2023-10-20 03:14:00
The young Kurdish Mahsa Amini, who died more than a year ago after being arrested for allegedly wearing the veil incorrectly, and the Women, Life and Freedom movement were awarded this Thursday with the 2023 Sakharov Prize from the European Parliament, which thus highlighted the struggle of women for their rights in Iran.
The award, which is awarded every year to recognize the defense of human rights, highlights the figure of Aminiwhat She died in September last year while being detained by the Iranian Moral Police. for allegedly wearing the veil incorrectly.
This candidacy started as a great favorite after being supported by the three main blocs of the European Parliament, the popular ones, the social democrats and the liberals.
The President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola said in making the announcement that Amini’s death sparked “a movement driven by women that is making history.”
Metsola added that the award was a “tribute to the women, men and young people in Iran who, despite being under increasing pressure, are leading the push for change”, reported the AFP news agency.
The announcement came just two weeks after Iranian activist Narges Mohammadi, 51, currently imprisoned in her country, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
VIDEO | The Iranian Mahsa Amini and the “Women, Life and Freedom” movement, Sakharov Prize of the European Parliament. pic.twitter.com/ghDgbGi3pd
— EFE News (@EFEnoticias) October 19, 2023
September 16, 2022, the day of the death of this young Iranian Kurdish woman, “is a date that will remain in infamy,” Metsola also said.
Amini was arrested last year by Iran’s Morality Police for allegedly breaking the dress code, which requires women to cover their heads with a veil and wear discreet clothing.
The 22-year-old girl died three days later while in police custody.
According to authorities, Amini was taken to a police center for an explanatory talk regarding the dress code, where she suffered cardiac arrest while in custody and, although she was immediately taken to a hospital, she died three days later.
This version was rejected by humanitarian NGOs and by an important part of society who staged massive protests that gave rise to the Women, Life and Freedom movement, also awarded the 2023 Sakharov Prize.
This movement is supported by “three words that became a slogan of all those in favor of equality, dignity, and freedom in Iran,” added the president of the European Parliament.
The demonstrations and protests that emerged after Amini’s death were severely repressed and the authorities further tightened controls on Iranian women, in addition to curtailing their rights and access to places such as beauty salons, hairdressers and public parks.
According to the Norway-based non-governmental organization Iran Human Rights, more than 550 people died from the repression during the marches.
For their part, Iranian authorities consider that the riots were orchestrated from abroad and accused Western countries of supporting the protesters, who spread “subversive and anti-Iranian” messages in the media and called for the overthrow of the Iranian Government. .
#VideoNews
The European Parliament awards the Sakharov Prize to the Iranian Mahsa Amini, who died in detention
???? AFP pic.twitter.com/7ertbagOTZ— La Razón Digital (@LaRazon_Bolivia) October 19, 2023
This year, the list of candidates for the Sakharov Prize included two Nicaraguan activists, Vilma Núñez and Bishop Rolando Álvarez.
Also among the finalists was a women’s movement in favor of safe, free and legal abortion, which included the Salvadoran Morena Herrera.
In the initial phase, far-right euro-legislators proposed millionaire Elon Musk, owner of the X network (formerly Twitter), a platform investigated in the EU for disseminating disinformation, for the prize.
However, Musk’s candidacy was eliminated in the first round of analysis.
The Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Conscience is awarded annually by the European Parliament and pays tribute to the nuclear physicist and Soviet dissident Andrei Sakharov, Nobel Peace Prize winner in 1975.
The winner of the award is decided by vote in the so-called College of Presidents, which brings together the head of the European Parliament and the heads of the party blocs.
The award is accompanied by a reward of 50,000 euros and will be presented on December 13 in a plenary session in the French city of Strasbourg.
Last year it was awarded to the Ukrainian people to honor “their struggle and courage” in the face of the large-scale Russian invasion that began in February 2022.
In 1992 it went to the Mothers of Plaza de Mayo, which was the first organization to win it.
#European #Parliament #awarded #award #Mahsa #Amini #struggle #Iranian #women