel bans.³⁹

5. Court Hearings

• Parvin Ardalan, Maryam Hosseinkhah, Nahid Keshavarz, Jelve Javaheri: On 3 September 2008, four members of the One Million Signatures Campaign received mandatory prison sentences of six months. Parvin Ardalan, Maryam Hosseinkhah, Nahid Keshavarz and Jelve Javaheri were charged with security violations in relation to their activities on the sites of Change for Equality, the official site of the Campaign, and Zanestan, the webzine of the Women’s Cultural Center. The six-month mandatory sentence was issued by the 13th branch of the Revolutionary Courts and based on Article 500 of the Islamic Penal Code. In relation to this same case, Maryam Hosseinkhah was arrested in November 2007, and served 45 days in prison and Jelve Javaheri was arrested in December and served 30 days in relation to this case. These women’s rights activists, represented by Shirin Ebadi and Nasrin Sotoodeh, appealed the ruling, and a public appeals hearing was held on 27 January 2009. The appeals court has not issued its ruling as of this date. It should be noted that authorities systematically censor women’s rights activists.

The charges brought against these activists are in line with the strategy to censor and silence the voices of those working to promote women’s rights and to defend women human rights defenders who are persecuted. Along these lines, several women’s websites have been filtered repeatedly, with the sites related to the One Million Signatures Campaign bearing the brunt of this censorship effort. For example, the site of the Campaign, Change for Equality, has been filtered 19 times⁴⁰ and the site of the Feminist School has been filtered 8 times. On 25 November 2008, in a mass censorship effort, 27 websites and weblogs based both inside and outside Iran reporting on women’s issues were filtered by authorities, including the site of Change for Equality, the sites of the Campaign in Hamedan, Azarbaijan, Zahedan, Shiraz, Mashad, Zabol, Amol, Ilam, Kermanshah, Rasht, Arak, and Karaj, California, Kuwait, Germany, Cyprus, Sweden, the Feminist School, the site of the Women’s Solidarity Network, the weblog of the men’s committee of the Campaign, the weblog of the working group on equal inheritance, the photoblog of the Campaign, and weblogs addressing women’s issues, such as Parandeh Kharzar, Zananeha, Havva, and Free Keyboard were blocked through this mass effort at censorship.⁴¹ Also, the sites of Focus on Iranian Women and Women’s Field have been filtered on several occasions in the past.

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IV. Freedom of Assembly Curtailed

• Nine Women’s Rights Activists Arrested on Day of Solidarity of Iranian Women: On 12 June 2008, nine women’s rights activists who had intended to convene a seminar in honor of the anniversary of the national day of solidarity of Iranian women (22nd of Khordaad, June 12), were arrested after security officials and police prevented the seminar from taking place. These women’s rights activists include: Nahid Mirhaj, Aida Saadat, Nafiseh Azad, Nasrin Sotoodeh, Jelve Javaheri, Jila Baniyagoub, Sarah Loghmani, Farideh Ghaeb and Alieh Motalebzadeh. The women were transferred to Vozara Detention Center and were processed and released within a few hours after their arrest.⁴² Since then all of these women’s rights activists have been charged by the Revolutionary Courts with disrupting public order and freed on bails ranging from personal guarantees to third party guarantees in the amount of 500,000 Rials (roughly $50,000). According to a statement issued by the coordinating committee of the seminar, “Officials have systematically denied women’s rights activists permits to hold peaceful public demonstrations and protests. Even small protests by women’s rights activists have been violently attacked by security forces and police. Additionally, women’s rights activists have been systematically denied the right to convene meetings and seminars. Meetings in their private homes too have been broken up. It is unfortunate that security forces fear the convening of simple meetings with limited participants of about 100-150 people to such a degree.”⁴³
• Twelve Women’s Rights Activists detained for Assembling: On 26 March 2009, twelve women’s rights activists were detained on Sohrevardi Avenue in Tehran while meeting to visit families of imprisoned social and political activists. Those arrested were: Delaram Ali, Khadijeh Moghadam, Leila Nazari, Farkhondeh Ehtesabian, Mahboubeh Karami, Bahara Behravan, Ali Abdi, Amir Rashidi, Mohammad Shoorab, Arash Nasiri Eghbali, Soraya Yousefi and Shahla Forouzanfar. The group was taken to Niloofar Police Station whereupon some were transferred to Galoobandak Police Station. All were later transferred to Evin Prison.The activists were charged with “disruption of public opinion” and “disruption of public order.” Bail for each member of the group was 50 million tomans (approximately $50,000). The bail orders required a third party guarantee from a government employee making it more difficult to pay. Ten of detainees were releasedon 29 March 2009. Mahboubeh Karami was released on bail on 7 April 2009 and Khadijeh Moghadam was released on bail on 8 April.All of the detainees are subject to further prosecution based on charges of “disruption of public opinion” and “disruption of public order.”

