On the occasion of her 45th birthday, Iranian human rights activist Narges Mohammadi remains in Iran’s Evin Prison serving a 16-year-sentence for her defense of human rights. On April 21st, Amnesty International Germany in Erlangen held a ceremony to mark Narges’ birthday and planted a tree in her name.
Iranian activist Mansoureh Shojaee shared a letter from Nargess’ son Ali, a painting from her daughter Kiana and a message from Narges herself at the ceremony. Narges’ letter spoke about migrating birds — and how they represented Iranians in exile who are waiting to return home. She wrote, “Here, in my own way, I comfort myself in the corner of the prison’s backyard, listening to the joyful sounds of returned migrating birds, thinking about all our migrating birds far away from the homeland, awaiting the arrival of the ‘spring of freedom’ for their return.” Narges is the Vice-President of the Centre for Human Rights Defenders in Tehran.
On 8 March 2017, Amnesty International’s chapter in Erlangen also collected signs from the public supporting her freedom. They have held similar tree planting ceremonies before, including one for Bahreh Hedayat in April 2011.
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Amnesty Erlangen: Freedom for Narges Mohammadi, Nordbayern, 12 March 2017 (German news article).
Meet Narges Mohammadi.
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Iran: Free Narges Mohammadi now!
Source: Nobel Women’s Initiative
NARGES MOHAMMADI’S BIRTHDAY