“Mary Lawlor”: Interrogators Threatened Iranian Women’s Rights Activists with Rape and Death
“Mary Lawlor,” UN Special Rapporteur, reported threats of rape and death against Iranian women’s rights activists by interrogators.
Mary Lawlor, UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, expressing concern over the detention of six women’s rights activists in Iran, said: “Reports indicate that these individuals were threatened with sexual assault during interrogation.”
Mary Lawlor, on Monday, July 15, posted a message on the social media platform X, referring to the issuance of long-term prison sentences for women’s rights activists, stating: “They were arrested violently, subjected to torture, and during interrogations were threatened with death and sexual assault.”
Jale Javaheri, Azadeh Chavoshan, Negin Rezaei, Farrogh Samiennia, Shiva Shahsiyah, and Matin Yazdani are women’s rights activists who were transferred to Lakan Prison in Rasht on August 23 to serve their prison sentences. They, along with Zahra and Zohrah Dadras, Sara Jahani, Yasmin Hashidari, and Houman Taheri, were sentenced to more than 60 years in prison in a case related to their activities in August 2023.
Security agencies arrested these activists on August 25, 2023, in the cities of Rasht, Fouman, Anzali, and Lahijan. One day after their arrest, the General Directorate of Information of Gilan Province announced in a statement: “The detainees were planning and taking action to incite riots and sabotage on the anniversary of Mahsa’s uprising in Gilan and Kurdistan.”
After spending two months in prison at various times, they were temporarily released from Lakan Prison in Rasht after posting bail. According to released information, during interrogation they were subjected to torture, solitary confinement, humiliation, cursing, insults, and sexual harassment by interrogators, and were threatened with transfer to psychiatric hospitals, flogging, and execution. Among these individuals, Farrogh Samiennia and Houman Taheri even underwent mock executions.
According to statements by the families of these individuals regarding the torture inflicted upon them, in addition to Ministry of Intelligence officers, judges also played a major role in the torture of these prisoners.
Based on the verdict issued by Branch Three of Rasht Revolutionary Court under the presidency of Judge Mehdi Rasekhi, Zahra Dadras was sentenced to 9 years, 9 months, and 2 days in prison; Sara Jahani, Azadeh Chavoshan, Yasmin Hashidari, Zohrah Dadras, Negin Rezaei, Farrogh Samiennia, Shiva Shahsiyah, and Matin Yazdani were each sentenced to 6 years, 1 month, and 17 days in prison; and Jale Javaheri and Houman Taheri were each sentenced to one year in prison. The charges against them are listed as “membership in an anti-system group,” “assembly and conspiracy with the intention of undermining national security,” and “propaganda against the system.” The court based its attribution of the charge of “membership in an anti-system group” on some of these individuals’ membership in a Telegram group.
Mary Lawlor, regarding the sentences issued against these women’s rights activists, called on the Islamic Republic authorities to immediately release these prisoners and end the suppression of women’s rights activists.
