Call by the Human Rights Defenders Association for 'Global Solidarity' with Narges Mohammadi

The Human Rights Defenders Association has issued a call for 'global solidarity' with Narges Mohammadi, the imprisoned vice president of the association, and over one hundred former members of the Office for Consolidation of Unity have described the 16-year prison sentence for Ms. Mohammadi as 'unprecedented' and demanded a review of this sentence and her release. On Saturday, October 16, the Human Rights Defenders Association published a call on its website, asking 'all free thinkers, organizations, and individuals defending human rights and freedom of expression' to 'spare no effort in a global solidarity movement to help free Narges Mohammadi.' According to this association, the judicial and security apparatuses of Iran have attempted to silence the voices of human rights defenders with the heavy 16-year prison sentence for Ms. Mohammadi, 'not only to silence the loud voice of human rights defenders but to show everyone that the price of freedom of expression in Iran is very high.' The Human Rights Defenders Association, led by Shirin Ebadi, the Iranian Nobel Peace Prize laureate, has called this sentence 'unjust and unfair' and demanded 'unconditional freedom' for Ms. Mohammadi. Meanwhile, Shirin Ebadi, in an interview with Radio Farda, expressed hope that this call would influence the ruling against Ms. Mohammadi and lead to her release. She noted that security agencies had previously pressured Narges Mohammadi to resign from the Human Rights Defenders Association and to 'disavow' the association, but she refused and stated in court that if released, she would continue her previous activities. According to Ms. Ebadi, these statements 'angered security officials,' and since 'the courts have lost their independence,' this sentence was issued based on 'an order given by security officials to the court.' Narges Mohammadi, the vice president of the Human Rights Defenders Association of Iran, was sentenced to 16 years in prison on various charges in May of this year, and the 36th branch of the Tehran Revolutionary Court upheld this sentence in early October. Ms. Mohammadi has been in Evin Prison since May 2015, and according to her husband, Taghi Rahmani, she suffers from 'muscular paralysis' and the prison conditions are 'dangerous' for her. Meanwhile, over 100 former members of the Office for Consolidation of Unity have called this sentence 'unprecedented' and indicative of the 'meaninglessness of the concept of years and months for some officials and institutions.' According to the National Religious website, the authors of this statement emphasized that 'there is a kind of suspicion and mistrust towards civil activists in various sectors of the government, and civil activists are not allowed to breathe and grow.' Taghi Rahmani, Narges Mohammadi's husband, stated in an interview with Radio Farda that the UN High Commissioner has also emphasized the 'unprecedented nature' of this sentence, but one cannot expect more from the Iranian judiciary, which issues 'political' sentences. Mr. Rahmani stressed that this sentence was issued with goals such as 'taking a bitter lesson from civil society' and 'creating fear and terror,' adding that such sentences have temporary effects but not long-term ones. According to Mr. Rahmani, Narges Mohammadi had held a meeting after Hassan Rouhani invited experts to critique the Charter of Citizens' Rights, which was one of the charges against her. He also mentioned that her participation in a protest against acid attacks in front of the parliament was among other charges against Narges Mohammadi. In October of this year, the European Union issued a critical statement declaring that the confirmation of Narges Mohammadi's prison sentence 'increases concerns about the human rights situation in Iran,' a statement that the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson described as 'interventionist.' In July of this year, a group of Twitter users launched a 'Twitter storm' in support of Narges Mohammadi, with thousands of users posting tweets on this issue.