Sepideh Gholian: The Islamic Republic has unleashed a bloody scythe upon prisoners

Sepideh Gholian, a detained civil activist, protested the confirmation of the death sentence of Pakhshan Azizi, another imprisoned civil activist, in a letter and referred to the increasing executions of prisoners in Iran, stating: "The Islamic Republic has unleashed a bloody scythe upon the children of this land." In the letter published on Saturday, January 22, on the Telegram channel of the Iranian Retirees Council, Gholian described the situation in Evin Prison as "war-like" and added: "Behind the tall walls and barbed wires of this front, we are women who whisper the names of the executed every day and look to the future." According to the Hengaw Human Rights Organization, this political prisoner wrote in her letter that the government fears the voices of these women because it knows that "the voice that has risen from a century of oppression echoes in the streets. They know that 'Women, Life, Freedom' is not just a slogan; it is a chain that connects hands to hands and voices to voices." She added that "Women, Life, Freedom is not just a slogan, but an open wound; a wound that has remained on the body of this land, yet every time life has sprouted from the heart of that wound. These three words rose from Kurdistan and reached the streets, the mouths, and the hearts not as words, but as a heartbeat. This slogan is a map for survival in a land where death has become law." Gholian pointed out that "death-minded individuals want to throw the nooses around the necks of these three words; not just to kill two women, but to cut the roots of freedom" and emphasized: "Pakhshan Azizi and Varishe Moradi, two Kurdish women, are now clear fighters whose names are on our lips, but the shadow of execution looms over all of us." Gholian stressed: "Varishe and Pakhshan must stay alive. They are the arteries of this chain. This war is for life that has connected hands from the mountains of Kurdistan to the plains of Sistan and Baluchestan, from the streets of Azerbaijan to the villages of Khuzestan." This political prisoner mentioned Pakhshan Azizi, who "once sheltered war orphans," adding: "From now on, our cell has a woman who at any moment may not be here, turning her absence into a bitter story and a deep wound on our and your conscience." In this letter, Pakhshan Azizi is referred to as "a symbol of love for humanity" and it states: "Now she stands against a death that stems not from justice, but from hatred and revenge. The same death that the Islamic Republic orchestrated with Bashar al-Assad for thousands of innocent people in Syria, and now has thrown that bloody scythe upon the children of this land once again." Gholian noted that "this is not just the story of one individual" and wrote: "This is the story of all of us," adding: "Pakhshan's story is intertwined with all of our stories, with the story of mothers waiting for their children whose blood stains the streets, with the story of people whose life has become their wish." News sources reported on Wednesday, January 19, that the Supreme Court of the Islamic Republic confirmed the death sentences of Pakhshan Azizi, Behrouz Ehsani Islamloo, and Mahdi Hasani, three political prisoners held in Evin Prison. Amir Reisiyaan, Pakhshan Azizi's lawyer, also announced that the death sentence of this political prisoner was confirmed in Branch 39 of the Supreme Court of the Islamic Republic "without regard to numerous flaws in the case." Pakhshan Azizi was sentenced to death and four years in prison on August 2 of this year in Branch 26 of the Islamic Revolutionary Court of Tehran, presided over by Iman Afshari, on charges of "waging war against God through membership in opposing groups." In her letter, Gholian emphasized that "the Islamic Republic wants to separate us, scatter our stories, and push us into corners of isolation," writing: "But we know that hope lies in intertwining these stories; in weaving a strong chain of pains and resistances, of tears and standpoints." Gholian wrote: "We cannot and do not want to remain silent. If we do not raise our voices today, tomorrow it will be another story's turn. We want you to strengthen this chain. Do not let Pakhshan's story be an endless tale of regret and silence. Be her voice, be her story." This political prisoner emphasized that we must fight death with "life," writing: "Let us make a chain from life, against every loop of the noose. Will you take my hand to be the next link in the chain?" Sepideh Gholian, who has been arrested, tortured, and imprisoned several times, was arrested again after shouting the slogan "Khamenei is a tyrant, we will bury you underground" outside Evin Prison in Esfand 1401 and was sentenced to two years in prison in Ordibehesht 1402. This civil activist from Khuzestan is currently in "exile" in Evin Prison in Tehran and has repeatedly requested "transfer to the prison of her residence," in the city of Dezful.