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V. Stringent Control of Women Human Rights Defenders by the Courts and Intelligence Ministry

The prosecution of women human rights defenders by the courts often results in stringent restrictions. In the cases of many activists, requirements of their sentences make it difficult to freely move around. The Change for Equality website reported on the case of a women human rights defender, Zeinab Peyghambarzadeh, on 3 November 2008:

“the 21st Branch of the appeals court has upheld the sentence issued in the case of Zeinab Peyghambarzadeh who was arrested in front of the Revolutionary Courts on 4 March 2007 during a peaceful protest in support of women’s rights activists on trial, during which 32 other women’s rights activists were also arrested. The appeals sentence has issued a sentence of one year suspended sentence for the period of three years in the case of Zeinab. During these three years, Zeynab is required to report to the office of Intelligence Ministry every 4 months. If Zeinab is found guilty of another crime during these three years, her prison sentence of one year will be implemented.”⁴⁴

What is unusual and of concern in this case is the severe level of control the courts have imposed in requiring Peyghambarzadeh to report to the intelligence ministry every four months for a period of three years while her suspension is in effect. Prior to this ruling, the courts had required similar reporting of Amir Yaghoubali, a member of the One Million Signatures Campaign who was arrested while collecting signatures in support of the Campaign’s petition. The appeals court ruling sentenced Yaghoubali to a one year suspended sentence for the period of four years. He was required to report to the local office of the Intelligence Ministry every 4 months.⁴⁵ Another activist, Masoumeh Zia, was sentenced to a one year suspended prison sentence for the period of 3 years and was required to report to the office of the local police every 4 months.⁴⁶

Peyghambarzadeh’s sentence has been upheld in this manner, despite the fact that of the 32 other women charged in this case, at least 12 have been acquitted.⁴⁷ Five other women’s rights activists received sentences in relation to the protest in front of the Judiciary on 4 March 2007, including Nahid Jafari, Parvin Ardalan, Rezvan Moghaddam, Minou Mortazi and Nasrin Afzali. The courts acquitted Nahid Jafari⁴⁸ in an appeals hearing, while upholding the 6 month suspended sentence and 10 suspended lashings issued in the case of Rezvan Moghaddam,⁴⁹ Minou Mortazi⁵⁰ and Nasrin Afzali.⁵¹ In the case of Parvin Ardalan, the appeals court issued court issued a suspended sentence of 1 year, with the suspension being in effect for the period of three years.⁵²

The strict reporting requirements of women human rights defenders constitute severe control of those accused of human rights activities and work to curtail their freedom of movement. Moroever, they inflict fear designed to render them inactive in the field of women’s rights.

