London: Promoting the 1Million Signature Campaign at South Bank University

Lib Dem MP, Simon Hughes, Signing the Petition

Potkin: A conference organised by the South Bank University Student Union, titled "The Empowerment of Women from the 1960's to the New Era" and the recent arrests of Iranian women campaigners, gave us an opportunity to raise awareness about the struggle of Iranian women and in particular about the one million signature campaign.


Speakers for the event included former First Lady of Ghana, Mrs Nana Rawlings, the local Lib Dem MP, Simon Hughes and the London based Persian Weekly correspondent Nazanin Ansari.

Participants were handed a brief outline of the recent arrests of women activists in Tehran before entering the lecture hall. Nazanin Ansari did an excellent job of outlining the challenges faced by Iranian women and how through peaceful non-violent means, Iranian women are fighting for their rights under extremely difficult conditions. Her speech was well received by the audience and nearly all the 100 people who attended, signed the petition and were keen to learn more about the plight of imprisoned activists in Iran.

Read more!

Tehran's heroic women

Please read Peter Tatchell's piece on Comment is Free:

Why is much of the left and the liberal media ignoring the struggle for democracy and women's rights in Iran?
Tomorrrow - March 8 - is International Women's Day and the women of Iran are growing bolder and more defiant than ever. Last Sunday, a group of courageous women's rights activists staged a vigil outside the Engelab Court in Tehran. They held banners demanding: "We have the right to hold peaceful protests".
These gentle, unthreatening women - armed only with words, ideals and paper placards - were violently attacked by the police, on the orders of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's regime. One woman had her head battered against the side of a police bus, shattering her teeth.
Another demonstrator, Nahid Mirhaj, accused the police chief of "using obscene words and describing us as 'misfits'."
The BBC correspondent in Tehran, Frances Harrison, says police and plainclothes security men arrested at least 32 women, including nearly all the leaders of Iran's women's movement. They were shoved into curtained buses and driven away. Unbowed, they are now on hunger strike in Evin prison, which is notorious for torture and deaths in custody. Their families and friends have begun a vigil outside the jail.

Human Rights Watch

says that some of the arrested women have since been released, but confirms that 26 are still in detention.
Sunday's demonstration was the latest in a series. It was called in solidarity with five women activists who are on trial after they staged a peaceful rally last June against Islamic laws that discriminate against women - in particular the sexist laws on polygamy and child custody. The five activists in the dock are Nusheen Ahmadi Khorasani, Parvin Ardalan, Sussan Tahmasebi, Shahla Entesari and Fariba Davoodi Mohajer.

For holding a peaceful protest, they are charged with endangering national security, propaganda against the state, and taking part in an illegal gathering. Another four women's rights campaigners are awaiting trial on similar charges arising from the same protest last June....

Read more!