Amnesty International Demands Immediate Release of Nasrin Sotudeh
In a letter to the new head of the judiciary, Ebrahim Raeesi, Amnesty International demanded the immediate release of Nasrin Sotudeh.
Amnesty International has also asked people to write to Ebrahim Raeesi in any language and demand the release of Sotudeh.
Amnesty writes that Nasrin Sotudeh, the prominent human rights advocate and defense attorney in Iran, has been arrested arbitrarily and after two unfair trials, she might face 34 years in prison and 148 lashes.
She has been charged with crimes such as “propaganda against the regime, insulting the leader, and espionage.” According to Amnesty International, she has received these charges only for defending women who protested mandatory hijab in Iran, and her strong opposition to the death sentence.
The statement also asks the head of the judiciary to “decriminalize women’s rights activism, including protest to mandatory hijab.”
According to Reza Khandan, the husband of Sotudeh, one court session has been held for seven charges against her in absentia. The trial was presided by Judge Moghiseh.
In protest to the rules of having to choose judiciary-approved attorneys, Sotudeh has refused to choose an attorney.