Narges Mohammadi writes a letter describing the conditions of a number of mothers in Evin Prison.
“I am woman, a mother and a human rights activist. In this country, both of these characteristics, being a woman and human rights activist are considered major crimes,
because as far as those in power are concerned, a woman’s role is to stay in the house and care for the children, and if a woman is also a mother who is out of the house and is criticizing those in power, just like a male activist involved in civil, political activities or has other beliefs, this will actually add up to her crime.
“As a mother, I have been separated from children and taken to solitary confinement, and I have experienced the suffering of a mother separated from her children.
Right now I am in a prison called ‘Evin’ along with 17 other women, of which 11 are mothers and three of them have children under the age of 10.
“We are women in prison, deprived of telephone calls (even to our children), and we see our children once every 15 days only for a few minutes, this is after receiving permission from judiciary officials and while security agents are present during the visit.”