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References

¹ Equal Rights Denied—The Systematic Repression of the Women’s Rights Movement In Iran, International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, http://www.iranhumanrights.org/2009/01/repression-women, 5 May 2008
² Alieh Eghdam Doust to Serve Three Year Prison Term, Change for Equality; http://www.campaignforequality.info/english/spip.php?article455, 1 February 2009
³ Hope for Judicial Review: Interview with the Lawyer of Alieh Eghdamdoust, Roozonline; http://www.roozonline.com/archives/2009/02/post_11643.php, 18 February 2009
⁴ Alieh Eghdamdoust One of the Protesters at the June 12, 2006 Protest, Transferred Under Guard to Office of Implementation of Sentences and then To Evin Prison, the Feminist School; http://www.femschool.info/spip.php?article2056, 1 February 2009
⁵ Alieh Eghdamdoust to Serve Three Year Prison Term, Change for Equality; http://www.campaignforequality.info/english/spip.php?article455, 1 February 2009
⁶ Ibid.
⁷ Delaram Ali Sentenced to Prison; Stay on Implementation of Sentence Issued by Head of Tehran District Court, Change for Equality; http://www.campaignforequality.info/english/spip.php?article396, 25 November 2008
⁸ The Two Year Suspended Sentence of Bahareh Hedayat, Member of the Central Council of Office to Foster Unity, Upheld, Advar News, as quoted in Balatarin; https://balatarin.com/permlink/2007/10/9/1148359, 9 October 2008
⁹ A timeframe is usually attached to suspended sentences. In this case the timeframe is 5 years. This means that if the person receiving the sentence is found guilty of another crime during the period of 2 years the sentence will be implemented. Because human rights activists are usually charged in relation to their activism, these suspended sentences work to deter activism on the part of human rights activists, because they inflict fear of retribution and possible prison.
¹⁰ Masoumeh Zia Sentenced to One Year Suspended Imprisonment for Her Participation in the June 12th Protest, Focus on Iranian Women; http://www.irwomen.info/spip.php?article6429, 7 November 2008
¹¹ Ibid.
¹² Six Months Suspended Sentence for Bahman Ahmadi Amouie, Journalist, Upheld, Gooya News as reported in Focus on Iranian Women; http://www.irwomen.org/spip.php?article5348, 2 March 2008
¹³ Equal Rights Denied—The Systematic Repression of the Women’s Rights Movement In Iran, International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, http://www.iranhumanrights.org/2009/01/repression-women, 5 May 2008
¹⁴ The Imprisonment of Women’s Rights Activists is not the same as Imprisonment of the Women’s Movement, Focus on Iranian Women; http://www.irwomen.info/spip.php?article7019, 2 March 2009
¹⁵ The Defenders of Human Rights Center Raided and Closed, Change for Equality, http://www.campaignforequality.info/english/spip.php?article432, 21 December 2008
¹⁶ Statement No. 1 by DHRC Public Relations Office: The Office of the DHRC Raided and Shut, Campaign in Support of Defenders of the Human Rights Center in Iran, http://support-dhrc.com/spip.php?article1
¹⁷ Raid of the Private Law Offices of Shirin Ebadi, Campaign in Support of the Defenders of Human Rights Center in Iran, http://support-dhrc.com/spip.php?article20, 29 December 2008
¹⁸ Attack on the Home of Shirin Ebadi, Campaign in Support of the Defenders of Human Rights Center in Iran, http://support-dhrc.com/spip.php?article18, 1 January 2009
¹⁹ Attack on the Protest in Support of Gaza, RoozOnline, http://www.roozonline.com/archives/2009/01/post_10987.php, 12 January 2009
²⁰ Jinous Sobhani the Former Secretary of the Defenders of Human Rights Center Arrested, Public Relations Office of the DHRC, Campaign in Support of the Defenders of Human Rights Center; http://support-dhrc.com/spip.php?article57, 14 January 2009
²¹ Equal Rights Denied—The Systematic Repression of the Women’s Rights Movement In Iran, International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, http://www.iranhumanrights.org/2009/01/repression-women, 5 May 2008
²² Interview with women’s rights activists working with the Campaign.
²³ Opportunity to Live with Women who are Invisible: Interview of Elnaz Ansari with Nafiseh Azad, Change for Equality, http://www.campaignforequality.info/spip.php?article3641, 15 February 2009
²⁴ Nafiseh Azad Member of One Million Signatures Campaign Released, Change for Equality, http://www.campaignforequality.info/spip.php?article3594, 4 February 2009
²⁵ Esha Momeni Released on Bail, For Esha Blog, http://for-esha.blogspot.com, 10 November 2008
²⁶ ibid.
²⁷ Esha Momeni Banned from Leaving the Country, For Esha Blog, http://for-esha.blogspot.com, 13 January 2009
²⁸ Hana Abdi Released from Prison, The Feminist School, http://www.feministschool.com/spip.php?article2179, 26 February 2009
²⁹ Mohammad Sharif following a Visit with his Client, Hana Abdi: After a Year and Half Imprisonment and Continuous Transfers You Can Guess How Hana is Doing, Change for Equality, http://www.4equality.info/spip.php?article3707, 27 February 2009
³⁰ Ibid.
³¹ Acquit Zeinab Bayazidi: The Statement of 2000 Social Activists, Roozonline, http://www.roozonline.com/archives/2009/01/post_11003.php, 13 January 2009
³² Change of Suspended Prison Sentence to Mandatory Prison Sentence for Zeinab Bayazidi, April 4, 2009, Human Rights Organization of Kurdistan, http://insannorg.accounts.combell.net/article.aspx?fld=Scout&id=124
³³ According to the Human Rights Organization of Kurdistan news report on this case, Bayazidi in an unrelated case had been found guilty of the charges of publishing lies and spreading of propaganda against the state, to which she was sentenced to a suspended sentence of six months for four years, meaning that if during these four years she is found guilty of another crime, her suspended sentence would change to a mandatory sentence.
³⁴ Hana Abdi Released from Prison, The Feminist School, http://www.feministschool.com/spip.php?article2179, 26 February 2009
³⁵ Ibid.
³⁶ Updates on Prison Sentences, Detention and Imprisonment of Women’s Rights Activists, Change for Equality, http://www.campaignforequality.info/english/spip.php?article370, 12 October 2008
³⁷ Sussan Tahmasebi: I Was Not Officially Banned From Travel, Radio Zamaaneh, http://zamaaneh.com/special/2008/10/post_671.html, 26 October 2008
³⁸ Nasrin Sotoodeh Banned from Travel, The Feminist School, http://femschool.info/spip.php?article1811,
10 December 2008
³⁹ No Legal Procedures are Adhered to with Respect to those Banned from Travel, The Feminist School, http://www.femschool.info/spip.php?article2189, 28 February 2009
⁴⁰ Site of Campaign Blocked for 19th Time, Change for Equality, http://www.campaignforequality.info/english/spip.php?article439, 9 January 2009
⁴¹ Defense of Women’s Rights Not allowed, Change for Equality, http://www.campaignforequality.info/english/spip.php?article399, 25 November 2008
⁴² Charges Brought Against Four Women’s Rights Activists Two Months After their Arrest, UK Iranians, http://www.iranianuk.com/article.php?id=31070, 23 August 2009
⁴³ Statement issued by the Coordinating Committee of the Seminar of Women’s Day of Solidarity, distributed via email. Also see: http://www.campaignforequality.info/english/spip.php?article291
⁴⁴ Zeinab Peyghambarzadeh Found Guilty in Appeals Court, Change for Equality http://www.campaignforequality.info/english/spip.php?article386, 3 November 2008
⁴⁵ Appeals Court Ruling in Case of Amir Yaghoub-Ali Constitutes Severe Control of the Accused, Change for Equality, http://www.campaignforequality.info/english/spip.php?article338, 1 September 2008
⁴⁶ Masoumeh Zia Sentenced to One Year Suspended Imprisonment for Her Participation in the June 12th Protest, Focus on Iranian Women, http://www.irwomen.info/spip.php?article6429, 7 November 2008
⁴⁷ Equal Rights Denied—The Systematic Repression of the Women’s Rights Movement In Iran, International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, http://www.iranhumanrights.org/2009/01/repression-women, 5 May 2008
⁴⁸ Interview with a human rights defender based in Iran, who wishes to remain anonymous.
⁴⁹ Rezvan Moghaddam’s Sentence Upheld in Appeals Court, Change for Equality, http://www.campaignforequality.info/english/spip.php?article389, November 2008
⁵⁰ Sentence of prison and Lashings for Minou Mortazi and Masoumeh Zia Upheld, Women’s Field, http://www.meydaan.net/news.aspx?nid=2416, 15 September 2008
⁵¹ Interview with a human rights defender based in Iran, who wishes to remain anonymous
⁵² Interview with human rights defender.

