Ronak Safazadeh (21), arrested on October 9, 2007, is a women’s rights activist in Sanadaj, capital of the western province of Kurdistan. She is a member of the local women’s organization, Azarmehr Association of Kurdish Women. Ronak actively campaigned for women’s rights by disseminating information and collecting signatures on behalf of the One Million Signature Campaign. The One Million Signature Campaign is a nationwide effort to remove discrimination against women from Iranian laws.
On October 9, 2008, agents of the Intelligence Ministry arrested Ronak outside her house in Sanandaj, as she walked on her way to work. They searched her house and confiscated Ronak’s computer, books and literature related to the One Million Signature Campaign.
The day before her arrest, Ronak participated in a celebration of Children’s Day in which she collected signatures for the One Million Signature Campaign. A month later, Intelligence Ministry officials also arrested Ronak’s friend and co-campaigner, Hana Abdi ,on November 4, 2007. Despite persistent attempts by Ronak’s family to visit her and to learn of the reason for her arrest, the authorities have not disclosed any information about her case.
For nearly four months, Ronak was held and interrogated in Intelligence Ministry headquarters. On January 25, 2008, Mohammad Sharif, Hana’s lawyer, told the Iranian Student News Agency that Hana had been transferred to Sanandaj’s Central Prison. The authorities have not allowed Ronak’s family to visit her.
More than 600 women’s rights defenders have signed a petition protesting Ronak’s arrest and calling for her immediate release.
