Reza Khandan: Nasrin Sotoudeh Will Not Appeal Her Prison Sentence

Reza Khandan states that his wife, Nasrin Sotoudeh, a imprisoned lawyer and human rights activist, will not appeal her twelve-year prison sentence issued against her last week. Mr. Khandan said in a phone interview with AFP on Sunday, March 17, "She (Sotoudeh) said she will not appeal, and the reason is that the judicial system is unjust and protesting this sentence has no effect." He added that Nasrin Sotoudeh "does not want to take any legal action because she does not accept the judicial process. Nothing will be done in this regard." Mr. Khandan mentioned that his wife was sentenced to 12 years in prison for the charge of "encouraging corruption and prostitution." According to him, the maximum sentence for such a charge is ten years, but in cases with more than three charges, the judge can increase the sentence, which is why Ms. Sotoudeh was sentenced to 12 years. The Revolutionary Court has brought eight charges against Nasrin Sotoudeh, including: "conspiracy against national security, propaganda against the regime, effective membership in the Human Rights Defenders Center, Legam, and the National Peace Council, encouraging people to corruption and prostitution and facilitating it, appearing without hijab in the interrogation location, disturbing public order and comfort, and spreading falsehoods to disturb public opinion." This imprisoned lawyer was also sentenced to five years in prison in her previous case for the charge of "espionage." Mr. Khandan had previously stated that his wife was sentenced to 33 years in prison due to new charges, but she must serve her longest sentence of 12 years. Ms. Sotoudeh was also sentenced to 148 lashes for not having "proper hijab" in court. This human rights activist refused to choose a lawyer for herself because her previous lawyers were prosecuted in previous cases. Mr. Khandan says his wife "does not want to sacrifice lawyers again and create a situation where lawyers are prosecuted because of her." Ms. Sotoudeh was arrested on June 13 of this year under an arrest warrant and has been in prison since then. The issuance of new sentences for her has faced widespread reactions from human rights organizations, the United States, and the European Union, who have called on Tehran to immediately release Ms. Sotoudeh.