Congratulations from Political and Civil Activists; Mehdi Maskinnavaz: I Hope This Year Coincides with the Presence of a Fact-Finding Committee in Iran

With the arrival of the new Persian year, messages from plaintiffs, civil activists, and political prisoners continue. In the latest messages, Mehdi Maskinnavaz, Gohar Eshghi, and Saman Yasin expressed wishes for the freedom of Iran and the realization of justice in the new year. Mehdi Maskinnavaz, a political prisoner who is spending this Nowruz with his family after nearly five years by obtaining 'medical leave,' stated in an audio message given to VOA on Wednesday, April 1: 'I am burning to the bone, mother, do not call the azan for me anymore.' This constitutional monarchist activist, honoring the memory of 'the plaintiffs and judges since the Constitutional Revolution until now,' emphasized: 'After four years and ten months of imprisonment, I passed through boiling water in protest against the continuation of executions and arrests to be able to spend this holiday with my family thanks to medical leave.' Mehdi Maskinnavaz expressed hope that 'this year coincides with the presence of a fact-finding committee in Iran,' adding, 'I apologize for not being able to congratulate you on this ancient holiday until the time of freedom!' He thanked 'the medical and nursing staff of Shiroukhorshid (Motahari) Hospital who worked lovingly and sincerely for about 50 days for his recovery,' stating that without them, 'I would not have come out today with a healthy face.' Meysam Pirfalak, the father of Kian, a 9-year-old boy who was shot dead by the Islamic Republic's forces in Izeh, shared a video and photos of himself and his wife, Mahmanir Molaei Rad, at their son's grave on his Instagram account, writing: 'In the name of the God of the rainbow, greetings to the noble nation of Iran, and in memory of my dear Kian and Pouya, and all the dear ones resting in this sacred place.' He emphasized his wish for 'good days and the pride of Iran' while congratulating 'the ancient Nowruz.' Gohar Eshghi, the mother of justice-seeker Sattar Beheshti, expressed gratitude to those who 'struggled for freedom last year,' stating: 'Many of my brave and self-sacrificing daughters and sons are no longer with us this year, but their memory is with us at the Haft-Seen table.' Gohar Eshghi described the Islamic Republic as 'the enemy of the love of life and the love of humans for one another.' She also emphasized that 'we celebrate Nowruz with hope for the freedom of the Iranian nation,' stating: 'The dark government of the Islamic Republic wants to kill love and hope and replace it with sadness and despair. But the arrival of Nowruz tells us that the disgrace remains with the coal, and the blood spilled on the ground will bloom, and spring is on the way.' The mother of justice-seeker Sattar Beheshti, a blogging worker who died in custody, congratulated 'the new year to all victims, imprisoned fighters, minorities, civil activists, free youth of today's generation, popular artists, families who have lost the warmth of their loved ones to the Islamic Republic, and finally to all the people of Iran.' Gohar Eshghi also added: 'The new year will undoubtedly be a year of fundamental changes. Let us all be determined to uproot the roots of oppression in the coming year so that the wishes of the women and men of Iran for freedom, love, and human rights can be realized.' Saman Yasin, a imprisoned artist, recited a text for Nowruz in an audio message apparently published by an admin on his Instagram page. In this audio message, referring to the situation of human rights violations and poverty in Iran, he says: 'Uncle Nowruz, do not come this year, this year we are all in pain, our pockets are empty, our hearts are sad, we sacrificed Nowruz, Uncle Nowruz, do not come back, we are also gradually leaving, a table empty without the 'S,' no coins left, not even a candle, the house is gloomy, and the father is unemployed, the mother’s heart is full of sorrow, here no song dances anymore, Haj Firouz does not make us dance, our fish are dead, our greens are wilted, the mirror has seen our state, cracked in the middle, spring has come but it seems, winter is still here, Uncle Nowruz, let me burn with my pain.' Additionally, numerous Nowruz messages have been published by other families of justice-seekers on social media. Among them, Mehrzad Zarei, the father of Arad Zarei, one of the victims of the downing of the Ukrainian passenger plane by the IRGC's missiles, stated in a video message that in the new year, we stand by the pledge of 'overthrowing the Islamic Republic.' Hamid Ismailioun, a justice-seeker and opponent of the Islamic Republic who also lost his wife and child, Parisa Eghbalian and Reira Ismailioun, during the downing of flight PS752 by the IRGC's missile attack, congratulated 'Nowruz and the beginning of the new solar year to all Iranians, the people of Afghanistan, and everyone who celebrates Nowruz.' He further wrote in this message on social media X: 'May this Nowruz bring the promise of the end of a 45-year winter, may the year 1403 be the year of achieving freedom and the year of justice.' Various Iranian and global figures have also congratulated this ancient Iranian ceremony with messages coinciding with Nowruz and the new solar year. Prince Reza Pahlavi, congratulating the arrival of Nowruz as 'the lasting legacy of our ancestors,' said: 'The new year is the year of going beyond hope and reaching belief; the year of launching a new plan; the year of pragmatism and increased effort and sacrifice; and the year of rolling up our sleeves and putting on the boots of resilience; the year of overcoming those who are part of the problem and joining those who seek to solve the problem.' He considered Nowruz a symbol of the cultural and historical continuity of Iranians and noted: 'The past year was a year of ups and downs. Perhaps at the beginning of the year, the criminal regime's brutal suppression and the failure of the sacrifices of the immortal martyrs of the Mahsa uprising discouraged some of you. But with wisdom and national will, you kept the flag of struggle raised, and at the end of the year, you inflicted a significant defeat on the Islamic Republic and its leader in the election circus, taking an important step toward the freedom of the homeland.'