Sediqeh Vosoughi: Instead of Narges Mohammadi, Prosecute the Officer Who Assaulted Women

Sediqeh Vosoughi, an Islamic scholar and political activist, on Saturday, June 9, posted on Instagram referring to the statements of Dina Ghalibaf, a journalist and student activist who had been arrested and transferred to Evin Prison after recounting the assault by morality police officers. She wrote: "I earnestly recommend the judiciary to prosecute the officer and similar officers instead of Narges Mohammadi, who courageously raised her voice against the violations of a government agent..." This political activist further added that the prosecution of Narges Mohammadi in this context is evidence that "the regime officially permits and supports assaults on the dignity, honor, and security of women and the behaviors of some of its officers, such as handcuffing women and using tasers and touching their heads, faces, or bodies due to not wearing a hijab." Sediqeh Vosoughi is a prominent Islamic scholar who was arrested at her home in Tehran on March 17 and was released from Evin Prison on May 30 due to a worsening illness that had previously led to her blindness. Narges Mohammadi, the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize winner, who has been convicted three times for recounting abuse in court, is being tried for the fourth time in this regard on June 9, 1403 (June 9, 2024). On June 4, Narges Mohammadi emphasized in an Instagram post that sexual assault can be used as a devastating tool by certain political regimes against those considered 'the other,' stating: "Now, assault, rape, and sexual harassment are tools of torture, threats, and obtaining confessions by a government trying to push back popular protest movements." Meanwhile, over 130 activists and civil society members inside and outside the country issued a statement on Wednesday, June 7, protesting Narges Mohammadi's trial and expressing their support for the "Campaign for Solidarity Against Sexual Harassment" and the women’s ward of Evin Prison. This statement called on the public to join the "Campaign for Solidarity Against Sexual Harassment" and to narrate and judge public accounts of sexual assault, especially in the prisons of the Islamic Republic, by 170 civil activists who have named themselves narrators of violence and sexual assault. The statement praised Narges Mohammadi's recounting of sexual violence in prisons, stating that charges such as 'spreading falsehoods' and 'propaganda against the regime' against her are aimed at discrediting the tradition of resistance through narration and testimony and denying the violence that has occurred. The statement further protested the trial of this political prisoner and human rights activist, adding: "Now she is to be tried for spreading these narratives on the charge of 'spreading falsehoods' and demands that the trial be held publicly so that other witnesses of sexual violence can also have the opportunity to attend and testify." The statement also explained that narrating against violence "has been a way of resistance" and that repression, assault, and sexual harassment "are tools for intimidating, doubly repressing, and eliminating women from social and political activities." Narges Mohammadi's request to the people of Iran: Join the campaign against sexual harassment of the Islamic Republic. Dozens of activists supporting Narges Mohammadi: The Islamic Republic has used sexual violence as a tool of repression. Narges Mohammadi's request to the people: Join the 'Campaign for Solidarity Against Sexual Harassment.' A statement from 36 political prisoners in Evin: Narges Mohammadi's trial should be 'public' and with the presence of 'witnesses.' Presentation of the 'Tomaaj Law' draft in the U.S. Congress aimed at combating human rights violations by the judiciary of the Islamic Republic. Sediqeh Vosoughi: Compulsory hijab is a futile political game that women will end with their resistance.