Exclusive; 'Uprising Against Execution' Gatherings Held in 11 European Cities

A number of Iranians held gatherings called 'Uprising Against Execution' in 11 European cities on Friday, February 2. According to calls for action, the gatherings took place in London, Paris, Berlin, Frankfurt, Stockholm, Hanover, Dublin, Bern, Cologne, Venice, and Amsterdam. Hamid Nowzari, head of the Iranian Political Refugees Association and one of the organizers of the Berlin gathering, told Voice of America about the goals of these gatherings: 'Our two main objectives are to draw public attention to the countless executions in Iran and to protest the relatively serious silence of many of these organizations, and the other is to show solidarity with the struggles and demands of Iranians inside the country for the abolition of the death penalty and torture so that this brave voice does not remain unheard abroad.' Saeed Tabrizi, one of the activists of the 'No to Execution' gatherings residing in Germany, told Voice of America that the Islamic Republic has recently intensified its crackdown to push back the popular uprising 'Women, Life, Freedom,' which has shaken the foundations of the regime across Iran, and has increasingly resorted to the killing of prisoners and political detainees. He also noted that at least 90 executions took place in Iran in the past month, including the executions of Mohammad Ghobadloo, Farhad Salimi, Pejman Fatehi, Vafa Azarbar, Mohsen Mazloom, and Mohammad Faramarzi, adding that several political and ideological prisoners, as well as general prisoners, are now at serious risk of execution. Mr. Tabrizi added that in this regard, 'leftist, democratic, feminist, and queer organizations and collectives' have decided to be 'the echo of the voices of the oppressed and political prisoners' and to widely and unitedly inform the world about the crimes of the Islamic Republic. This political activist emphasized: 'We aim to make the slogan for the abolition of the death penalty one of our central slogans in protests and to rally global public opinion to pressure the Islamic criminals in Iran, in solidarity with the free people in Iran.' He added: 'Just as women prisoners in Qezel Hesar and Evin and other prisons have raised their voices for the abolition of the death penalty, and alongside all the people of Kurdistan who staged a general strike on Tuesday in protest against the execution of four Kurdish freedom fighters, it is our duty to raise the cry for the abolition of the death penalty in Iran to the ears of the world.' Saeed Tabrizi noted in part of his conversation with Voice of America that 'today, the cry for the freedom of political prisoners in Iran has not yet become the common and universal cry of all freedom seekers' and said: 'Without effective and organized struggle from all freedom seekers and garnering public support worldwide, and consequently pushing back the Islamic Republic, it is impossible to take effective and decisive steps towards achieving freedom and equality.' Meanwhile, Hamid Nowzari, in response to a question about the impact of these gatherings and protests, told Voice of America that these actions could compel political parties, figures, and human rights organizations to pressure their governments to openly and unequivocally condemn the organized violence of the Islamic Republic and to include the abolition of the death penalty and torture, and the freedom of political and ideological prisoners, as part of their political bargaining with this anti-human rights regime.