In a letter sent to Iran's President Hassan Rohani on 22 August, 60 MEPs call for the release of the 2012 Sakharov Prize winner, the lawyer and human rights campaigner Nasrin Sotoudeh.
"We call on you to do all within your power to ensure her unconditional release", the MEPs of 21 different nationalities, and coming from the ALDE, Greens/EFA, EPP, S&D, GUE, ECR and ENF Groups, state.
In their letter, which was sent at the initiative of Marietje Schaake (ALDE, Netherlands), the MEPs speak of their "deep concern" about the continued detention of Nasrin Sotoudeh, who was arrested in June to serve a five-year prison sentence "for previously unreleased charges, apparently solely because of her human rights work". They also speak of their great concern about last week's revelation that Sotoudeh is facing new charges, reportedly including charges of espionage.
The MEPs urge Rohani to call on the judiciary to respect due process and disclose information about the charges that Sotoudeh is facing. "Her case signifies that the Iranian judiciary continues to criminalise legitimate human rights activism", the MEPs state.
They give their "ongoing support" to the "Sakharov Prize recipient" (see EUROPE 10751) and "immensely courageous and respected lawyer, who is an inspiration to many in Iran and all over the world". (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)