A regime collaborator in the women’s ward of Evin prison issued an open letter just days before the second anniversary of the state murder of Jina “Mahsa” Amini that had sparked the months-long Woman, Life, Freedom (or Jina) Uprising.¹ This letter was immediately spread like wildfire all over Iran’s state media, and repeated by some Western outlets. Shortly thereafter, she is granted parole. Smell a rat? This vicious attack coincided with the brave action of 25 women in Evin’s prison yard, and their hunger strike by 34 the next day to mark and uphold the Jina uprising with the ending call: “women of the world, join us!”

Immediately this attack is answered but the response was largely ignored or outright suppressed. Evin political prisoner Golrokh Iraee, via her social media, posted a detailed response that reads in part:

Recently, a letter resembling a confession caught the attention of the public. In this letter, Faezeh Hashemi Rafsanjani, one of our fellow inmates, standing alongside the prison authorities, claimed she [might be] killed by her fellow inmates. She specifically targeted leftists and human rights activists, labeling them as hollow drums and little dictators. I am one of her leftist fellow inmates. Despite clear and sharp ideological and class divisions, based on collective decision-making…we chose to tolerate her…[to] form a single body against the prison authorities….

This unified body constantly suffers from the pain of fellow inmates who have brain tumors, multiple sclerosis, heart attack risks, epilepsy (one of whom is pregnant), respiratory issues, asthma, and joint problems or age-related issues. These patients require treatment, yet they are often merely examined by the general prison doctor in an infirmary lacking specialized facilities, rather than receiving the necessary care. We are one body, understanding that some of our fellow inmates have no financial deposits for months, despite claims that they can purchase their necessities from the prison store.

We learned to fight like this: in prison, under pressure, in exile, and coexisting with any kind of political and non-political convicts—in Evin, in Qarchak, or in provincial prisons, in solitary confinement, under interrogation, and in complete ignorance of our families and the rise and fall of society. Despite severe or consecutive sentences, we neither give up hope nor abandon our struggle.

After multiple convictions, bans, and prohibitions, we still stand firm in what we believe. No consequences of pressure or threats will distance or separate us from the “belief” we hold. Because our belief is the core of our struggle and shapes our political life. We did not enter this arena out of convenience, nor is the struggle our inheritance. We walked barefoot into a path full of thorns. That’s why we are still standing without bowing down. We fear neither the threats of the government nor the slander and blackmail. We know well the hidden arms of power and will not fall into the traps of security [police] games or the outdated tactics of the government and its officials. We have stood against tyranny, exploitation, and dictatorship. We have nothing to do with those who grovel, attempting to sustain the existing order by recanting their stances, becoming the darling of state media. We measure our strength by observing the enemy’s lineup and assess our adversary by reviewing its allies and supporters. [Bolded print by IEC]

The women’s ward of Evin prison, whose voice of protest has repeatedly reached beyond the walls in recent months, has been our home for years. But we have not become accustomed to it and still think about tearing down the walls… The women’s ward, with its high stone walls, increasing number of doors every year, and key-holding guards, has not been a place where the voice of justice prevails. But it has become so through the presence of mothers who have left their children behind, beyond the tough beliefs, these unkind walls, and years of separation… We continue to stand firm on our beliefs.

—Golrokh Iraee, September 19, 2024, Evin Prison Women’s Ward

Faezeh Hashemi’s open letter is a backstabbing, groveling attack on the women political prisoners, dangerously setting them up for an escalation of violent repression with slanders that invite distancing and doubt from their supporters. This new level of danger is no exaggeration. Her lies bolster the regime’s attempts to portray political prisoners, especially the courageous women in Evin, as a pampered bunch of malingerers, a charge often echoed by pro-Shah monarchists who call it “Hotel Evin.”

This attack plays into today’s populist distrust of revolutionary leadership, and aims to split the unity of “the left” and the “human rights” forces. She even traffics in anti-communism by idiotic references to (phony communist) North Korea. By extension, hers is a vengeful attack on the masses and the historic Jina uprising which continues to reverberate with women and men in Iran and around the world.

Faezeh is a conscious and vicious IRI operative who must be opposed, not supported by honest dissidents (e.g. Nasrin Sotoudeh). Her billionaire father, Akhbar Hashemi Rafsanjani was a founding member of the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI), its past president, whose official crimes she never denounced or renounced. She was educated in England, a former member of parliament and a lifelong leading operative in the “reformist” wing of the IRI. Faezeh came into mild opposition to some policies of the IRI’s “hardline” rulers, was arrested briefly in the 2009 election protests, and again in 2023 during the Jina uprising when she compared the IRI to the ultra-women-hating religious fanatics, the Taliban in Afghanistan.

