The wave of arrests following the protests and violence taking place in Ashura in December has included over sixteen women journalists, women’s movement and civil society activists.

The wave of arrests following the protests and violence taking place on Ashura, in December, has included over sixteen women journalists, women’s movement and civil society activists.

Nobel laureate and women’s rights advocate Shirin Ebadi’s 47-year old sister, Noushin, a professor of dentistry who is not engaged in any human rights work or political activity, was arrested in her home in Tehran by security officials on Monday, December 28. The previous week, Noushin Ebadi had been contacted by officials and ordered to tell her sister to stop her work.

This appalling attempt to silence an internationally-known activist by targeting an innocent family member comes in the midst of further escalation of violent crackdowns on protesters and opposition figures in Iran. This political unrest has become a smokescreen for a more comprehensive clampdown on human rights activists, especially students and women, who have been systematically targeted, harassed, and arrested.

Arrests of women’s rights activists during recent months suggest that any semblance of procedural transparency has deteriorated. There is great concern for the safety of all human rights activists and their families in this climate charged with intense violence and political intimidation.

For more information on recent arrests of activists, please visit Change for Equality, The Feminist School, Women’s Field, and International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran.

SOURCE: AWID

You can leave a response