Release Narges Mohammadi: Laureates

Six Nobel Laureates have released a statement urging the Iranian government to immediately release woman human rights defender, Narges Mohammadi from detention. The statement appears below.

Narges Mohammadi, Deputy Head and spokesperson for the Defenders of Human Rights Centre and a distinguished woman human rights defender, was arrested at her home in Tehran on 5 May 2015.

In 2012, Narges’s sentence was reduced to six years from an earlier sentence of 11 years because of her human rights activities. After she suffered a severe medical condition in prison, she was granted medical leave on bail.

According to her medical certificate, she has not yet recovered from her illness.

During her medical leave, Narges was repeatedly interrogated and harassed and eventually re-arrested and imprisoned with total disregard for her medical condition.

The Iranian government is a signatory to various international conventions. Based on the UN General Assembly Resolution on human rights defenders and Resolution on Protecting Women Human Rights Defenders, governments are obliged to refrain from creating obstacles for human rights defenders’ activities. Additionally, the resolution:

stresses that respect and support for the activities of human rights defenders, including women human rights defenders, is essential to the overall enjoyment of human rights, and condemns all human rights violations and abuses committed against persons engaged in promoting and defending human rights and fundamental freedoms.

We, the undersigned, strongly condemn the conviction and arrest of Nargess Mohammadi and demand her immediate and unconditional release.

Signed,
Jody Williams, Mairead Maguire, Rigoberta Menchú Tum, Shirin Ebadi, Leymah Gbowee, Tawakkol Karman – Nobel Peace Laureates

source: nobelwomensinitiative.org

Link:

http://www.humanrights-ir.org/?p=1360