155 Flowers and 20,000 Signatures for the Freedom of Nazanin Zaghari
Friends and family of Nazanin Zaghari gathered in front of the Iranian embassy in Britain on the occasion of Mother’s Day and placed 155 flowers at the location. A petition for Zaghari’s freedom with 20,000 signatures was also placed at the same spot.
Nazanin Zaghari, an Iranian-British citizen, has been imprisoned in Iran for 155 weeks, and the 155 flowers placed by her friends and family on Sunday, April 31 (March 31) in front of the Iranian embassy in Britain were a reference to this duration.
Besides the flowers, a card containing a petition for Nazanin Zaghari’s freedom, signed by 20,000 people, was also placed in front of the steps of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s embassy in London. Amnesty International had organized the campaign to create this card and collect signatures.
Hamid Baeidi, the Islamic Republic of Iran’s ambassador to Britain, did not show a direct reaction to Ratcliffe and his companions’ request, but by posting a photo of these individuals on his tweet, he described this action as “making a scene” and “media warfare” against the Iranian government. Baeidi wrote: “Right now Ratcliffe, Zaghari’s husband, in coalition with Amnesty International while they have not received public support, along with a few people in front of our embassy’s building have made a scene. But the prominent presence of media with their direct recording capabilities clearly shows what the goal is.”
The presence of both flowers and a petition for Zaghari’s freedom in front of the Iranian embassy in London took place a few days before the third anniversary of her arrest.
Nazanin Zaghari is one of the project managers of the Thomas Reuters Foundation charity. She was arrested at Imam Khomeini Airport upon her return from Iran in April 2016. Nazanin Zaghari had traveled to Iran with her daughter for a family visit.
Zaghari was convicted in the Revolutionary Court under the presidency of Judge Abolghasem Salavati of charges of “espionage” and “action against national security” to five years imprisonment. Ms. Zaghari, her family, the British government, and the Reuters Foundation have described these charges as baseless.
Nazanin Zaghari is a dual citizen of Iran and Britain, but the Iranian government does not recognize dual nationality, and judicial officials say that Ms. Zaghari has been tried and imprisoned in accordance with Iranian law.
Zaghari has recently been allowed to visit with Gabriella, her four-year-old daughter, twice a week.
Richard Ratcliffe has expressed concern about his wife’s health condition in prison. He has said that Nazanin’s condition is deteriorating and that she is suffering from depression and nervous breakdowns.
In mid-March of last year, the British government announced “diplomatic support” for the imprisoned Iranian-British citizen in Iran. Jeremy Hunt, Britain’s foreign secretary, announced that while this action cannot be expected to work miracles, this decision could be helpful to Nazanin Zaghari’s case.
At that time, the Iranian ambassador to Britain also showed an angry reaction to the British government’s action. Baeidi considered diplomatic support for Nazanin Zaghari to be contrary to international law and wrote in his tweet that such a thing is only possible in the case of supporting citizens of one country. In other words, the Islamic Republic does not recognize Nazanin Zaghari’s dual nationality.
Source: DW
