Abolfazl Ranjbari
Dr. Abolfazl Ranjbari is a human rights defender, lawyer and university professor in Tabriz, known for representing political and marginalised ethnic activists in Eastern Azerbaijan Province in Iran. In September 2022, following the nationwide protests sparked by the killing of Mahsa Amini, Dr. Abolfazl Ranjbari was among 70 Iranian jurists who signed an open letter calling for the abolition of the “morality police” and the creation of an independent fact-finding commission to investigate human rights violations. During this period, he actively followed up on the cases of detained lawyers and protesters.
Hope for political reform in Iran surfaced when President Hassan Rouhani assumed office in 2013 and dozens of opposition political figures and human rights defenders were released. However, violations of the rights to freedom of expression, association, peaceful assembly and movement of HRDs continue to be prevalent.
Human rights defenders and journalists are arrested, detained and prosecuted in unfair trials. HRDs continue to receive death threats and are subjected to harassment, arbitrary arrest and detention. They are refused bail or receive extreme bail conditions. HRDs are additionally subjected to systematic surveillance and their family members are targeted. Journalists have been subjected to flogging for criticising the government.
