April 29, 2019
Open Letter calling for the release of Nasrin Sotoudeh:
We, Parliamentarians of Canada, call for the Government of Iran to release Nasrin Sotoudeh, a human rights lawyer who has been detained in Iran’s Evin Prison since June 2018. In March 2019, Ms. Sotoudeh was sentenced to 38 years in prison and 148 lashes.
We acknowledge that freedom of expression and peaceful assembly are integral to ensuring the rule of law and the functions of democracy. These fundamental principles are clearly defined in international law and are the inherent right of all people.
Nasrin Sotoudeh is a human rights lawyer who has dedicated both her career and her life to safeguarding the rights of Iranians. Ms. Sotoudeh has advocated on behalf of activists and political prisoners, and in particular those who have stood up for the rights of women and girls in Iran. As a result of her advocacy, since 2010 Ms. Sotoudeh has been imprisoned four times by Iranian officials.
As part of peaceful protests in 2018, some women removed their hijabs, wrapped them around sticks, and waved them like flags. This act of justified political expression inspired more women and girls in Iran to do the same. Many of these women and girls were then prosecuted for exercising their right to freedom of expression, and Ms. Sotoudeh represented them in her capacity as a lawyer. For this, in June 2018 Ms. Sotoudeh was sentenced to five years in prison after being convicted in absentia. She is currently detained in Evin Prison, which is notorious for its use of torture and inhumane treatment of political prisoners, contrary to international human rights protocols.
Democracy does not leave space for a culture of fear and repression. Following the Iranian Green Movement in 2009, and in the wake of political and social change in neighbouring countries, the Government of Iran has used fear and repression to stifle the voices of those seeking change. The Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran released in September 2018 has indicated that there are serious violations regarding basic civil and political rights in Iran, including rights to due process and fair trial.
We call upon the Government of Iran to respect its obligations under international human rights law, including its obligations outlined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights. We note that Article 9 prohibits arbitrary arrest, and Article 10 mandates that all people who have been deprived of their liberty must be treated with humanity and respect. In consideration of the use of torture in Iran’s Evin prison, we call on the Government of Iran to ratify the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. These core civil and political rights are essential in any democratic society.
The suppression of dissidence in Iran has been coupled with the repression of women’s rights, as the Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran has indicated that Iranian laws continue to discriminate against women and girls. Given our commitment to gender equality, we call on the Government of Iran to ratify the Convention on the Elimination of All forms of Discrimination against Women. We also draw attention to Article 26 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which states that all people are equal before the law and have the right to the equal protection of the law. In recognizing the situation for women in Iran, we stand in sombre admiration of Ms. Sotoudeh, who has demonstrated to the world that Iranian women will not be silenced.
As Canadian Parliamentarians, we stand in solidarity with the international community, including the European Parliament and the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner, and call on the Government of Iran to release Nasrin Sotoudeh and other political prisoners who have been unjustly imprisoned.
