Temporarily released from prison in her country for medical reasons, Iranian Narges Mohammadi, 2023 Nobel Peace Prize winner, promised never to let herself be muzzled despite her incarceration, according to extracts from a videoconference with the Norwegian Nobel committee published this Thursday December 12.
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“ I know I can do much more outside the prison walls, but I will not let imprisonment silence me. Never “, said the 52-year-old activist who won the Nobel Prize last year for her fight against the oppression of women in Iran and for the promotion of human rights.
“ Commitment to women’s rights, human rights and freedom cannot be hindered by any prison wall “, she added in English. Released from prison for three weeks on December 4 due to the deterioration of her state of health, Narges Mohammadi spoke by videoconference on Sunday, for the first time since her distinction, with the Nobel committee.
“ Silent assassination of political prisoners » in Iran
AFP obtained a longer version of this exchange on Thursday in which Narges Mohammadi, bareheaded, speaks cheerfully in English and Farsi. Convicted many times and imprisoned for 25 years for her commitment against compulsory veiling for women and against the death penalty, the Iranian activist has spent a large part of the last decade in detention.
“ The Islamic Republic (of Iran) wants to muzzle all opposition voices in the country “, she said in Farsi. “ Even if they want to silence me and activists like me, what are they going to do with the Iranian people? The people of Iran have risen up. »
She also denounced “ the silent assassination of political prisoners » in Iran. “ I should be free to continue my work “, she stressed. According to her support committee, Narges Mohammadi is now in a private residence where she is currently free to move around. From the UN to the Nobel committee, many voices have demanded his unconditional and permanent release.
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