A Tehran Court upheld the sentence for student activist Parisa Rafii for 7 years in prison and 74 lashes.
On Saturday, November 16, 2019, Branch 98 of the Revolutionary Court of Tehran upheld a sentence of 7 years’ prison, 74 lashes, and 2 years ban on leaving the country for this female student activist.
Parisa Rafii, 23, a student of art at Tehran University, was charged by branch 26 of the Tehran Court with association and conspiring “crimes against national security”, “propaganda against the state”, and “disturbing the public.”
According to her mother, her appeals court which was to be held on July 2, 2019, was canceled and her charges were issued in absentia.
Parisa Rafii was arrested on February, 25, 2018, by the Intelligence Ministry agents in front of Tehran University and transferred to Ward 209 of Evin Prison. Her lawyer had previously said, “In my opinion there is no logical or legal reason in the files for an absolute justification that she committed a crime. The crimes she is charged with are all normal behavior and in the framework of laws and rights of the nation under the constitution and civil rights for all citizens especially a student activist. Unfortunately, by issuing this sentence, legal and juridical fairness, justice, principles, and values are undermined and I will request an appeal.”
While being held in Evin Prison, Parisa Rafii wrote a letter revealing illegal pressures on female political prisoners. In parts of her letter she wrote: “I chose to write this letter under the circumstances of knowing what pressures are put on those who reveal such experiences and what effects it would have on their cases and issued sentences.”