Vrisheh Moradi, Political Prisoner Sentenced to Death: Society Will Resist Oppression

Vrisheh Moradi, a political prisoner sentenced to death, stated in a letter published on Tuesday, February 9, for the anniversary of the "No to Execution Tuesdays" campaign, that "one must either live without life or live with meaning and transcendence." Ms. Moradi, a civil activist sentenced to death in Evin prison, regarded the issuance of her death sentence as a verdict against "a part of the imprisoned women fighters" and added: "My friends and I have been sentenced on behalf of a community." In the letter, published on an account attributed to Golrokh Iraei, a political prisoner in Evin prison, it is mentioned that the issuance of the death sentence signifies "a dream that has been envisioned for the entire society and has taken the path of oppression (read execution) against the community, and of course, it will face resistance." Vrisheh Moradi referred to the domestic and international support for the abolition of the death penalty against several political prisoners, including herself, considering it a "great encouragement" for political prisoners and added: "We did not succumb to the impositions and baseless accusations of the security apparatuses and resisted. Society also supports us, and this solidarity is a significant manifestation of the continuation of civil struggle against the oppression of governmental apparatuses in Iran." She also expressed gratitude in her letter for the nationwide strike in Kurdish regions of Iran in protest against the issuance of death sentences. This political prisoner sentenced to death also referred to the "unprecedented resistance" of female political prisoners "against the violation of human rights in Iranian prisons" and wrote: that we women have taken on this resistance, partly due to the double oppression of the current patriarchal and misogynistic regime and partly due to the firm determination of women to achieve freedom. Ms. Moradi also described the No to Execution campaign in various prisons in Iran as a "unifying action" that "highlights our essential and human aspect, a public demand to emphasize the right to life and call for the abolition of the death penalty in Iran." She termed "No to Execution Tuesdays" as a "human alliance" against "state murder" that is "used to instill fear and terror in society." In another part of her letter, she wrote that female political prisoners consider the "main challenge of current life" to be the "gender challenge," which can only be addressed after resolving it, other challenges will have a chance of resolution. Vrisheh Moradi also wrote about the situation of the case being fabricated by the security institutions of the Islamic Republic of Iran against her: "During the interrogation, the same interrogator who faced Farzad Kamangar sat in front of me and said 15 years ago, Farzad also sat in your place, but he could not do anything and created death for himself. I said if I am sitting here today, it is the result of Farzad's efforts and struggle." Farzad Kamangar, a teacher and political activist, along with Shirin Alam-Hooli, Ali Heydarian, and Farhad Vakili, was executed on May 9, 2010, without the knowledge of their lawyers and families in Evin prison in Tehran on charges of moharebeh and membership in the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). According to human rights organizations, these four Kurdish activists were subjected to severe torture during their detention and were sentenced to death in unfair trials. In the conclusion of her letter, Vrisheh Moradi wrote: "The motto of my struggles is: I want to overturn the fate that is always repeated in the tragic games of life in favor of freedom. In this game whose title is truth and can only be achieved through struggle, this time, fate will fail. The gene of life resistance is the resistance of life." Ms. Moradi was sentenced to death on November 20 by Branch 15 of the Islamic Revolutionary Court of Tehran on charges of "baghi" (armed uprising against the government). She was arrested on July 31 last year in the outskirts of Sanandaj and transferred from the Ministry of Intelligence detention center known as Ward 209 of Evin prison to the women's ward of this prison on December 25 of the same year. This political prisoner had previously revealed in an open letter from prison that during her detention, she was subjected to physical and psychological torture, threats of execution, and gender-based violence.