When Iranian President Ahmadinejad spoke to audiences in New York, one of his standard talking points was the claim that Iran is the freest country in the world. Below is an open letter written by the wife of Mehdi Karroubi, one of the candidates for president in the contested 2009 election and perhaps the most courageous and outspoken critic of the regime subsequently.
Fatemeh and Mehdi Karroubi have been under the most stringent house arrest, constantly surrounded by security thugs and denied even the most basic human rights, for the past eight months. They have never been charged with a crime and have never appeared in any court. They were tried, convicted and sentenced at the whim of senior leaders of the Islamic Revolution for reasons of their own.
The Karroubis are not exceptions. Thousands of Iranians have been arrested and held on a variety of charges that all boil down to the fact that they dared to be critical of the existing leadership of Iran’s government. There are no shortage of stories and testimony from those who have been persecuted for political reasons, but the letter at the link is particularly brave and touching and revealing.
5 months ago • 14 notes
