Six years in prison, punishment for a civil activist protesting against compulsory hijab in the Islamic Republic

Jila Karamzadeh Makondi, a civil rights activist critical of the mandatory hijab in Iran, was recently sentenced to six years in prison by an Iranian court for expressing her views and participating in the protests in November. The sentence was announced to her and her lawyer on October 28.

An informed source close to Ms. Jila Karamzadeh Makondi told VOA that after a short trial on September 8 at Branch 29 of the Islamic Revolutionary Court of Tehran, she was sentenced to six years in prison by Judge Seyyed Ali Mazloum on charges such as "gathering and colluding with the intention of committing a crime against national security" and "propaganda against the system."

Babak Paknia, the lawyer for Ms. Karamzadeh Makondi, has also confirmed the news of the civil activist's conviction in a post on Twitter in recent days.

This ruling is not final, and Ms. Karamzadeh and her lawyer appealed the ruling on October 29 and requested a review.

Arrest, sentence in absentia, and repetition of sentence in an in-person trial

A source close to Jila Karamzadeh Makondi told VOA that Ms. Karamzadeh Makondi was arrested by IRGC Intelligence on November 11, 2019. She had participated in a rally in Laleh Park during the November protests under the slogan “No to Poverty, War, and Dictatorship.” Ms. Karamzadeh was interrogated during her detention for expressing her opinion and criticizing the mandatory hijab.

According to this informed source, Ms. Karamzadeh, a civil society activist, had repeatedly expressed her opposition to the compulsory hijab on Instagram and social media channels of civil society activists. She was detained in Evin for 20 days and was temporarily released on bail of 300 million Tomans. In February of last year, Branch 29 of the Islamic Revolutionary Court of Iran tried her in absentia on charges of gathering, collusion, and propaganda against the system and sentenced her to six years in prison. Ms. Karamzadeh went to court with her lawyer, and the court agreed to hold a new trial. However, this time, the court, presided over by Judge Seyyed Ali Mazloum, repeated the previous sentence, ignoring the defenses of Ms. Karamzadeh and her lawyer.

This person close to Ms. Karamzadeh, who did not wish to be named for fear of jeopardizing her safety, said that during the trial, Ms. Karamzadeh's lawyer repeatedly objected to the judge because, according to him, the judge was withdrawing from the justice process and, instead of judging, was acting as an investigator, collecting evidence to convict Ms. Karamzadeh.

This is not the first time that Jila Karamzadeh Makondi has been arrested and sentenced to prison. She was previously arrested during the 2009 presidential protests, known as the Green Movement. At that time, Ms. Karamzadeh was convicted in court on charges of “gathering and colluding with the intention of committing a crime against internal security” and served her sentence in Evin Prison. According to a source close to Ms. Karamzadeh, the trial was also unfair.

International human rights organizations and the United States government have accused the Islamic Republic of violating freedom of expression and suppressing civil activists, and have called for the release of journalists who have been imprisoned simply for carrying out their duties and careers.

The United States of America has also repeatedly and on various occasions condemned the violent confrontations and widespread repression of protesters and civil activists, as well as the repeated and persistent violations of the rights of Iranian citizens by the ruling regime in that country.

Source: Voice of America