Prize for Iranian human rights activist
Berlin's Governing Mayor Kai Wegner presented the Iranian lawyer Nasrin Sotudeh with an award on Monday. The CDU politician presented the human rights activist with the so-called Heroine Award of the Alice Schwarzer Foundation, which was reportedly awarded for the first time.
"Nasrin Sotudeh has become a symbol of the fight for human rights," said Wegner at the award ceremony. "She is paying a high price for this and we can only hope that she survives."
Sotudeh campaigns for women's rights and against the death penalty in Iran. The 60-year-old is considered one of the most influential female lawyers in Iran. She was awarded the Alternative Nobel Prize in 2020. Sotudeh was arrested again at the end of October. She had been imprisoned several times in recent years and spent many years behind bars. The judiciary accuses her of "anti-state propaganda". She was originally sentenced to several decades in prison. Sotudeh rejects the accusations against her.
A friend accepted the award on her behalf in Berlin on Monday. Sotudeh thanked her in a video message recorded on October 20. The laudatory speech in Berlin was held by German-Iranian actress Jasmin Tabatabai. She emphasized: "International attention is often the only life insurance for political prisoners in Iran." Publicist Alice Schwarzer described Sotudeh as an "unusually courageous fighter". There are ongoing protests in Iran against the authoritarian regime.
Sotudeh's fight for human rights, including women's rights and opposition to the death penalty, often comes at a high personal cost in terms of prison sentences and detainment. The global community's focus on her case serves as a critical source of justice and potential protection for her situational plight.
Source: www.dpa.com
