Jila Baniyaghoob

Further to the Urgent Appeal issued on 24 June 2009 and the subsequent update of 15 September 2009, Front Line has received the following new information regarding the prosecution of human rights defender and journalist Ms Jila Baniyaghoob: On 27 June 2010, Jila Baniyaghoob's lawyer lodged an appeal against the 8 June 2010 sentencing of Jila Baniyaghoob to one year in prison and to a 30-year ban from journalism by the Revolutionary Court in Tehran.

Further Information

Jila Baniyaghoob was charged with propaganda against the Islamic reigme, a charge which arose from her reporting on the 2009 elections in Iran and the protests which followed the official results. Jila Baniyaghoob's lawyer, Farideh Gheyrat, stated that Jila Baniyaghoob has already been tried twice because of her professional work, and was found innocent on both occasions. As such, Ms Gheyrat has appealed 'in view of the legal principle that a closed case cannot be reopened, and on the basis of the verdicts of innocence that have been issued already'.

Jila Baniyaghoob is responsible for the news website “Association for Iranian Women” which focuses on women's rights. She has been a campaigner on women's rights in Iran for many years. On 12 June 2006, she was among 42 women and 28 men arrested for taking part in a women's rights gathering which took place at Haft Tir square in Tehran to raise awareness about gender discrimination in Iran. The peaceful demonstration was violently disrupted by the authorities and the arrestees were charged with "participation in an illegal assembly”. On 12 June 2008, she was among nine women briefly arrested for attending an event to commemorate the second anniversary of the 12 June 2006 demonstration. On 6 September 2008, she appeared before the investigative branch of the Revolutionary Court and was charged with disruption of public order and refusal to obey police orders.

See the original Urgent Appeal of 24 June 2009 on behalf of Jila Baniyaghoob