Jailed Iranian Activist Narges Mohammadi Wins Nobel Peace Prize for Fighting Oppression of Women
New Age
Islam News Bureau
06 October 2023
·
Jailed Iranian Activist Narges
Mohammadi Wins Nobel Peace Prize for Fighting Oppression of Women
·
Iran Detains Mother of Teen in
Coma, Armita Garawand, After Metro Incident: Report
·
France’s Hijab Ban for Its
Athletes At 2024 Olympics Draws International Condemnation
·
296 Nominations From 14 Arab Countries
Received for Fatima Bint Mubarak Award
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-women-feminism/iranian-activist-narges-nobel-peace/d/130839
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Jailed Iranian Activist Narges Mohammadi
Wins Nobel Peace Prize for Fighting Oppression of Women
Narges
Mohammadi AFP - Getty Images
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06th October 2023
OSLO: Imprisoned activist Narges
Mohammadi, who has campaigned for women’s rights, democracy and against the
death penalty in Iran for years, won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday.
Mohammadi, 51, has done her work despite
facing numerous arrests and spending years behind bars for her activism.
“This prize is first and foremost a
recognition of the very important work of a whole movement in Iran with its
undisputed leader, Nargis Mohammadi," said Berit Reiss-Andersen, the chair
of the Norwegian Nobel Committee who announced the prize in Oslo. "The
impact of the prize is not for the Nobel committee to decide upon. We hope that
it is an encouragement to continue the work in whichever form this movement
finds to be fitting.”
Mohammadi’s most recent incarceration
began when she was detained in 2021 after she attended a memorial for a person
killed in nationwide 2019 protests sparked by an increase in gasoline prices.
She’s been held at Tehran’s notorious Evin Prison, whose inmates include those with
Western ties and political prisoners.
Reiss-Andersen said Mohammadi has been
imprisoned 13 times and convicted five times. In total, she has been sentenced
to 31 years in prison.
She is the 19th woman to win the Nobel
Peace Prize and the second Iranian woman after human rights activist Shirin
Ebadi won the award in 2003.
Mohammadi was behind bars for the recent
protests over the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in police custody. That
sparked one of the most intense challenges ever to Iran’s theocracy. More than
500 people were killed in a heavy security crackdown while over 22,000 others
were arrested.
From behind bars, Mohammadi contributed
an opinion piece for The New York Times.
“What the government may not understand
is that the more of us they lock up, the stronger we become,” she wrote.
There was no immediate reaction from
Iranian state television and other state-controlled media. Some semiofficial
news agencies acknowledged Mohammadi’s win in online messages, citing foreign
press reports.
Before being jailed, Mohammadi was vice
president of the banned Defenders of Human Rights Center in Iran. She has been
close to Ebadi, who founded the centre.
In 2018, Mohammadi, an engineer, was
awarded the 2018 Andrei Sakharov Prize.
PEN America, which advocates for freedom
of speech and earlier this year gave Mohammadi its PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write
Award, applauded the win.
The choice “is a tribute to her courage
and that of countless women and girls who have poured out into the streets of
Iran and faced down one of the world’s most brutal and stubborn regimes,
risking their lives to demand their rights,” PEN America CEO Suzanne Nossel
said in a statement.
The Nobel Prizes carry a cash award of
11 million Swedish kronor (about $1 million). Winners also receive an 18-carat
gold medal and diploma at the award ceremonies in December.
The winner of the prestigious Nobel
Peace Prize is chosen by a panel of experts in Norway from a list of just over
350 nominations.
Last year's prize was won by human
rights activists from Ukraine, Belarus and Russia, in what was seen as a strong
rebuke to Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Belarusian counterpart and
ally.
Other previous winners include Nelson
Mandela, Barack Obama, Mikhail Gorbachev, Aung San Suu Kyi and the United
Nations.
Unlike the other Nobel prizes that are
selected and announced in Stockholm, founder Alfred Nobel decreed that the
Peace Prize be decided and awarded in Oslo by the five-member Norwegian Nobel
Committee. The independent panel is appointed by the Norwegian parliament.
The Peace Prize is the fifth of this
year's prizes to be announced. A day earlier, the Nobel committee awarded
Norwegian writer Jon Fosse the prize for literature. On Wednesday, the
chemistry prize went to U.S. scientists MoungiBawendi, Louis Brus and Alexei
Ekimov.
The physics prize went Tuesday to
French-Swedish physicist Anne L’Huillier, French scientist Pierre Agostini and
Hungarian-born Ferenc Krausz. Hungarian-American Katalin Karikó and American
Drew Weissman won the Nobel Prize in medicine on Monday.
Nobel's season ends next week with the
announcement of the winner of the Economics Prize, formally known as the Bank
of Sweden Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel.
Source: newindianexpress.com
https://www.newindianexpress.com/world/2023/oct/06/jailed-iranian-activist-narges-mohammadi-wins-nobel-peace-prize-for-fighting-oppression-of-women-2621421.html
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Iran Detains Mother of Teen in Coma,
Armita Garawand, After Metro Incident: Report
Iran Detains
Mother of Teen in Coma, Armita Garawand, After Metro Incident: Report
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October 5, 2023
Iran has detained the mother of a
16-year-old who was left in a coma after an alleged assault on the Tehran metro
by morality police, a rights group said on Thursday.
