Some German Parliament Representatives Respond Positively to Campaign Supporting Victims of Protests in Iran

A number of representatives from the German Parliament, after months of discussions and various meetings with Iranian refugee rights activists, decided to send a draft resolution to the federal government of Germany, the European Parliament, and the state parliaments of Germany, calling for 'practical support' from European governments for the victims of the 'Women, Life, Freedom' movement. With the onset of nationwide protests and the security and judicial crackdown by the Iranian government on protesters, many of them sought refuge in other countries, including some neighboring Iran. Some of these refugees emphasize that they will face life-threatening situations if they return to Iran. Therefore, several human rights activists in Germany have collected half a million electronic signatures on the official website of the German Parliament, protesting the non-acceptance of Iranian refugees and requesting changes to the German government's policies regarding refugees and victims from Iran, as well as support for the 'Women, Life, Freedom' movement. Farshad Mahmoudi, one of the signatories of this campaign, stated in an interview with Voice of America that the aim of forming this campaign is 'international pressure on the Islamic Republic, greater acceptance of Iranian refugees, transferring affected refugees remaining in the border countries of Iran to a safe country, and a complete halt to the expulsion of Iranian refugees from Germany in various ways.' He added that 'supportive actions for activists opposing the Iranian government in Europe and the prohibition of selling any kind of soft or hard suppression tools to the Islamic Republic' are other goals of this campaign. According to Mr. Mahmoudi, this petition, which has currently been approved by the German Federal Parliament, is set to be implemented after further consultations. Concurrently, with the onset of nationwide protests in 2022 and the brutal crackdown on protesters, several opponents and victims of this movement who had been sentenced to execution and imprisonment left Iran. The Revolutionary Court of Boukan summoned Matin Hassani, one of the eye-injured victims of the protests, while Hossein Hosseinpour, an eye-injured protester, was sentenced to imprisonment.