Free women's rights activist Bahareh Hedayat
Bahareh spoke up for human rights.
Now she's in one of the most infamous and notorious prisons in the world.
Evin Prison, in Iran, is noted for its political prisoner wing, which has housed a large number of intellectuals and activists. Numerous incidents of brutal interrogations and torture have been reported. Former prisoners provide horrific accounts of the conditions.
Bahareh was arrested in 2009, charged with several "offences" including "interviews with foreign media" and "insulting the leader". Her sentence was extended when, refusing to be silenced, she wrote a letter from prison encouraging students to continue their peaceful struggle for freedom.
She has already been imprisoned for five years and her health has suffered. Under Iranian law, she should be eligible for parole, but it's been denied.
Call on Iran to free Bahareh now.
His Excellency Ayatollah Sadegh Larijani,
Bahareh Hedayat, an activist with The Campaign for Equality and a member of the Central Committee of the Office for the Consolidation of Unity, is currently serving a 10 year prison sentence for promoting the elimination of gender discrimination in Iranian law. She was detained on the basis of legislation which restricts the internationally recognized right to freedom of belief, expression, and association.
I urge you to order the immediate and unconditional release of Bahareh Hedayat. She is a prisoner of conscience held solely for peacefully exercising her rights to freedom of expression and association.
[Your comments here]
Sincerely,
[Your name]