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President Dr. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
The Presidency
Palestine Avenue, Azerbaijan Intersection
Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran

Your Excellency:

We, the undersigned members of the Women Human Rights Defenders International Coalition, submit this statement to express our deepest concerns regarding the imprisonment of Alieh Eghdamdoost, as well as the recent arrest of 12 other human rights defenders in Iran.

Alieh Eghdamdoost, together with dozens of other activists, was arrested at a women’s rights demonstration in Tehran in June 2006. On July 6, 2007, she was sentenced to a prison term of three years and four months, and 20 lashes. On appeal, the prison term was reduced by four months, and the judge overturned the lashings. Her sentence of three years is now being implemented, making her the first woman to have a sentence related to women’s rights activism actually implemented. Eghdamdoost was taken from her home on January 31, and has been held in Evin prison since. The fact that Eghdamdoost has been sentenced to a three-year sentence that she is now forced to serve, while some others arrested on the same day faced no charges, were acquitted, or received suspended sentences, demonstrates the completely arbitrary nature of these judicial proceedings. Her imprisonment also sets a dangerous precedent for all women engaged in human rights activism in Iran.

The implementation of Eghdamdoost’s sentence is taking place against a backdrop of increased repression of all human rights defenders, including women’s rights activists. Reliable sources have reported that on March 26 Iranian security forces detained 12 members of the One Million Signatures Campaign and Mothers for Peace, as they were sitting in their cars on a street corner in Tehran, preparing to make New Year’s visits to the family members of some prisoners of conscience.

The One Million Signatures Campaign, launched in August 2006, is a grassroots movement to raise awareness about gender-based discrimination in the law and to promote gender equality. Mothers for Peace are a diverse coalition of women seeking to promote a culture of peace in Iran and who condemn all forms of military aggression. Both groups employ peaceful methods to promote their message, whether through disseminating petitions, collecting signatures, or organizing and presenting lectures. As such, we consider members of both groups to be human rights defenders.

The twelve individuals arrested on March 26 were: Ali Abdi, Delaram Ali, Bahara Behravan, Farkhondeh Ehtesabian, Shahla Forouzanfar, Arash Nasiri Eghbali, Mahboubeh Karami, Khadijeh Moghaddam, Leila Nazari, Amir Rashidi, Mohammad Shoorab, and Soraya Yousefi.

After three days, ten of them were released on bail, but two activists, Mahboubeh Karami and Khadijeh Moghaddam, were kept in detention.

On April 5, the ten released activists were charged with “disturbing of public opinion,” and “disruption of public order,” charges all ten deny.

The two others, Karami and Moghaddam, who were also due to be arraigned on April 5, did not appear in court on that day. The deputy prosecutor informed their attorneys that they would be brought the following day, but in fact were kept in jail. In the end, Karami was released on April 7, and Moghaddam on April 8. Moghaddam faces charges in connection with a protest Mothers for Peace held on January 11, against Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip.

