Detainees in the Women’s Ward of Evin Prison condemned the banishment of Maryam Akbari Monfared to the Prison of Semnan.
Fourteen female political prisoners detained in the women’s ward of Evin Prison wrote an open letter protesting the abrupt and forcible relocation of their fellow cellmate, Maryam Akbari Monfared, to the Prison of Semnan on March 9, 2021.
Female political prisoners Zahra Zehtabchi, Fatemeh Mosanna, Zeinab Hamrang, Nahid Fat’halian, Aras Amiri, Sepideh Kashani, Niloufar Bayani, Hadiss Sabouri, Roya Izadpanah, Aliyeh Motallebzadeh, Arezou Qassemi, Parisa Rafii, Atena Daemi and Raheleh Ahmadi signed the open letter protesting the banishment of Maryam Akbari Monfared.
In the open letter they sent out of Evin Prison, they wrote:
After serving some 12 years of ceaseless detention, Maryam Akbari Monfared was banished to the Prison of Semnan on March 9, 2021. Arrested in December 2009 and sentenced to 15 years in prison, she is among the female political prisoners with the longest period of detention. She survives a family who paid a heavy price when 4 of their children were executed. During all these years, she has faced various form of pressure and restrictions, including being deprived of having a furlough for even a single day!
Maryam Akbari Monfared was banished right at a time when she was preparing to greet Nowruz, the Iranian New Year, with great motivation.
She was a firm pillar, who imbued endless energy, great motivation and love for resistance among her cellmates in the ward. We watched in awe the departure of a selfless and steadfast woman did not have any fear at the time she bid farewell and was taken to exile. As always, she was high spirited, her lips smiling, her eyes shining and singing an anthem.
We, political prisoners detained in the women’s ward of Evin, and having coexisted with various opinions and creeds through all the moments of our lives, have come to know Maryam with her endurance and patience, determination, will power and fighting spirit, tirelessness, her power to stay away from routine habits, and her insatiable passion to read and learn.
Recalling Maryam’s resistance against all odds that she and her family had to endure because of seeking justice (for their loved ones) and because of their opinions and beliefs, we are happy for having had the chance of being in the company of such a great woman. While paying homage to her and her ways and manners, we wish her increasing strength and pride…
Signatories: Zahra Zehtabchi, Fatemeh Mosanna, Zeinab Hamrang, Nahid Fat’halian, Aras Amiri, Sepideh Kashani, Niloufar Bayani, Hadiss Sabouri, Roya Izadpanah, Aliyeh Motallebzadeh, Arezou Qassemi, Parisa Rafii, Atena Daemi and Raheleh Ahmadi
Sunday, March 14, 2021
Women’s Ward of Evin Prison
