More than fifty Iranian women human rights defenders are currently behind the bars in Iran. They are spending their lives in prison because they refused to be silenced: whether in voicing their political and religious beliefs, raising their ethnic demands, or simply challenging gender-related restrictions that are imposed on them as women.
In order to silence women human rights defenders and prevent them from working together, the state has employed different methods. Threats, interrogations, arrests and jail terms have been the fate of tens of women who have organized gatherings, written articles in criticism of discriminatory laws, given interviews or taken part in seminars, despite none of these activities being illegal. A number of these individuals have been acquitted, and others have been handed suspended jail sentences; some, however, have received heavy sentences.
Bahareh Hedayat is a student activist and a human rights defender, currently serving her nine and a half years’ sentence on the false accusation of propaganda against the state. Her only “crime” is promoting human rights and democracy in Iran. Mahnaz Mohammdi is a filmmaker sentenced to five years of imprisonment because of her activities to advance human rights. Zeynab Jalalian, a 33-year old Kurdish citizen who was initially been sentenced to death for her so-called ‘political’ activities. Her death sentence has now been commuted to life imprisonment. Hakimeh Shokri, a member of the “Mourning Mothers” (a group of women who have lost their children in political crises) was sentenced to three years in prison on charges of “propaganda against the state,” and “acting against national security” for her human rights activities and participation in peaceful gatherings.
