International Organizations Advocating for Artists' Rights Demand Immediate Release of Atena Farghadani from Prison

Several international organizations advocating for artists' rights, including "PEN America," "Artists at Risk Connection," "Cartooning for Peace," "Cartoonists Rights Network," and "Cartoonist Freedom Foundation," condemned the violent arrest of Atena Farghadani, a cartoonist and children's rights activist in Iran, and called for her immediate release from Evin Prison. According to the PEN America website, Ms. Farghadani was arrested on April 14 when she attempted to install one of her works on the wall of Pasteur Street, where the presidential office is located, by agents of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. According to Mohammad Moqimi, Atena Farghadani's lawyer, his client was severely mistreated and had visible wounds on her face. Julie Trebu, the CEO of "Artists at Risk Connection," condemned the violence against this Iranian artist by the Iranian authorities, emphasizing that Atena Farghadani focuses on human rights issues, democratic values, and freedom of expression in her works. Expressing concern for the cartoonist and children's rights activist, she urged Iranian authorities to immediately end their "deliberate and brutal" campaign against artistic freedom and artists like Ms. Farghadani and to drop the charges against her. Mohammad Moqimi, citing his client's statements relayed through her husband, wrote on his social media accounts that she was taken after her arrest to a so-called "safe" house of the IRGC, was beaten, and lost consciousness due to severe bleeding from her nose and head injuries. According to the report, Atena Farghadani regained consciousness hours later in the police security chapel of the 8th base of FATA in Sheikh Hadi, Tehran, in conditions where several pieces of her clothing had been removed. Mr. Moqimi noted that his client noticed bloodstains that had been washed off her clothes and was transferred to Evin Prosecutor's Office on the morning of April 26. Atena Farghadani was previously sentenced to 12 years and 9 months in prison in August 2014 on charges of "activities against the regime," "insulting members of parliament through drawing cartoons," and "colluding against national security." The reason for Ms. Farghadani's arrest was a cartoon depicting members of the Islamic Consultative Assembly as monkeys and goats in protest against two bills on "voluntary sterilization" and "preventing access to contraceptive tools." Two years later, following public pressure and a joint letter from dozens of prominent cartoonists and human rights groups demanding her immediate release, the appeals court reduced her sentence to 18 months, and she was released in May 2016. At last month's session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, PEN America joined a group of Iranian and international human rights organizations in calling for the UN Human Rights Council to extend the mandate of the independent international fact-finding mission on human rights violations by the Islamic Republic. This coalition also called for the extension of the UN Special Rapporteur's mandate on the human rights situation in Iran. PEN America's 2022 Index of Freedom of Expression, which provides annual statistics on imprisoned writers worldwide, ranked Iran second after China for the highest number of imprisoned writers (a total of 57). This figure, with 39 new cases, indicates a significant increase compared to the previous year. The index also revealed that over one-third of all imprisoned female writers in the world are incarcerated solely in the Islamic Republic of Iran, highlighting the Iranian authorities' efforts to suppress women's voices and their demands.