Shahrzadnews – On March 8th women’s rights activists representing various groups celebrated International Women’s Day in Tehran and other major Iranian major cities. Nikzad Zanganeh, the main speaker in Tehran, gave a brief history of the annual event and called on the government to free her imprisoned compatriots. She said she hoped that future gatherings would be held under better conditions and in freer circumstances. 

Jila Bani Yaghub, author of “The Women of Ward 209” (a section of Evin political prison) told the gathering: “I am not trying to create any heroines here. However, at a time when remaining neutral has become the norm in the struggle for women’s rights, the presence here today of women such as Nasrin Sotoodeh, Nazanin Khsravani, Aliya Eghdam Doost reminds us that our struggle has not ended in a one-way street.” 

Reza Khandan, the husband of Nasrin Sotoodeh, thanked the families of other political prisoners for faithfully supporting his wife throughout her ordeal. 

Aliya Eghdam Doost, who was recently released after spending many years in Evin prison, told the gathering that the Iranian women’s struggle for human and civil rights had never wavered, and that they would not abandon their demands. 

Other speakers included: Shahla Foroozanfar of the Mothers for Peace group, Minoo Mortazi, a religious nationalist activist; Hale Safarzadeh, a campaigner for the rights of women and workers; Maryam Rahmani and Nahid Jafari of the One Million Signatures Campaign; civil rights activist and law student Setareh Hashemi; and Aliya Motalebzadeh of the Campaign for the Victims of Acid Attacks.