Sincerely,
The Honourable A. Raynell Andreychuk, Senator for Saskatchewan
The Honourable Linda Frum, Senator for Ontario
The Honourable Marilou McPhedran, Senator for Manitoba
Supported by:
The Honourable Mobina S.B. Jaffer, Senator for British Colombia
The Honourable Terry M. Mercer, Senator for Nova Scotia (Northend Halifax)
The Honourable Lillian Eva Dyck, Senator for Saskatchewan
The Honourable Larry W. Campbell, Senator for British Columbia
The Honourable Sandra M. Lovelace Nicholas, Senator for New Brunswick
The Honourable Michael Duffy, Senator for Prince Edward Island (Cavendish)
The Honourable Stephen Greene, Senator for Nova Scotia (Halifax - The Citadel)
The Honourable Claude Carignan, P.C., Senator for Quebec (Mille Isles)
The Honourable Pierre-Hughes Boisvenu, Senator for Quebec (La Salle)
The Honourable Salma Ataullahjan, Senator for Ontario (Toronto)
The Honourable Victor Oh, Senator for Ontario (Mississauga)
The Honourable Raymonde Gagné, Senator for Manitoba
The Honourable Ratna Omidvar, Senator for Ontario
The Honourable André Pratte, Senator for Quebec (De Salaberry)
The Honourable Tony Dean, Senator for Ontario
The Honourable Nancy J. Hartling, Senator for New Brunswick
The Honourable Diane F. Griffin, Senator for Prince Edward Island
The Honourable Kim Pate, Senator for Ontario
The Honourable Howard Wetston, Senator for Ontario
The Honourable Yuen Pau Woo, Senator for British Columbia
The Honourable Éric Forest, Senator for Quebec (Gulf)
The Honourable Marc Gold, Senator for Quebec (Stadacona)
The Honourable David Richards, Senator for New Brunswick
The Honourable Mary Coyle, Senator for Nova Scotia (Antigonish)
The Honourable Mary Jane McCallum, Senator for Manitoba
The Honourable Marty Deacon, Senator for Ontario (Waterloo Region)
The Honourable Senator Yvonne Boyer, Senator for Ontario
The Honourable Mohamed-Iqbal Ravalia, Senator for Newfoundland and Labrador
The Honourable Pierre J. Dalphond, Senator for Quebec (De Lorimier)
The Honourable Bev Busson, Senator for British Columbia
The Honourable Patti LaBoucane-Benson, Senator for Alberta
The Honourable Peter Boehm, Senator for Ontario
The Honourable Josée Forest-Niesing, Senator for Ontario
The Honourable Pat Duncan, Senator for Yukon
The Honourable Rosemary Moodie, Senator for Ontario
The Honourable Stan Kutcher, Senator for Nova Scotia
The Honourable Hedy Fry, P.C., MP for Vancouver Centre, British Colombia
The Honourable Deepak Obhrai, P.C., MP for Calgary Forest Lawn, Alberta
The Honourable Judy A. Sgro, P.C., MP for Humber River – Black Creek, Ontario
The Honourable Larry Bagnell, P.C., MP for Yukon
David Anderson, MP for Cypress Hills – Grasslands, Saskatchewan
Brad Trost, MP for Saskatoon – University, Saskatchewan
James Bezan, MP for Selkirk – Interlake – Eastman, Manitoba
Dean Allison, MP for Niagara West, Ontario
Borys Wrzesnewskyj, MP for Etobicoke Centre, Ontario
Peter Julian, MP for New Westminster – Burnaby, British Columbia
David Sweet, MP for Flamborough-Glanbrook, Ontario
Bev Shipley, MP for Lambton – Kent – Middlesex, Ontario
Irene Mathyssen, MP for London – Fanshawe, Ontario
Kelly Block, MP for Carlton Trail — Eagle Creek, Saskatchewan
Linda Duncan, MP for Strathcona Edmonton, Alberta
Guy Caron, MP for Rimouski-Neigette – Témiscouata – Les Basques, Quebec
Hélène Laverdière, MP for Laurier – Sainte-Marie, Quebec
Murray Rankin, MP for Victoria, British Columbia
Sheri Benson, MP for Saskatoon West, Saskatchewan
Arnold Viersen, MP for Peace River – Westlock, Alberta
Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, MP for Beaches – East York, Ontario
Rachael Harder, MP for Lethbridge, Alberta
Mark Gerretsen, MP for Kingston and the Islands, Ontario
Jenny Kwan, MP for Vancouver East, British Columbia
Michael Levitt, MP for York Centre, Ontario
Ali Ehsassi, MP for Willowdale, Ontario
Glen Motz, MP for Medicine Hat – Cardston – Warner, Alberta
Mel Arnold, MP for North Okanagan – Shuswap, British Columbia
Robert-Falcon Ouellette, MP for Winnipeg Centre, Manitoba
Ruby Sahota, MP for Brampton North, Ontario
Doug Eyolfson, MP for Charleswood - St. James – Assiniboia - Headingley, Manitoba
Majid Jowhari, MP for Richmond Hill, Ontario
Eva Nassif, MP for Vimy, Quebec
Jagmeet Singh, MP for Burnaby South, British Columbia