Sunday’s alleged assault, which came
just over a year after the death in custody of Mahsa Amini following her arrest
for an alleged violation of Iran’s strict dress code for women, has drawn
expressions of concern from several Western governments.
But state media in Iran have strongly
denied that Armita Garawand was hurt as a result of a clash with female police
officers, saying she fainted due to blood pressure problems.
Kurdish-focused rights group Hengaw has
insisted that Garawand was seriously wounded and left in a coma in a
confrontation with police, who had apprehended her for not wearing an
obligatory headscarf.
It has said she is being treated under
high security in the Fajr hospital in Tehran, with her parents not allowed a
proper visit with her.
Her mother Shahin Ahmadi was arrested
near the hospital and taken to an unknown location by security agents, Hengaw
said.
Iran International TV said the arrest
came after she protested the restrictions placed on hospital visits.
But Iran’s Tasnim news agency denied she
had been arrested and lashed out at foreign media outlets for seeking to create
“sedition and chaos”.
Her parents earlier gave an interview to
state media at the hospital “under considerable pressure” and “in the presence
of high-ranking security officers”, Hengaw said.
Iranian authorities remain on high alert
for any upsurge of social tension.
Amini’s death sparked several months of
protests that rattled Iran’s clerical leadership and only dwindled in the face
of a crackdown that according to activists has seen thousands arrested and
hundreds killed.
“Once again a young woman in Iran is
fighting for her life. Just because she showed her hair on the subway,” German
Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “It’s
intolerable.”
Abram Paley, the acting US special envoy
on Iran, posted on X that Washington was “shocked and concerned about reports
that Iran’s so-called morality police have assaulted” the teenager.
“We are following news of her condition.
We continue to stand with the brave people of Iran and work with the world to
hold the regime accountable for its abuses,” Paley added.
But Iran dismissed the criticism.
“Instead of interventionist and biased
remarks and expressing insincere concern over Iranian women and girls, you’d
better be concerned about US, German and UK healthcare personnel (and) patients
and tackle their situation,” foreign ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani wrote on
X.
Tehran metro managing director Masood
Dorosti denied there was “any verbal or physical conflict” between Garawand and
“passengers or metro staff”.
IRNA later published interviews with two
girls who said they were Garawand’s friends and confirmed the account.
On Monday, Iranian journalist Maryam
Lotfi was briefly detained after going to a Tehran hospital to report on
Garawand’s condition, according to the reformist Shargh newspaper.
Source: dawn.com
https://www.dawn.com/news/1779436/iran-detains-mother-of-teen-in-coma-after-metro-incident-report
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France’s Hijab Ban for Its Athletes At
2024 Olympics Draws International Condemnation
October 6, 2023
ISTANBUL : France’s decision to bar its
athletes from wearing the hijab as it prepares to host its first Olympics in
100 years is the latest in a series of government bans that have drawn Arab and
international condemnation.
The country, where around 10% of its 67
million inhabitants are Muslim, has again attracted attention with its latest
decision to ban its athletes from wearing the Islamic veils effective July 26,
2024, the date the Olympic flame will be lit.
French Minister of Sports Amelie Oudea-Castera
announced during a television program that sportswomen in the French delegation
will not be able to wear the hijab during the Olympic Games.
The decision has triggered strong
reactions and again fueled the debate on human rights violations.
Paris will host the Summer Olympics from
July 26 to Aug. 11, 2024.
Diversity
The Islamic Solidarity Sports
Federation, a grouping that includes member countries of the Organization of
Islamic Cooperation (OIC), on Oct. 2 expressed its “profound concern regarding
the recent government decision to prevent French athletes from wearing the
hijab at the upcoming Paris Olympics.”
The federation stressed in its statement
that “this ban contradicts the principles of equality, inclusivity and respect
for cultural diversity that the Olympics stand for.”
It came after the International Olympic
Committee (IOC) said on Sept. 29 that “there are no restrictions on wearing the
hijab or any other religious or cultural attire.”
The IOC’s position was praised by former
Moroccan Prime Minister Saad Eddine el Othmani.
United Nations rights office spokeswoman
Marta Hurtado expressed similar sentiments.
“No-one should impose on a woman what
she needs to wear or not wear,” Hurtado said in a statement.
“These discriminatory practices against
a group can have harmful consequences,” she added.
In an indirect criticism of France’s
position, the Secretary-General of the International Union of Muslim Scholars,
Ali Al-Qaradaghi, said that “Britain’s largest cities have placed in their
streets a sculpture of a woman wearing the hijab…Reasonable people understand
the fabric of their society and seek to respect the privacy of identity.”
The Secretary-General of the Delegation
of the Spanish Federation of Islamic Religious Bodies in the Moroccan city of
Ceuta, Idris Al-Wahabi, said that such decisions by France “are intended to
provoke Muslims in general and Moroccans in particular,” noting that Moroccans
represent the largest Muslim group in France.
