Narges Mohammadi... To create discussions

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Canadians show these people to create positive energy and change.

The current Nobel Peace Prize, Narges Mohammadi, was recognized in 2023 for her unwavering struggle against Iranian women's oppression and her ceaseless efforts to promote human rights for all. She was given that award for her brave, nonviolent advocacy in the face of injustice, but the vicious violence used during her recent arrest feels like a direct insult to everything.

She has been incarcerated for more than ten years, and she is currently serving a lengthy sentence (roughly 13 years due to a combination of charges) on charges such as "propaganda against the state" and threats to national security, which she and her supporters vehemently deny as politically motivated. She had been given temporary medical leave from Tehran's notorious Evin Prison late last year due to severe health problems, so she wasn't even completely free when this occurred. However, she continued to speak out despite having that tenuous little freedom.

She travelled to Mashhad to speak at a memorial for Khosrow Alikordi, a committed human rights lawyer and fellow activist whose death earlier this month has been widely described as extremely suspicious by rights groups, in a potent act of defiance and solidarity. It was extremely brave and risky to show up there, especially to honour someone who had experienced similar harassment. At that point, security personnel intervened and violently arrested her and other activists in the middle of the crowd.