Responses by Those Upholding Evin Women Prisoners’ Resistance

Many former political prisoners and their supporters have denounced Hashemi’s letter, especially noting its uncanny timing with the Jina anniversary and its promotion in state media. Besides Golrokh Iraee’s letter, another substantive response was sent exclusively to Radio Zamaneh by an anonymous author. It details the voting day incident and the principled stand of the prisoner protesters:

The day before the elections to select the regime's next chief executioner, they had handed down the death sentence to a woman labor activist! A death sentence against Sharifeh Mohammadi could mean just one thing: by issuing its highest degree of repression at the last minute, the regime was taking revenge on the Woman, Life, Freedom uprising…we had discussed the elections, the qualifications, and the platform of each candidate. Watching the debates between the candidates, we could clearly see the regime's desperation and the lack of a coherent plan to overcome the systemic economic, political, and social crises confronting them. During any of the nights that we watched the debates and discussed the empty promises and superficiality of the candidates’ programs, Faezeh was nowhere to be found. She didn’t need to watch any of the debates, because she is cut from the same cloth [as the candidates]. She is a living example of the lies and deceptions about “development” used by the “pragmatists” to loot the natural and cultural wealth of this land…

On the Friday morning of the elections, a group of prisoners stood in front of the green grille door and told those who wanted to enter to vote [having been promised parole for doing so]: If you want to vote, it is no problem. Hang your heads and slink off to vote! But know that yesterday the death sentence was issued against a woman labor activist, and your despicable action today will become a historical fact. We too have a right — the right to protest, and in this way use our voices to send a message, not to you personally, but to the authorities of this system. The doors swung closed, the head of the prison guard shouted… “we do not need your votes, and your votes do not affect this government” — this made clear the humiliating depths to which the voters and their sponsor (Faezeh) had sunk, as well as the weakness of the current government”…. 

Do you think that truth is based on the viewpoint and values that correspond to your interests and tastes? To you, the truth is nothing more than what is good for you and others like you! It is just this kind of “truth” that Netanyahu represents — and that you can only imitate....But mark this well: the discipline and political understanding of those you are trying to destroy is so lofty that they will never allow you and your gang to achieve your goals. We, and I, find our strength in the power of the people who shout with us, "We will stand until the end."

U.S. and Western Allies Treacherous Duplicity

On the occasion of the second anniversary of Mahsa Jina Amini’s death, U.S. officials (with Australia and Canada) imposed new sanctions on individuals in the IRI. The State Department sanctimoniously intoned, “The voices of the Iranian people demanding basic freedoms deserve to be heard. The United States will continue to work with our allies and partners to promote accountability for the regime’s human rights abuses.”

One may ask where are the sanctions against the murderous state and individuals of Israel in the year of genocide in Palestine? To do so means the U.S. would need to sanction itself as the chief aider and abettor of Israel. Over the years U.S. sanctions have principally and intentionally targeted the Iranian economy and population, to force a pro-U.S.-imperialist “regime change,”² causing horrific 35% annual inflation, lack of lifesaving medicines, and lack of spare parts for critical infrastructure.

Blogger and journalist Reza Akvanian noted that 

In the days leading up to the second anniversary of the ‎‎#womanlifefreedom uprising, the Islamic Republic tried to silence the voices of political prisoners' protests by widely publishing Faezeh Hashemi's letter of repentance... ‎Some media outlets outside the country, including IranWire and BBC Persian, consciously or not, left no stone unturned to achieve the regime's goal, with coverage in line with the Islamic Republic's. In addition to publishing Faezeh's repentance letter, [they] tried in various reports to portray murderous and tyrannical monsters from the faces of the political prisoners in the Evin Women's Ward… Golrokh's letter was sent to foreign media that had published the destructive letter of Faiza Hashemi against the imprisoned women fighters, but except for Iran Wire, (... which published it on its website and Instagram), nothing more than one paragraph... the BBC devoted about 2000 words in three reports to Faezeh; but...Golrokh Iraee..., was considered worthy of only 37 words....Why did such discrimination occur? 

Not Time to Be Spectators Vs. Be Makers of History

Faezeh’s letter is a strategic ideological attack on the legitimacy of resistance and in support of the legitimacy of a regime which was badly shaken by the uprising. The regime, its apologists, and the “loyal opposition” are all doing their utmost to delegitimize these unrepentant women political prisoners and by extension endanger the lives of ALL the political prisoners in Iran today. The threat to them is real and acute. The time is now to stop merely observing and applauding the bravery of the women in Evin, the prisoner-led hunger strikes (now into its 35^th week as of Tuesday 9/24) or the IEC’s work. It is time to step up and act including by further spreading the IEC 8/25 webinar far and wide as campuses reopen. There is nothing like it in informative and invigorating content. In the spirit of the call from Evin women prisoners “people of the world, join us.” Donate and volunteer with the IEC by writing to us today: freeiranspoliticalprionsernow@gmail.com.