Labor Activist Anisha Assadollahi was sentenced to 5 years and eight months of imprisonment
In a recent development, labor activist Anisha Assadollahi and Maryam Derisi have been handed severe prison sentences by Iranian courts.
Labor activist Anisha Assadollahi was sentenced to five years and eight months of imprisonment by Branch 26 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court.
Maryam Derisi, a graduate student and activist, received a sentence of 22 months and 17 days from the Fars Province Appeals Court.
These rulings highlight the ongoing crackdown on activists in Iran.
Anisha Assadollahi’s verdict, issued by Branch 26 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court, states that she has been found guilty of “assembly and collusion” and “propaganda against the state.” She has been sentenced to five years of imprisonment for the former charge and eight months for the latter.
If the verdict is upheld during the appeals process, the harshest punishment, five years of imprisonment, will be executed for the charge of “assembly and collusion” under Article 134 of the Islamic Penal Code.
On April 16, 2023, a hearing occurred at Branch 26 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court to address the charges against labor activist Anisha Assadollahi. Subsequently, on the eve of International Workers’ Day, April 28, 2023, she was arrested along with several other trade union and labor activists by security forces at the residence of Mohammad Habibi, a prominent teachers’ union activist, and transferred to Evin Prison.
She was released temporarily on a 1-billion-Toman bail on May 8, 2023.
In a separate case, Maryam Derisi, a graduate student at Saveh University and a vocal participant in the 2022 Iran protests, was transferred to Adelabad Prison in Shiraz to serve 15 months of prison time.
The Fars Province Appeals Court sentenced her. She received 15 months and 1 day of imprisonment for “insulting the leadership” and 7 months and 16 days for “propaganda against the state.”
The combined sentence amounts to 22 months and 17 days. According to Article 134 of the Islamic Penal Code, the harshest punishment, 15 months of imprisonment, will be enforced.
Before this ruling, Maryam Derisi had already faced legal consequences for her activism. Branch 103 of the Kazerun Revolutionary Court sentenced her to one year of imprisonment and 74 lashes, while Branch 102 of the same court gave her a three-year prison sentence. On October 15, 2022, she was arrested by security forces in Shiraz and subsequently transferred to Adelabad Prison. However, on November 2, 2022, she was released on bail.
These cases exemplify activists’ challenges in Iran, where exercising freedom of expression and association is met with legal consequences.