We strongly object to the arrest, detention and prosecution of these human rights defenders. The frequent arrest and prosecution of human rights defenders for non-violent exercise of their freedom of expression has been inconsistent with Iran’s obligations under international law.

Even more concerning, based on the facts as we understand them, the persons arrested on March 26 were not engaged in a public activity, but were planning visits to private residences at the start of the New Year, as is customary amongst Iranians. The circumstances of their arrest simply do not even remotely support lodging charges such as “disrupting public order,” or “disturbing public opinion,” and appear as deliberate efforts to silence and intimidate these activists. We note, with great concern, that since the One Million Signatures Campaign has been launched, dozens of its members have been arrested, summoned for interrogation, monitored, banned from travel and prosecuted.

The efforts of these activists to promote gender equality and a culture of peace should be applauded, not hampered. The U.N. Declaration on Human Rights Defenders stipulates that “everyone has the right, individually and in association with others, to promote and to strive for the protection and realization of human rights and fundamental freedoms at the national and international levels.” The actions of the Iranian authorities stand in stark violation of this principle.

We urge the authorities to reverse their ruling on Eghdamdoost’s case and release her from detention.

Furthermore, we call upon the authorities in Iran to drop all charges against all 12 activists arrested on March 26, and further, to cease the repression and prosecution of all peaceful human rights defenders in Iran.

Thank you for your attention to these urgent matters.

Sincerely,

Asia Pacific Forum on Women Law and Development
Asian Forum for Human RIghts and Development (FORUM-ASIA)
Baobab for Women’s Human Rights
Front Line, The International Foundation for Human Rights Defenders
Human Rights First
International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran
International Women’s Rights Action Watch Asia Pacific
Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders

Khadijeh Moghadam and her husband Akbar Khosrowshahi as they left Evin Prison in Tehran

(8 April 2009) Prominent women’s rights activist Khadijeh Moghadam, who has been in detention since 26 March 2009, was released from Tehran’s Evin Prison on bail at 8:15 pm, local time.

Moghadam and eleven other members of Mothers for Peace and the One Million Signatures Campaign were detained on 26 March 2009 as they sat in their cars at a street corner in Tehran. They were planning to make New Year visits to families of prisoners of conscience. Ten activists were released on bail on 29 March, but Moghadam and Mahboubeh Karami were kept in prison without any explanation.

Karami was released on 7 April, but Moghadam was kept in detention. According to Moghadam’s lawyer Nasim Ghanavi, Moghadam has been charged in another case when Mothers for Peace held a protest against the Israeli attack on Gaza on 11 January 2009 in Tehran. Her prosecution in both cases will continue, though no court dates have been set.

“We welcome the release of Moghadam and Karami, but they should have never been detained in the first place. It is completely unacceptable that any of these activists are being prosecuted for planning to make New Year visits. The new charges against Moghadam for protesting Israeli attacks on Gaza are shocking,” said Hadi Ghaemi, the spokesperson for the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran.

The Campaign called on the Iranian Judiciary to drop all charges against the twelve activists and to end its persecution and prosecution of women’s rights activists, actions that are in complete violation of Iranian and international laws.

Moghadam and Karami in their twelfth day of detention for planning New Year visits

(6 April 2009) Two women’s rights activists, imprisoned since 26 March 2009 after being arrested on the street as they embarked on making New Year visits, are being held without any legal justification and despite promises by judicial officials that they will be released.

Khadijeh Moghadam and Mahboubeh Karami are held in Tehran’s Evin Prison without having been arraigned. The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran called on the Judiciary head, Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi, to order their immediate release and put an end to illegal actions by his subordinates.

The Campaign is seriously concerned about the detainees’ health and safety and the continuing lack of transparency and judicial irregularities in their case.

“At first the authorities told the detainees’ families their release would be postponed because of New Year holidays. Then they made several hollow promises that their release was imminent,” said Hadi Ghaemi, the Campaign’s spokesperson.

“With each passing day, these activists who are not guilty of any crime, are deprived of their liberty. At the same time, security and judicial officials guilty of detaining them without reason get away with total impunity,” he added.

Twelve members of the Mothers for Peace and One Million Signatures Campaign were detained on 26 March 2009, as they sat in their cars at a street corner in Tehran. Ten activists were released on bail on 29 March, but Moghadam and Karami were kept in prison without any explanation.

On 5 April, the ten released activists were arraigned at the Security Prosecution Court of Tehran. Tehran’s Deputy Public Prosecutor for Security, Mr. Heidarifard, formally charged them with “disturbing public opinion” and “disruption of public order.”

The ten defendants were accompanied with their lawyers during the arraignment procedures. In an unprecedented development, the defendants were questioned in the presence of their lawyers. The Campaign welcomes this procedure, which accords with Iranian and international norms and should be available to all defendants.

