Iran’s Judiciary Opposes ‘Conditional Release’ for Vida Movahed, Woman Protesting Mandatory Hijab

Payam Derafshan, the defense lawyer for Vida Movahed, a woman whose protests against mandatory hijab have made headlines over the past two years, says that despite her request and meeting the conditions, judicial authorities are refusing her conditional release application.

Vida Movahed protested mandatory hijab in December 2017 by climbing an electrical box on Enqelab Street without a hijab and waving a white scarf on a stick. After her, other girls carried out similar protests and became known as the “Girls of Enqelab Street.” Movahed was detained at that time, but in November 2018 she again demonstrated her protest in a similar manner in Enqelab Square. She, who has a young child, was sentenced by Iran’s judiciary to one year in prison.

Payam Derafshan, Movahed’s lawyer, wrote on Instagram on Wednesday, June 21, that the “Guidance Prosecutor’s Office” did not approve her conditional release request.

According to the laws of the Islamic Republic of Iran, individuals who have not committed serious crimes can apply for conditional release after serving some of their sentence. Judicial authorities typically reject such applications from imprisoned political critics and civil activists.

Her lawyer wrote in an Instagram post that Vida Movahed is ill and has lost weight in prison. He also expressed concerns about the guardianship of Movahed’s young child.

Previously, the U.S. State Department issued a statement strongly condemning the severe suppression of women’s rights activists in Iran and called for an end to the harassment, persecution, and imprisonment of women who are only demanding their basic and fundamental rights.

The statement also referenced the unjust one-year prison sentence for Vida Movahed, the initiator of the Girls of Enqelab Street protest movement, and the 20-year prison sentence for Shaparak Shajari Zadeh.

Source: Voice of America