Letter from 20 Human Rights Organizations to Joe Biden: Confront the Suppression of Popular Protests in Iran

Hrana News Agency – A collective of human rights activists in Iran, together with 19 human rights organizations, has sent a joint letter to the President of the United States, calling for greater action against the suppression of popular protests in Iran by the country’s authorities.

According to Hrana News Agency, the news organ of the collective of human rights activists in Iran, 20 human rights organizations have sent a joint statement to the President of the United States, calling on him to confront the suppression of popular protests in Iran by the country’s authorities.

In their letter to Joe Biden, these organizations, referring to the death of Mahsa Amini during detention, stated that widespread nationwide protests and strikes in response to this incident have taken place in at least 103 cities and towns across all 31 provinces of Iran; protests that have so far resulted in the killing of dozens of protesters and the wounding of many gatherers.

In a section of this letter, it is stated: Thousands of citizens, including journalists, civil activists, and artists, have been arrested during the recent nationwide protests, some of whom are being tortured in prison.

These organizations, while referring to the killing of dozens of citizens during popular protests on Friday, the 8th of Mehr, in Zahedan, stated in their letter: Protesting students at Sharif University of Technology in Tehran were surrounded for hours by military and security forces in the university building and parking lot. Officials opened fire on them, and several were arrested in groups.

The letter also states: Nika Shakarmi, a 16-year-old teenager from Khorramabad, was killed by officials in Tehran during popular protests, and his lifeless body disappeared for a period. This is while many deaths, injuries, and arrests may remain hidden from the public due to “internet blackouts.”

These human rights organizations called on the President of the United States to impose sanctions on Iran’s Morality Police. They asked Mr. Biden, as “the world’s leading democratic power,” to express solidarity with and support women and protesters in Iran; as the people of Iran need the support of America and the entire international community in the current circumstances.

Among other demands of these human rights institutions from the President of the United States are: requesting investigation of crimes committed by the Iranian government in response to popular protests at the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, requesting Iranian authorities to respect the basic rights of their citizens, reviewing and reconsidering sanctions that have led to restrictions on Iranian citizens’ access to the internet. These can be noted.

In conclusion, referring to the unprecedented nature of the suppression of popular protests in Iran and the massacre of protesters and internet shutdowns during nationwide protests, they asked Mr. Biden to take necessary measures in this direction before a new generation of Iranian citizens faces the oppression and suffering of past generations.

The names of the human rights organizations signing this statement are as follows:

1. Abdorrahman Boroumand Foundation
2. Article 19
3. Human Rights Association of the People of Azerbaijan in Iran (AHRAZ)
4. Baloch Activists Campaign
5. Iran Human Rights Organization
6. Committee to Support Journalists
7. Collective of Human Rights Activists (in Iran)
8. Human Rights First
9. Human Rights Foundation
10. Iran Human Rights Documentation Center
11. Justice for Iran
12. Kurdistan Human Rights Association – Geneva (KMMK-G)
13. Kurdpa Human Rights Organization
14. PEN America
15. Middle East Democracy Project
16. Raoul Wallenberg Human Rights Center
17. RASANAH
18. Siamak Pourzand Foundation
19. United for Iran
20. Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO)

Source: Hrana