Iranian-Canadians call on MPs to take a stand against regime’s deadly crackdown | 24CA News
Golnaz Fakhari is overcome with grief.
The Vancouver resident, who’s Iranian-Canadian, has been watching with horror because the civil unrest in Iran has shifted right into a lethal new section.
“When the first execution happened, it was as if someone took out something underneath me. I couldn’t breathe, I couldn’t think, I was paralyzed.”
The executions of Iranian protestors, with none authorized illustration, proof or chosen authorized counsel is tearing her aside, however she’s remodeling her ache into motion.
Fakhari is pleading with Canadian Members of Parliament to develop into political sponsors of Iranian political prisoners, most of whom are in peril of imminent execution on bogus costs.
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“What this political sponsorship is, the MP will take responsibility for one or two prisoners. They raise awareness about them, they keep track on the news about them and they urge their own governments to fight for their release,” she mentioned.
So far, no politically-sponsored Iranian prisoners on demise row have been executed.
Fakhari has written to dozens of Canadian MPs to plead the case.
Global News reached out and heard again from Vancouver Centre MP Hedy Fry.
Fry mentioned she is now contemplating to be a political sponsor, as it’s one thing MPs in Canada can do.
The thought of political sponsorship began with MPs from Germany, with Ye-One Rhie main the trigger together with her sponsorship of rapper Toomaj Salehi.
Dozens of German MPs have since taken on sponsorship and different European nations like Sweden have joined in.
Rhie makes use of her standing as an MP to place strain on the Islamic Republic, to tackle the accountability of a political prisoner, to maintain observe of any news on them, and to ask her authorities for his or her launch.
The tactic decentralizes accountability to make sure every prisoners get proportional consideration. Rhie says with 18,000 protestors in jail it may be overwhelming and exhausting for the Iranian group to maintain observe of all of them and lift consciousness.
“It’s emotionally draining. We feel connected to the people of Iran because our days are starting pretty similarly to that of Iranian people and people of Iranian roots because the first thing we are checking right now is has there been an execution,” she mentioned.
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“We are still sleeping with one eye open. It’s not an easy job. It’s something that you have to be passionate about.”
Rhie is encouraging Canadian MPs to observe swimsuit, and mentioned if a politician can use their mandate to alter folks’s lives for the higher, they need to do it.
She added that she feels deeply related to Toomaj and the Iranian group at massive. She is pleading for extra details about Toomaj’s well being.
She mentioned she desires the Islamic Republic to know that parliamentarians all around the world are watching very carefully.
“Make some noise. Show the people in Iran, the regime in Iran, that we are watching. It’s the publicity they don’t want. But they also know they have to take responsibility if they continue treating their prisoners and people so cruelly,” Rhie mentioned.
An MP in Frankfurt not too long ago sponsored Dr. Hamid Ghare-Hassanlou and his spouse Farzaneh.
Ghare-Hassanlou has deep roots in Canada with a lot of his pals having immigrated to Canada after medical college in Iran.
The couple’s sponsorship is welcome news to Iranian-Canadian Dr. Mojtaba Yekrang Safakar who has been pals with Ghare-Hassanlou for 30 years.
“What you don’t see in the court is justice. What they do is a good representation of injustice and cruelty,” Yekrang Safakar mentioned.
“He [Ghare-Hassanlou] presented to the court with broken ribs. He was healthy when he was arrested. He didn’t have any broken ribs,” he added.
“Never did the Judge ask Hamid what happened to your ribs. Who did this to you?”
Yekrang Safakar mentioned that when his good friend was in hospital with broken lungs and bother respiratory, he was assessed by a forensic medical specialist, who produced a report saying Ghare-Hassanlou was not match to face trial.
“Twenty-four hours later after this report, Hamid was forced to attend court to present before judge, to present without any medical care,” he mentioned.
A drive for justice is what motivates Fakhari to hold on, hoping her marketing campaign to get Canadian MPs on board with political sponsorship will cease the executions.
“When you’re dealing with a regime the Islamic Republic that doesn’t deal with any international rules, when you find a firm ground to all them accountable you have to take it,” she mentioned Fakhari.
