Solidarity with Iranian Women Political Prisoners and Women Indicted for Opposing the Compulsory Hijab or for other Social Justice Activities

By Dilip -
June 17, 2018
Below, the Alliance of Middle Eastern Socialists is providing short biographies of several of the most well-known feminist political prisoners, in order to heighten awareness of the important role of women in the current protest movement in Iran and to promote solidarity with Iranian feminist struggles, and the protest movement as a whole.

A wave of  protests and strikes have been spreading throughout Iran in opposition to the Islamic Republic since December  2017. Participants include broad sectors of the Iranian working class,  women and men, mostly young.Their protests have been preceded by and continue to involve protests and strikes by employed and unemployed workers,  students, teachers, healthcare workers, retirees, those who have lost their savings in failed financial institution,  political prisoners, and the families of political prisoners. They include members of various oppressed national minorities such as Arabs, Kurds, Lurs and Azaris as well as persecuted religious minorities such as Baha’is  and Sufis.

Many courageous  women who took off their headscarves in public to  protest the compulsory hijab,  were beaten, arrested and temporarily released after posting heavy bails. Among them, several are well-known cases such as Vida Movahed,  Narges Hosseini,  Maryam Shariatmadari, Shaprak Shajarizad. They were charged with  “inciting corruption and promoting prostitution” and face  prison sentences. These women have come to be known as “Girls of Revolution Avenue.”  They believe that wearing the hijab should be a matter of individual choice not imposed from above.  The Iranian regime’s own polls admit that a majority of the Iranian public agrees with them.

Over a hundred women and men attempted to come together to protest in front of the Ministry of Labor in Tehran on March 8, International Women’s Day, following a call by some women’s rights activists demanding an end to gender discrimination in the work place, family and society as a whole, and an end to the compulsory hijab.  Before they could even gather, they were attacked and beaten.  At least 84 people (59 women and 25 men) were arrested by the police.  Although most have been released on bail, they face court trials.

Nasrin Sotudeh,  a feminist,  leading human rights attorney and defender of many of the Girls of Revolution Avenue was arrested at her home on June 13, imprisoned,  and now faces  a five-year prison sentence.  Sotudeh’s husband, Reza Khandan, a writer and political activist was also arrested on June 16.   (see next page for further details on Nasrin Sotudeh).

Leila Hosseinzadeh,  an anthropology student,  labor and women’s rights activist,  who was  arrested after the December protests, along with other student activists,  faces a six-year prison sentence.  She and other student activists who also helped organize protests at Tehran University and  face prison sentences, have been charged with  “endangering national security.”… read more:
https://www.allianceofmesocialists.org/solidarity-with-iranian-women-political-prisoners-and-women-indicted-for-opposing-the-compulsory-hijab-or-for-other-social-justice-activities/


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