The European Parliament on Tuesday awarded the Sakharov Prize posthumously to Iranian Mahsa Amini, whose name has become a “symbol of freedom” according to her family, kept away from the ceremony by Tehran. The European Union’s highest distinction for human rights, this prize was awarded to the young Iranian Kurd, who died at the age of 22 on September 16, 2022, three days after being arrested for non-compliance with the strict code clothing imposed on women in Iran.
Her death led to months of protests against Iranian political and religious leaders, with Mahsa Amini becoming the symbol of the fight against the obligation to wear the veil. The repression of this movement caused hundreds of deaths and thousands of arrests.
Mahsa Amini compared to Joan of Arc
Mahsa Amini’s family had planned to attend the Sakharov Prize presentation at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, but were hit at the last moment with a ban on leaving Iranian territory. “I would like to be able to be present in your honorable assembly, to represent all the women of my country and express my gratitude for the awarding of the Sakharov Prize” wrote Mahsa Amini’s mother, Mojgan Eftekhari, in a message read by her lawyer , Saleh Nikbakht, who received the Sakharov Prize on behalf of the family. “Unfortunately, we were denied this opportunity, in violation of all legal and human standards,” she added.
Speaking of his daughter, Mojgan Eftekhari compared her to Joan of Arc, stressing that “her life was unjustly taken.” “I firmly believe that her name, alongside that of Joan of Arc, will remain a symbol of freedom,” she said. Condemning the Iranian regime’s decision to prevent Mahsa Amini’s relatives from traveling to France, European Parliament President Roberta Metsola said “the way they were treated is yet another example of what the Iranian people are confronted with daily life. “The courage and resilience of Iranian women in their fight for justice, freedom and human rights will not be stopped. Their voices cannot be silenced,” insisted Roberta Metsola.
“Fed up with the Iranian regime”
More than a hundred MEPs had signed an open letter to denounce the decision of the Iranian authorities, which in their eyes aims to “reduce to silence” the family of Mahsa Amini “by preventing them from denouncing the scandalous repression of the rights of women, human rights and fundamental freedoms by the Islamic Republic in Iran”. Considering that there is “no legal basis” justifying this measure, the family’s lawyer, Saleh Nikbakht, intends to contest it once he returns to Tehran… “If they give me time, because as soon as I return to Iran, I could be arrested and imprisoned,” he told AFP. The lawyer was in fact sentenced last October to a year in prison for “propaganda” against the State after speaking with the media about the Mahsa Amini affair.
The award of the Sakharov Prize came two days after that of the Nobel Peace Prize to activist Narges Mohammadi, who was unable to travel to Oslo to receive this award because she has been detained since 2021 in Evin prison in Tehran. Tuesday at the Strasbourg Parliament, two Iranian activists represented the “Femme Vie Liberté” movement, also awarded the Sakharov Prize. They are Afsoon Najafi, whose sister Hadis was killed at the age of 22 during a demonstration in honor of Mahsa Amini, in September 2022, and Mersedeh Shahinkar, injured in the eye during a demonstration against the Iranian regime in October 2022. They both left Iran in 2023.
“We are here on behalf of all women, we are fed up with the Iranian regime,” Mersedeh Shahinkar, who now lives in Germany, declared at a press conference. Afsoon Najafi called on the international community to put more pressure on the Iranian regime. The European Parliament has adopted several non-binding resolutions to condemn the Iranian regime’s repression of protesters.