CNN
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The husband of prominent Iranian human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh will be forced to serve the remainder of his five-year prison sentence, Sotoudeh told CNN on Tuesday.
Reza Khandan has been subpoenaed to report to the judiciary within 30 days to begin enforcing the sentence first handed down in 2019.
Sotoudeh said her husband’s subpoena came just days before speaking with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour in an exclusive interview from her home in Tehran, but he had not informed her about the matter.
“I ask the help of every free conscience [around the world] to prove human solidarity [exists] And end oppression to get basic rights,” Sotoudeh said.
In an interview with Amanpour, Sotoudeh revealed that she and her family are aware of the risks of speaking out publicly.
Although she admitted to being “fearful” for her and her family’s safety, she told Amanpour:
Kandan was arrested in 2018 for his activism and aiding his wife’s fight against Iran’s mandatory hijab law, according to Iran’s semi-official ISNA news agency.
Khandan’s attorney, Mohammad Moghimi, said his client was charged with “assembling and conspiring against national security.” “propaganda against the regime”; and “promoting and promoting not wearing the hijab.”
According to ISNA, Khandan spent a short time in prison before being released under Moghimi’s custody in late 2018. He was subsequently convicted in 2019, but he was never taken into custody to serve a five-year term.
Kandan’s attorney is due to go to the public prosecutor’s office on Sunday to find out if the judiciary plans to have his client enforce the rest of the sentence.
“It is natural that all of us, including my children, are concerned about the execution of the sentence,” explained Sotoudeh. [judiciary does not] It is out of solidarity and love for humanity that we enforce our judgments. ”
News of Kandan’s summons came as his wife told CNN’s Cristiane Amanpour about recent protests in Iran, political prisoners, and Iranian doctor and civil rights activist Farhad, who is a friend of Sotoudeh and has been jailed. It comes just days after speaking exclusively about growing concerns about Meisami’s health.
According to ISNA, Meysami was jailed in 2018 after she voiced support for women protesting the mandatory hijab law. The activist was charged with “assembling and conspiring to act against national security” and “propaganda against the regime,” according to the Iranian Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA).
“Over the years, Farhad has been a very active member of our civil society, but over the past decade, [his] Activities are becoming more and more open. And he has been particularly supportive of the women’s protest movement,” Sotoudeh told Amanpour.
Meysami was released from prison last Friday. annual pardon It was granted by Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei.
However, many other activists and protesters remain in detention or are at risk of detention.
“Despite the release of dozens of political prisoners, the crackdown continues,” Omid Memarian, senior Iran analyst at Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), told CNN.
“There are many activists who have been summoned or are expected to go to prison to carry out the rest of their suspended sentences.”
Memarian expressed his anger and disappointment at what he described as a temporary reprieve for the amnesty protesters.
“These activists want freedom for women, the freedom to choose what to wear, and they have fought against the compulsory hijab,” he said.
“Now, sending Kandan to prison for these activities shows that the government’s approach to hijab mandates has not really changed. We show no mercy to activists who continue to speak out.”
