“Your father’s goal is to prevent the innocent from being imprisoned.”

Mostafa Daneshjoo wrote a letter to his daughter who has been deprived of his loving company over the previous 4 years. The letter is as follows:

In the Name of God
Fatemeh, my dear daughter
In our visits, I would witness you crying and asking me to come home with you. But I didn’t have anything to tell you which would put your mind at ease and not disturb your already plagued little mind. I would feel upset and frustrated for hours after each visit, wishing you had been a little older so that I could have an honest talk with you, so that I could explain to you the inevitable fate which has separated me from you and all the family, so that I could tell you “We are those who administer justice, yet we are the ones who are oppressed”.
But your tiny sensitive stature, your innocent eyes, and your cry would suddenly remind me that you were too young to understand that your father has been wrongfully put behind bars and walls which someday will open their mouths and reveal many secrets. You couldn’t understand because in your stories, there is always a good police officer who arrests and imprisons bad thieves so the city will be safe. You wouldn’t understand if I told you: “My dear Fatemeh, things have turned upside down now; there are some bad guys, not of your stories, who imprison those fighting for justice, freedom, and the violated rights of people and do everything possible to silence them”.
My dear girl,
Today everything changed when I heard that my Fatemeh had accompanied her mother, on a hot day, to a rally in support of the imprisoned Dervishes and had gone on hunger strike just like the adults. I have to admit that at that moment I missed the scent of your hugs more than ever before. I didn’t know whether to be happy or sad. On the one hand, I was upset because I hadn’t been there for you in the crucial years of your childhood making you suffer irreparable emotional damage; I was sad because, like many other children in this country, you had to grow too fast from child to adult and you were just a baby; I was sad because you had to make sense of things like prison, prisoners, solitary confinement, fighting, swearing, beating, … which will haunt your innocent angel-like mind forever. On the other hand, I was happy because it was as if a huge burden was lifted from my shoulders, a burden under which your mother and I would suffer during our visits when you asked misty-eyed questions. My dear Fatemeh, you became an adult today as you voluntarily accompanied your mother. And so did the other kids beside you. Now it is easier for me to talk with you, though my words may be unpleasant. You may think, if this is adulthood, then it’s not really a nice experience. But, my sweetheart, this will endure as long as the world revolves around only a few people. Now it is easier for me to tell you that me not being with you, our parting, is not my fault nor the fault of other parents like me. There are many children and adults in this country whose rights have been trampled, and I and those others who believe in human rights and are devoted to our spiritual path ought to break the silence and not remain indifferent to their suffering.
My dear Fatemeh
You and other kids do not deserve living in a world filled with unhappiness and disappointment. Your world must be full of beauty, joy, and equality, and I am really sorry that in the 21st century you have to undergo these, the bitterest of life experiences. Now you definitely understand that our separation is only because I want so much to be with you again, and for which I’ll always hope. My brothers and I do our best to prevent imprisonment of innocent people, so that no kids will have to express their suppressed frustration and irritation through paintings and emotional behavior.
My dear,
From the bottom of your pure and innocent heart, ask God to help your father take firmer steps in his path. I am proud of your mother, my heart’s lifelong companion, and you.
Looking forward to good days
Your father, Mostafa Daneshjoo
9/19/2014