“We are working in coordination with the
federation and Islamic bodies present in France in order to oppose such
decisions,” Wahabi added.
Outrage on social media
Rejection of France’s decision was not
limited to regional and international bodies and public figures, as criticism
and condemnation spread on the social media platform X.
Writer and political analyst Yasser
Al-Zaatara described the decision as “hysteria” against the hijab and “a
flexing of muscles against Muslims.”
Criticizing French President Emmanuel
Macron, Al-Zaatara praised the IOC’s position, considering it “a slap to Macron
and the French Islamophobia gang.”
“The French president is fighting the
hijab in France on the pretext that it conflicts with the secularism of the
state. However, he has no problem attending a mass held by the Pope,” said
Mohsen Al-Obaidi Al-Saffar.
“Macron’s problem is not with religion,
but with Islam specifically,” he added.
Abdel Hamid Al-Lingawi said that “France
has proven that it is a racist country that’s unworthy of hosting the Olympic
Games.”
Abu Abdul Rahman Al-Manea compared
France’s position with the Afghan Taliban movement.
“France and some European countries ban
the hijab and head covering for Muslim women, whereas the Taliban obligates
women to wear the hijab and prevents foreign women with uncovered faces from
tourism,” he said.
Previous positions
France’s decision to ban its sportswomen
from wearing the hijab is not the first of its kind, as it was preceded by a
history of decisions that French Muslims say aim to restrict them.
Last August, French Education Minister
Gabriel Attal decided to ban the wearing in schools of the abaya, a long,
loose-fitting, robe-like garment worn by some Muslim women that covers the
entire body, except for the face, hands and feet, alleging that it is an
“Islamic outfit that violates the rules and regulations of the state.”
The decision came among a series of bans
issued since 2004, when a law banning the wearing of religious symbols in
public schools was passed.
The Council of State, the highest court
in France, announced on Sept. 7 its support for the legality of the decision to
ban the abaya in schools.
The council had in June upheld the
French soccer federation’s decision to ban the wearing of the hijab during its
competitions. — AA
Source: muslimmirror.com
https://muslimmirror.com/eng/frances-hijab-ban-for-its-athletes-at-2024-olympics-draws-international-condemnation/
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296 nominations from 14 Arab countries
received for Fatima Bint Mubarak Award
October 05, 2023
Abu Dhabi: A total number of 296
nominations from 14 Arab countries have been received for 11 award categories
in the seventh Fatima Bint Mubarak Women Sports Award.
The organising committee announced that
the jury has finished screening applications for the prestigious award,
organised under the patronage Her Highness Shaikha Fatima Bint Mubarak,
President of the General Women’s Union, President of the Supreme Council for
Motherhood and Childhood, Supreme Chairwoman of the Family Development
Foundation (Mother of the Nation), and with the support of Sheikha Fatima Bint
Hazza Al Nahyan, Chairwoman of the Board of Directors of the Fatima Bint
Mubarak Ladies Sports Academy, and President of the Abu Dhabi and Al Ain
Women’s Clubs.
The organising committee received 91
applications from UAE, 46 from Egypt, 14 from Bahrain, 9 from Jordan, 6 from
Syria, 5 from Lebanon, 4 from Morocco, 3 each from Oman, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia
and Sudan, as well as 2 from Palestine and one each from Kuwait and Libya.
Great achievements this year
Dr. Najwa Mohammed Al Hosani, Chair of
the Judging Committee for the Fatima Bint Mubarak Women Sports Award, said: “We
are pleased with the great turnout in nominations for the award and the number
of files received by the committee from various Arab countries. It confirms the
significance of the award, which is the largest in the Arab world dedicated to
honouring and appreciating distinguished women in the field of women’s sports
who have made great achievements and won championships throughout the year.”
She added: “The jury, whose membership
includes an elite group of Arab and international names in the field of women’s
sports, has completed the sorting and evaluation of nomination applications,
according to the award’s criteria, and the judging process will be completed on
October 14. The shortlist will include three male and female candidates in each
award category and will be announced on October 29.”
Award categories
The award categories, with the total
value of the cash prizes amounting to Dh1.8 million, include 11 individual and
group levels for sports federations and institutions. The individual level
categories comprises: Best Arab Women Athlete, Best Emirati Women Athlete, Best
Youth Athlete, Best Paralympic Athlete, Best Female/Male Coach, Best Sports Media
and Best Sports Mother.
The award categories at the group level
which includes sports federations and institutions are: Best Youth Development
Programme, Best Team and Best Sports Creative Initiative. A special award will
also be given by the jury to honour the Arab Sport Personality of the Year for
her outstanding performance and contributions to the advancement of women’s
sports in the Arab world.
Source: gulfnews.com
https://gulfnews.com/sport/uae-sport/296-nominations-from-14-arab-countries-received-for-fatima-bint-mubarak-award-1.98557793
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URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-women-feminism/iranian-activist-narges-nobel-peace/d/130839