Iran Moves Closer to Rejailing Female Rights Activist Over Criticism of Government
Iran Moves Closer to Rejailing Female Rights Activist Over Criticism of Government
Iran has moved a step closer to re-imprisoning a female human rights advocate for her peaceful expressions of opposition to the nation’s Islamist rulers.
Speaking to VOA Persian from Iran earlier this month, a source close to activist Jila Karamzadeh Makvandi said she was sentenced to six years in prison for participating in anti-government street protests and expressing anti-government views on social media.
The source said a Tehran branch of Iran’s Revolutionary court notified Makvandi and her lawyer of the sentence on Sept. 28.
Babak Paknia, one of Makvandi’s lawyers, reported the sentencing in an Oct. 4 tweet.
The source told VOA Iranian judge Seyed Ali Mazloum ordered Makvandi to serve five years in prison for “gathering and conspiring against national security” and one year for spreading anti-government propaganda.
Under Iranian law, Makvandi’s effective jail term would be five years. She remains free on bail, pending an appeal, after authorities arrested her on Nov. 12, 2019, and held her for 20 days.
Paknia appealed the sentence in a Sept. 29 filing with the judiciary, the source said.
Iranian state-approved news agency Ensaf mentioned Makvandi’s sentencing in an Oct. 5 article citing the opposition Human Rights Activist News Agency (HRANA). But there has been no official word from Iranian authorities about her case in state media or any announcement about when an appellate court would review her sentence.
VOA’s source said Makvandi was detained for participating in anti-government protests that swept Iran last November in response to an unpopular hike in subsidized gas prices. Makvandi joined a peaceful rally at Tehran’s Laleh Park and chanted slogans including “No to poverty, war and dictatorship,” the source added.
Read more at: VOA
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