UN Calls for the Release of Zeinab Jalalian, Kurdish Activist

The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention deemed the arrest and continued imprisonment of Zeinab Jalalian, a Kurdish political activist, to be inconsistent with multiple principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, urging the Iranian government to facilitate her immediate release. This working group, which investigated the case following complaints from the organizations 'Justice for Iran' and the international organization Redress, determined that Ms. Jalalian's detention is an example of the Iranian government's arbitrary actions in depriving its citizens of civil and human rights. The statement from this group referred to issues such as Ms. Jalalian's lack of access to a lawyer during her detention, her ignorance of the charges against her, her and her lawyer's absence from court, and the pressure on her to confess to collaborating with the PJAK, all of which violate the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Zeinab Jalalian was arrested in 2007 on charges of moharebeh (waging war against God) due to her membership in the PJAK group. The Revolutionary Court initially sentenced her to death, but her sentence was later commuted to life imprisonment. During this time, numerous reports have emerged regarding the deterioration of Ms. Jalalian's health, with human rights organizations including Amnesty International warning of her potential blindness. The UN Working Group's statement also addresses the physical condition of this political prisoner and calls on the Iranian government to compensate for the damages inflicted upon her by releasing her. This group had previously requested the Iranian government to be accountable regarding Zeinab Jalalian's conditions, but Iranian officials have refused to respond to this request. The Justice for Iran organization has also emphasized that most of Zeinab Jalalian's activities were in the fields of education, social work, and improving the status of Kurdish women, and that during her time in PJAK, she did not engage in any military or armed activities.