Lawyer Saleh Nikbakh will receive the Sakharov Prize in Strasbourg on behalf of the family of Mahsa Amini, who were not allowed to leave Iran, Lusa told the European Parliament (EP) press service.
In addition to the Iranian lawyer and academic, two representatives of the ‘Woman, Life and Freedom’ movement – Afsoon Najafi and Mersedeh Shahinkar – will also attend the presentation of the European Union’s highest honor in the field of human rights, which will take place will take place at 11:30 am local time (10:30 am Lisbon), in the EP Chamber.
Mahsa Amini’s parents and brother were “not allowed to board the flight that would take them to France for the Sakharov Prize presentation,” Chirinne Ardakani, the family’s lawyer in France, said on Saturday.
Mahsa Amini died on September 16, 2022, three days after she was detained by Iranian customs police for alleged misuse of the Islamic veil. Her death sparked months of large-scale demonstrations against Iran’s political and religious leaders, whose repression resulted in hundreds of deaths. and thousands of arrests.
In October, the European Parliament awarded the Sakharov Prize to Mahsa Amini and the ‘Women, Life and Freedom’ movement, which was violently suppressed by the Iranian authorities.
Representatives of the movement started the day today by speaking to journalists from across Europe and asking for support without words, with actions against the Iranian regime that are “even against happiness”, reporting arrests of people celebrating.
“The Islamic Republic has taken away the basic rights of the people. If you want to support us, I ask that you treat the authorities as they treat us. If they want to attend your meetings, don’t give them visas. the same way we do,” he called on Afsoon Najafi.
After describing numerous acts of violence, including against themselves, the two women criticized how Iranian authorities choose to have their children outside Iran, as in this country “people are going hungry because they have to save on everything, including food.”
Human rights activists also described how men join the movement, join demonstrations and protect women demonstrating in the streets against, in particular, the use of the Islamic veil and other norms considered discriminatory.
Source: DN