All ten defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges and are subject to further prosecution. A date for the court hearing has not been set. The names of the ten defendants are: Delaram Ali, Leila Nazari, Farkhondeh Ehtesabian, Bahara Behravan, Ali Abdi, Amir Rashidi, Mohammad Shoorab, Arash Nasiri Eghbali, Soraya Yousefi and Shahla Forouzanfar.

Moghadam and Karami were also due to be arraigned during the same hearing on 5 April. However, they were not transferred from prison to the court house. Houshang Pourbabai, who along with Shirin Ebadi represents Mahboubeh Karami, told the website of Change for Equality: “The Deputy Prosecutor said the detainees [Karami and Moghadam] will be brought to the courthouse for arraignment tomorrow morning (6 April) and that they will be released after posting bail.”

Moghadam and Karami, however, remain in prison and the officials’ promises to their lawyers and family are in stark contrast to their actions. On 6 April, the authorities reneged; Moghadam and Karami were not brought to the courthouse for arraignment and posting bail.

The Campaign called on Ayatollah Shahroudi to order the dropping of all charges against the twelve activists and to order an investigation and prosecution of agents responsible for detaining these activists and continuing the detention of Moghadam and Karami.

The Campaign notes that making private New Year visits is by no means a crime in Iran. The charges brought against the twelve activists, “disturbing public opinion” and “disruption of public order,” lack credibility and, being arbitrary, violate Iranian and international legal standards as the activists were simply sitting in their cars at the time of their arrest.

“These detentions cast a large shadow on the credibility and independence of the Judiciary. Allowing security agents impunity to violate the rights of innocent citizens under the guise of legal proceedings, tarnishes the integrity of the entire judicial system. It is time for the Iranian leaders to take responsibility for these actions and put an end to continuing injustices,” Ghaemi said.

UPDATE: (31 March 2009) Ten of the twelve women’s rights activists detained last week as they were planning private New Year visits have been released on bail. Two of them however, Khadijeh Moghadam and Mahboubeh Karami, remain in Evin prison.

The ten activists were released after judiciary officials set bail for them in the amount of 50 million toman ($50,000) that had to be posted by a government employee as a third-party guarantee.

The authorities refused to accept bail posted by Moghadam and Karami, without explanation. Those released have to report for interrogations on Sunday, 5 April. They have been charged with “disturbing public opinion” and “disruption of public order,” and a judicial case has been initiated based on these charges.

The Campaign called on the Iranian authorities to immediately release Moghadam and Karami, noting that there is no legal justification for these detentions.

(26 March 2009) Iranian authorities should immediately release a dozen women’s rights activists detained arbitrarily in Tehran today, the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran said.

Security forces detained 12 members of the One Million Signatures Campaign and Mothers for Peace at a street corner as the group met to make private New Year visits to families of several prisoners of conscience. With the Persian New Year holidays underway, it is customary for families and friends to visit each other.

As of this evening, local time, all detainees have been transferred to Evin Prison. A judge named Matin Rasekh has charged them with “disturbing public opinion” and “disruption of public order.”

The arrests suggest that security and intelligence forces have been surveilling and eavesdropping on activists’ private communications. Police forces arrested the group at their meeting place, on Sohrevardi Street in Tehran, before they could embark on their private visits, the website Change for Equality reported.

“The paranoia and intolerance of the intelligence agencies have reached unbelievable proportions. There is no justification whatsoever to deny activists their rights to visit each other during New Year celebrations,” said Hadi Ghaemi, the Campaign’s spokesperson.

According to the latest information from Tehran, the names of the twelve detainees are: Delaram Ali, Khadijeh Moghadam, Leila Nazari, Farkhondeh Ehtesabian, Mahboubeh Karami, Bahara Behravan, Ali Abdi, Amir Rashidi, Mohammad Shoorab, Arash Nasiri Eghbali, Soraya Yousefi and Shahla Forouzanfar.

After the security forces detained the group at Sohrevardi Street, they were taken to Niloofar Police Station. At around 8:30 pm local time, the detainees were transferred to Evin Prison and held in section 209, which is under the control of the Intelligence Ministry.

“We are seriously concerned about the fate of detainees and the absolute lack of transparency and due process demonstrated by this case. For what crime are they being held? Is observing New Year traditions now a crime in Iran? The Iranian leaders should step forward and explain why intelligence agents are given free reign to deprive citizens of their most basic rights,” Ghaemi said.

The authorities arrested Eghdamdoust on 31 January 2009 in her hometown of Foman, north of Iran, to begin serving a 3-year prison sentence. Neither she nor her lawyers were informed about the results of her appeal, which was decided nearly a year ago in contravention of Iranian laws, the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran said.

