Sarvenaz Ahmadi (Persian: سروناز احمدی; born 1998) is an Iranian social worker and journalist who was sentenced to six years imprisonment after taking part in the Mahsa Amini protests in 2022.
Career
Ahmadi obtained a master's degree in social work from the University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences in Tehran. She went on to work as a social worker primarily working with children in poor neighbourhoods of Tehran. Ahmadi also worked as a freelance journalist focusing on politics, labour unions, and children's rights for outlets including Meidaan and SMT. While in prison, Ahmadi wrote several open letters criticising the treatment of detainees within the Iranian prison system, in addition to xenophobic policies passed by the Iranian government against Afghan refugees.
In 2022, Ahmadi married Kamyar Fakour, an environment and labour journalist.
Arrest, trial and imprisonment
In September 2022, widespread civil unrest and protests broke out across Iran following the death in police custody of Mahsa Amini after allegedly violating Iran's mandatory hijab law. Ahmadi began to document the protests on her Twitter account, attending protests with her husband. Ahmadi was briefly arrested before being released, following which her Twitter account was deleted. On 6 November 2022, Ahmadi and her husband were arrested for a second time and detained until 7 December when they were released on bail.
On 3 January 2023, Branch 15 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court sentenced Ahmadi to five years imprisonment for "gathering and colluding with the intention of acting against national security". She received an additional one-year sentence for "propaganda activities against the state". Fakour received a one-year sentence. Both Ahmadi and Fakour's lawyers were prevented from attending the sentencing hearing. Ahmadi appealed the sentence, and Branch 36 of the Tehran Court of Appeals subsequently reduced it to three years and six months in prison, with the possibility of applying for conditional release after serving one year and nine months of her sentence.
On 10 May 2023, Ahmadi and Fakour were arrested and both taken to Evin Prison in Tehran to begin serving their sentences. In August 2023, both of them were denied amnesty due to their alleged membership in "hostile groups with the intention of topping the Islamic Republic". Fakour was released from prison in November 2024.
Ahmadi's family and lawyers reported that her mental and physical health had declined in prison, including experiencing panic attacks and fainting episodes. On 14 August 2024, Ahmadi's mother stated that Ahmadi had been diagnosed with epilepsy whilst in prison. A doctor who medically assessed Ahmadi stated that prison conditions were triggering her epilepsy and recommended that she be granted urgent medical leave. This request was initially ignored by prison authorities, and between 9 September and 6 October 2024, Ahmadi stopped taking her medication in protest against the denial of her request for medical leave, in addition to wider issues with the treatment of detainees and "inhumane conditions" within Evin Prison. On 4 October, Mary Lawlor, the UN special rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, released a statement expressing concern for Ahmadi's welfare and called on the Iranian government to release her so she could access urgent medical care.
On 29 December 2024, Ahmadi was granted conditional release on health grounds.
References
- ^ "سروناز احمدی، فعال حقوق کودکان، به صورت مشروط از زندان اوین آزاد شد" [Children's rights activist Sarvenaz Ahmadi released from Evin Prison on parole]. Radio Farda (in Persian). 2024-12-30. Archived from the original on 2025-01-03. Retrieved 2025-01-12.
- ^ "Sarvenaz Ahmadi". Committee to Protect Journalists. 2023-05-10. Archived from the original on 2024-09-13. Retrieved 2025-01-11.
- Roodi, Mihri (2024-03-28). ""Nevruz Sınırları Geçince Yabancı Mı Olur?" - Sarvenaz Ahmadi'inin Açık Mektubu" [“Does Newroz Become a Foreigner When It Crosses Borders?” – Sarvenaz Ahmadi’s Open Letter]. Göçmen Sendikası Girişimi (in Turkish). Archived from the original on 2024-07-14. Retrieved 2025-01-12.
- ^ "Political prisoner refuses medication in protest at prison conditions in Iran". Medya News. 2024-09-09. Archived from the original on 2024-09-14. Retrieved 2025-01-12.
- "Kamyar Fakoor and Sarvenaz Ahmadi Sentenced to a Total of Four years and Two Months". Human Rights Activists News Agency. 2023-03-13. Archived from the original on 2023-03-13. Retrieved 2025-01-12.
- "با حکم دادگاه انقلاب؛ سروناز احمدی به شش سال حبس محکوم شد" [By the verdict of the Revolutionary Court; Sarvnaz Ahmadi was sentenced to six years in prison]. Human Rights Activists News Agency (in Persian). 2023-01-29. Archived from the original on 2023-05-28. Retrieved 2025-01-11.
- ^ "Sarvenaz Ahmadi conditionally released from prison". Front Line Defenders. 2025-01-09. Archived from the original on 2025-01-11. Retrieved 2025-01-11.
- ^ "Sarvenaz Ahmadi released from Evin prison". Jinha. 2024-12-30. Retrieved 2025-01-12.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - "حکم زندان سروناز احمدی و کامیار فکور به اجرا درآمد" [Prison sentences for Sarvnaz Ahmadi and Kamyar Fakur have been carried out]. Radio Zamaneh (in Persian). 2023-05-10. Archived from the original on 2024-06-23. Retrieved 2025-01-11.
- "وخامت حال سروناز احمدی، فعال حقوق کودکان در زندان" [The deteriorating condition of Sarvnaz Ahmadi, a children's rights activist in prison]. IranWire (in Persian). Archived from the original on 2023-09-24. Retrieved 2025-01-11.
- "مخالفت با مرخصی درمانی سروناز احمدی با وجود توصیه پزشکان" [Opposition to Sarvenaz Ahmadi's medical leave despite doctors' advice]. Hengaw (in Persian). 2024-08-26. Archived from the original on 2024-08-28. Retrieved 2025-01-12.
- "نگرانی گزارشگر ویژه سازمان ملل از وضعیت سروناز احمدی، فعال زندانی حقوق کودکان" [UN Special Rapporteur concerned about the situation of Sarvenaz Ahmadi, imprisoned children's rights activist]. Voice of America (in Persian). 2024-10-04. Archived from the original on 2024-10-04. Retrieved 2025-01-12.
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