Narges Mohammadi Wins Sakharov Prize from American Physical Society

The American Physical Society awarded one of its annual prizes, known as the Sakharov Prize, to Narges Mohammadi, a political prisoner, human rights activist, and vice president of the Center for Human Rights Defenders. Ms. Mohammadi, who is currently serving her sentence in Evin Prison, has completed her studies in physics, and this year's Sakharov Prize has been jointly awarded to her and the Ravi Kuchimanchi Association for Development in India. The statement from the American Physical Society mentions that this award was given due to her 'leadership in activities related to peace, justice, and the abolition of the death penalty, and her unconditional efforts to promote human rights and freedoms for the people of Iran.' The statement also emphasizes that 'despite the harassment and judicial prosecution that have led to the cessation of her scientific work and her long imprisonment, Narges Mohammadi has continued her activities.' The Center for Human Rights Defenders noted in a report that Narges Mohammadi is a graduate of solid-state physics from Imam Khomeini University in Qazvin, and after finishing university, she worked as an engineer with the Iranian Engineering Inspection Company while simultaneously highlighting gender equality issues as a journalist. The report adds that Ms. Mohammadi's efforts to maintain her scientific career alongside her human rights activities were unsuccessful, and she was dismissed from her position at the engineering inspection company in 2009, the same year she was arrested and imprisoned. Ms. Mohammadi has been sentenced to 16 years in prison for her efforts to promote and support the rights of women, political prisoners, minorities, and other vulnerable groups in society, advocating for free and fair elections, and campaigning for the abolition of the death penalty, and she is currently serving her sentence in Evin Prison. The Iranian judiciary and other officials of the Islamic Republic have so far not responded to requests from international and domestic organizations for Ms. Mohammadi's release. Ms. Mohammadi's two children are abroad, and in most cases, prison officials prevent them from having phone conversations with their mother. The American Physical Society, which has awarded this year's Sakharov Prize to Ms. Mohammadi, is a non-profit organization that promotes and disseminates knowledge of physics through prominent research publications, scientific meetings, education, and international activities. The society has over 54,000 members, including physicists in universities, national laboratories, and industries in the United States and around the world. The Sakharov Prize from the American Physical Society was also awarded in 2014 to Omid Kokabee, a physics PhD student who was arrested after a trip to Iran in 2010 and sentenced to 10 years in prison, but was conditionally released last September.