“This arrest, as well as the detention Nafiseh Azad during the last three days, signal a crackdown on peaceful and legal activities by women’s rights activists, with authorities apparently going out of their way to show a disregard for their rights,” said Hadi Ghaemi, spokesperson for the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran. “ There is no other logic to explain implementing a prison term sentence which was kept from the defendant and her lawyers for a year.”

Iranian authorities have stepped up attacks on women’s rights activists who are peacefully exercising their basic rights in recent days. Security agents detained Nafiseh Azad, a member of the One Million Signatures Campaign, 30 January 2009 while she was collecting signatures in support of changing discriminatory laws. Judiciary agents violently raided Azad’s home on 3 February in Tehran, beating her husband, Vahid Maleki, and another women’s rights activist, Elnaz Ansari. The agents seized Azad’s personal property and laptop.

Security agents previously arrested Eghdamdoust, along with 70 other women’s rights activists protesting in Haft Tir Square, Tehran on 12 June 2006. She spent one week in detention, refusing to post bail because she did not accept that she had broken any laws. She was later summoned to the Intelligence Offices in Tehran on 19 September 2006, and charged with “acting against national security through participating in an illegal gathering and disturbing public order” by Branch 15 of the Revolutionary Court on 6 June 2007. The presiding judge, Mr. Salavati, sentenced her to three-year mandatory prison term for participating in an “illegal gathering” and four-month suspended prison term and 20 lashes for disturbing public order, based on articles 610 and 618 of the Islamic Penal code.

Her attorneys appealed the lower court’s sentence. Nasim Ghovani, one of the attorneys who represent Eghdamdoust, told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran that neither Eghdamdoust nor any of her attorneys had been informed of the result of the appeal.

“I received a call from Alieh in Foman at 2pm on 31 January. She told me that agents from the Implementation of Sentences Department came to take her to Tehran to begin serving her prison term,” Ghovani said. She and another attorney for Eghdamdoust later found that the appeals court had upheld her three-year sentence for “acting against national security” about one year ago.

Ghanavi said, “If we had been informed before, we could have applied for legal possibilities, including Article 18 of the amendment to the Penal Code to prevent the implementation of the sentence. We don’t know why we haven’t been informed.”

Jila Baniyaghoub, a journalist who was also arrested in June 2006 at Haft Tir Square, reported on her website that during her trial, Eghdamdoust was asked by the judge why she participated in the protest. She responded by saying, “You should participate as well. Why didn’t you defend your daughters and wife’s rights by attending the legal peaceful gathering?”

The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran calls the Iranian Judiciary to investigate and prosecute the officials who unlawfully withheld information about Eghdamdoust’s appeal from her attorneys. The authorities should immediately release Eghdamdoust and end persecution and prosecution of peaceful women’s rights activists.

“The authorities should protect the rights of women’s rights activists under Iranian and international law, not imprison them,” Ghaemi said.

Nafiseh Azad

(2 February 2009) Three members of the Iranian movement for equal rights, the One Million Signatures Campaign, were arrested on 30 January 2009, and one remains in detention charged with “acting against national security through propaganda against the state,” according to the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran.

Nafiseh Azad, Bigard Ebrahimi and another member of the One Million Signatures Campaign for Equality were arrested in the Mountain of Tochal in the North of Tehran while they were collecting signatures to change discriminatory laws. They were taken to the detention center in Vozara on the same day, and Nafiseh Azad remains in detention.

“For almost three years, members of the One Million Signatures Campaign have been continuously arrested and prosecuted for their peaceful activities,” stated Hadi Ghaemi, spokesperson for the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran said.

“To bring the charge of acting against national security for those who peacefully and lawfully collecting signatures to change discriminatory laws indicates that the authorities think national security depends on discrimination,” he added. “Such arrests only weaken Iran’s international position, and are themselves in violation of Iranian law and Iran’s international human rights obligations.”

The web site of Change for Equality reported that the three members of the One Million Signatures Campaign were interrogated at Vozara detention center on the morning of 31 January before being transferred to the Revolutionary Courts. Judge Sobhani renewed the temporary detention order for Nafiseh Azad, and Bigard Ebrahimi was released on a third party guarantee. Nafiseh Azad will face charges at the Security Branch of the Revolutionary Court on 1 February 2009 (http://www.campaignforequality.info/english/spip.php?article453 ).

However, according to Azad’s husband, her trial was not held and she remains in detention. The authorities have not provided any reasons for the trial’s delay and whether the reason was that the Judge didn’t show up or the interrogations are still continuing.

The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran calls on Iranian authorities to respect national and international human rights laws, release Nafiseh Azad immediately and unconditionally, and end persecution and prosecution of women’s rights activists.

Asian NGOs Urge an End to Persecution of Defenders of Human Rights Center

(15 January 2009) Security agents arrested Jinous Sobhani, the former secretary of the Defenders of Human Rights Center (DHRC) and the Organization for the Defense of Mine Victims, and confiscated her address book, telephone and other work materials on 14 January 2009. Shirin Ebadi, the 2003 Nobel Peace Laureate, is a co-founder of both groups.

