A Tribute to Womanhood

Welcome to "I Am Woman"...a tribute to all those women who had the courage and perseverance to stand up and fight for their rights. Thanks to those who came before us we enjoy a freedom unknown to women not too long ago. But, sadly, in many parts of the world, women continue to be repressed. In fact, even in this country there are women living today under the threat of violence...completely controlled by a violent spouse. Some may make it; others won't. Hopefully, one day ALL women will be free. May that day come soon.

1/15/2011

Iranian Human Rights Lawyer Sentenced

 (Update)  I am a little late with this.  Sorry.

Not to long ago I posted a story on Nasrin Sotoudeh, the  Iranian Human Rights lawyer who was arrested on September 4th and held in solitary confinement until her trial began on November 15th.  She was charged  with (allegedly) acting against state security, assembling, and collusion with intent to disrupt national security. She was also charged for working with the Center for Human Rights Defenders, an organization founded by Nobel Laureate,  Shirin Ebadi.   Recently,  she was sentenced to 11 years in prison; in addition,  she has been prohibited  from practicing law or leaving Iran for the next 20 years.

Before her arrest, Sotoudeh was a member of the One Million Signatures Campaign and on the board of directors of the Society for Defense of Children's Rights.   She has broken no laws, but is being jailed because she has upheld law in a judicial system intent on violating human rights. She 
has  represented several of the more than one hundred activists and political figures who have been tried on charges of fomenting unrest after Iran's disputed presidential election in June, 2009.

Sotoudeh, who has been in Evin Prison since September 4, went on a hunger strike to protest the conditions of her illegal arrest, but because of her children, ended it after a few days.  Afterwards, she began a dry hunger strike when she was deprived of her legal rights, , such as the right to telephone calls and visits from her family members and her two young children along with the gross mishandling of her case. She broke her dry hunger strike on November 11th  and ended her hunger strike, which lasted a total of 50 days, following the trial.

1 comment:

  1. What a shining light for women all over the world...Let us all keep her in our prayers!

    Thank You Mary for the update!
    Bless You Sister for all that you do!

    ReplyDelete