In response to the letter written by the Sunni Kurds imprisoned in Rajaiishahr Prison who had demanded the unconditional release of civil and children’s rights activist Atena Daemi, she wrote an open letter and thanked the prisoners.
In part of her letter written on January 6, 2017, Ms. Daemi wrote: “You have been criminalized and condemned since birth for being Kurds and Sunnis. And I have been condemned to watch you being oppressed so much. My dear brothers, I am the one who must cry out with all my power for your freedom. Atena is no one compared to you and your likes, including Maryam Akbari and Fatemeh Mossanna. You are the men and women who have spent years in prison without even one day of leave and some of you without having any visits. For what crime? For the crime of being innocent, for preserving your honor and dignity, you have spent the best years of your lives behind the bars. Atena’s blood is no more colorful than yours and theirs, and her life is no more precious.”