Nahid Shirpichah: A Symbol of Justice Seeking; Pouran Nazemi: The Movement for Justice in Iran is Alive

A year after the arrest of Nahid Shirpichah, human rights defender Pouran Nazemi spoke with the Persian section of Voice of America about her current situation and the justice-seeking movement, as well as the pressure from the Islamic Republic on the families of those seeking justice. According to Pouran Nazemi, Nahid Shirpichah is 'not just a person' but the mother of Pouya Bakhtiari, one of the victims of the peaceful protests in November 2019, and 'represents the large family of justice seekers in Iran.' This human rights advocate emphasized that Nahid Shirpichah 'rose up for justice' after the 2019 uprising for her son and all the children who were killed, stating that this stance 'provoked the government's anger towards her and Pouya Bakhtiari's family.' Pouran Nazemi explained that judicial authorities 'deviously' exiled Nahid Shirpichah from Karaj prison to Zanjan prison after her arrest, and after spending 'more than seven months in solitary confinement,' following 'public pressure,' they moved her to a general ward. However, there she was 'deceptively placed with a group of dangerous criminals,' and after being 'beaten' by these criminals, she had to request to return to solitary confinement. This human rights defender noted that 'this was a win for the government forces' because it allowed them to portray that 'the prisoner voluntarily went to solitary confinement and that prisoners do not agree with protests and justice-seeking.' She emphasized: 'Nahid Shirpichah is imprisoned in a place she did not deserve, exiled to a place she did not deserve, and is deprived of visitation and contact rights.' Pouran Nazemi, who is one of the signatories of the '14 Statement' calling for Ali Khamenei's resignation and a transition from the Islamic Republic, urged Iranians abroad to be the voice of justice seekers and said: 'Show the world public opinion who Nahid Shirpichah was and what justice-seeking is.' She stressed the necessity of not remaining silent against the pressure on justice seekers, stating that the forces of the Islamic Republic 'monitor society' and 'if we do not make noise today,' they will target other justice seekers and fabricate cases against them, as they are currently doing with mothers and fathers whose 'children's blood has not yet dried' by labeling them with 'security' charges. This former political prisoner, who is now free on bail, asserted: 'Do not politicize justice-seeking; everyone has an opinion, and after the fall of the Islamic Republic, everyone will cast their vote in the ballot box, but right now our red line must be the justice seekers.' She added that if we remain silent in the face of the Islamic Republic's agents and the case fabrications against justice-seeking families, 'we have betrayed the blood of our lost loved ones.' Pouran Nazemi stated: 'We must stand together and support each other,' saying that 'the greatest cost has been borne by justice seekers, and we will not impose more costs on them. What the Islamic Republic is doing to justice seekers is neither fair, nor ethical, nor religious, nor legal.' This human rights defender also emphasized: 'Justice-seeking is not a crime, and the movement for justice in the Iranian nation is alive.'