The DHRC, a leading independent Iranian group providing legal defense of human rights violations, has been closed since 22 December 2008, when agents forced their way into the Center during preparations for a celebration of the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Authorities have claimed that the Center was not a legally registered organization, although numerous other non-registered organizations function in Iran. The DHRC’s application for registration was denied several years ago.

“If the Center was indeed closed on account of its lack of registration, then why arrest a staff member who has already lost her job?” asked Hadi Ghaemi, Coordinator of the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran. “The arrest appears to confirm that the closure of the Center was politically motivated.”

Expressions of support for the Center continue to arrive from diverse regions. A group of human rights organizations from throughout Asia has written to Iran’s Islamic Human Rights Commission to urge that the Defenders of Human Rights Center (DHRC) be legally registered and allowed to function while being protected from further persecution and harassment. The group noted that the Asia Pacific Forum of National Human Rights Institutions has urged the Commission to facilitate the registration of Iranian nongovernmental groups.

In a letter to the Islamic Human Rights Commission on 13 January 2009, the Asian NGOs Network on National Human Rights Institutions (ANNI) pointed out that the denial of registration amounts to a violation of internationally-protected human rights:

“We believe that the closure of the offices of the DHRC is inconsistent with Article 22 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which states that everyone has the right to freedom of association with others. It is also inconsistent with Article 5 of the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, which provides that everyone has the right, individually and in association with others, to form, join, and participate in non-governmental organizations, associations, or groups.”

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ANNI’s letter to the Iranian Islamic Human Rights Commission can be viewed here.

The Iranian Islamic Human Rights Commission’s response can be viewed here.

Detentions, Travel Bans, and Intimidation Target Activists

(27 October 2008) The Iranian government has substantially increased its persecution and prosecution of women’s rights activists in recent days. These actions come on the heels of a report by the UN Secretary General calling on Iran to end its repressive measures against women’s rights activists.

In a 20 October 2008 report, the Secretary General noted “an increasing crackdown in the past year on the women’s rights movement” and that “women’s rights activism is sometimes presented by the Iranian Government as being connected to external security threats to the country.” The report referred specifically to organizers of the “One Million Signatures Campaign [who] reportedly faced arrest and intimidation by authorities.”

During the past two weeks, security agents have targeted members of the One Million Signatures Campaign, which promotes gender equality within Iranian laws, with detentions, summonses, and travel bans.

The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran urged the Iranian government to cease its unjustified and repressive measures against peaceful activists.

“The actions by Iranian authorities display a systematic and consistent effort to stifle women’s rights activists in Iran that has been condemned widely by the international community, including the recent UN Secretary General’s report,” Hadi Ghaemi, spokesperson for the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran said.

On 26 October 2008, security agents prevented Sussan Tahmasebi, a member of the One Million Signatures Campaign, from leaving Iran to visit her family abroad and confiscated her passport. Security agents subsequently searched Tahmasebi’s home and seized her computer, CDs, books, writings, texts on peace-building, and other personal belongings. She has been ordered to appear in court within three days.

Tahmasebi told Change for Equality, the website of the One Million Signatures Campaign, “This is the fourth time that security officials have prevented me from traveling under different pretenses. Despite my repeated inquiries I was provided with no information on the reason for their action and the case on which I am being called to the Revolutionary Courts.”

Tahmasebi is among a number of women’s rights activists who have been banned from traveling abroad in recent months.

On Friday 17 October, Parastoo Alahyaari, another member of the One Million Signatures Campaign, was in Laleh Park in Tehran meeting with fellow activists, when security officers ordered their group to disperse. Alahyaari and others were ordered to submit identification cards after asking why they were being told to disperse. On 18 October, security agents searched her home and seized her laptop, CDs, books, picture albums and materials related to the One Million Signatures Campaign.

California State University graduate student Esha Momeini has been held in incommunicado detention in Evin Prison’s Section 209 since 15 October 2008. She was detained while conducting her thesis research on the women’s rights movement in Iran. The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran expressed serious concerns for her health and safety. She was due to undergo a kidney stone operation when she was detained. There are fears of Momeini being ill-treated by Intelligence Ministry officers who run Section 209. She has not received any medical care and is being denied access to her lawyer and family.

“While forcibly infringing on the freedom of movement of peaceful women’s rights activists and attempting to intimidate others and stifle research, Iranian authorities are demonstrating their utter disregard for the United Nations and the human rights standards to which they are committed,” Ghaemi said.

The Campaign is appealing to the Iranian authorities to immediately release Momeini and return Tahmasebi’s passport. The Campaign urges the government to cooperate with United Nations agencies and international civil society groups that seek to assist Iran in abiding by its international human rights obligations.