Prison will not silence me, says Mohammadi from Iran

Narges Mohammadi, the 2023 Iranian Nobel Peace Prize winner who is temporarily out of prison, said in a video call released Thursday that she would never allow herself to be silenced in prison.

The 52-year-old has been imprisoned repeatedly over the past 25 years, most recently since November 2021, for previous convictions related to her advocacy against compulsory hijab for women and the death penalty in Iran.

“I know I can achieve much more outside prison walls, but I will not allow imprisonment to silence me. Never!” Mohammadi said this in a video call with the Nobel Committee on Sunday, saying it was the first time she had spoken to them since winning the prize.

The Nobel Committee shared with AFP on Thursday the video in which Mohammadi can be seen without a veil, joyfully speaking in English and Farsi.

“No prison wall can limit the commitment to women’s rights, human rights and freedom,” she said, adding that “advocating for human rights and women’s rights is not a crime.”

“I should be able to continue my work,” she said, condemning Iran’s “silent killing of political prisoners.”

“The Islamic Republic is looking for ways to silence all opposing voices in the country,” Mohammadi said.

But “even if they manage to silence me… it wouldn’t change anything for the Islamic Republic,” she said.

“The Iranian people stood up and protested.

“The Iranian people do not want the Islamic Republic and the Islamic Republic knows it,” she said.

After Mohammadi won the Nobel Peace Prize last year, her two children accepted the award on her behalf.

She was released from prison on December 4 for three weeks on medical grounds after undergoing bone surgery.

Her supporters considered this insufficient and pushed for her unconditional and permanent release.

phy/po/jhb