Summons sent to 9 women's rights activists
The Evin Prosecutor's Office has summoned several women's rights activists in Iran. Their lawyers say they have been summoned to give explanations. The names of none of the summoned are known.
Attorney Amir Raisian announced that summonses had been sent to a number of women's rights activists. IRNA news agency quoted him as saying on Tuesday, November 6: "This week, a summons has been sent by the Evin Prosecutor's Office to nine women's rights activists." Amir Raisian said that the number of those summoned may be higher.
The lawyers defending these activists said that not much information is available about the reason for the summons, and that the summons refers to "appearance to provide some explanations."
The names of none of those summoned have been revealed. One of them, speaking on condition of anonymity, told IRNA: “So far, nine women’s activists have been summoned and will be summoned to the Holy See on specific dates next week.”
The news of the new summonses comes as Hoda Amid, a lawyer and women's rights activist who was arrested in early September 2018, was released on bail a few days ago.
Hoda Amid, along with Najmeh Vahedi and Rezvan Mohammadi, are among the activists who held educational workshops to familiarize women and girls with the terms of marriage.
The three were charged with “attempting to overthrow the foundation of the family.” Najmeh Vahedi is a sociologist and graduate of women’s studies, and Rezvan Mohammadi is a cyberspace activist in the field of gender equality.
After the arrest of these civil society activists on September 1, 2018, a statement signed by more than 750 civil society activists inside and outside Iran was published calling for their release. The statement stated that the “Intelligence Service of the Revolutionary Guard” had arrested the three and that they were being held in Ward 2A of the IRGC in Evin Prison.
The arrest and summoning of civil society activists in Iran has intensified in recent months. The arrest of human rights activists, which began in June with the arrest of Nasrin Sotoudeh, has taken on new dimensions with the arrest of a number of lawyers who were following up on the cases of civil society activists.
Abdulkarim Lahiji, a lawyer and co-founder of the Iranian Society for the Defense of Freedom and Human Rights, previously told DW: "Repression and arrest in times of crisis is the only way the Islamic Republic knows. Now, as in the past forty years, the Islamic Republic government, meaning the government and all supranational institutions under the supervision of the Supreme Leader, think they can contain the crisis by increasing the wave of repression."
"Najmeh Vahedi released on bail"
On Tuesday evening, November 6, shortly after the news of the summons of nine women's rights activists, Najmeh Vahedi's brother announced on Twitter that his sister had been released. Reza Vahedi wrote: "After 67 days of temporary detention, my sister Najmeh Vahedi has been released on bail."
In addition to holding training workshops on contractual terms, Najmeh Wahedi has also carried out activities to address the disregard for the economic value of women's domestic work.
Source: DW
