A letter penned and signed by academics around the world is being circulated to urge President Biden to take more substantial political action on behalf of Iranian student protestors who, for months now, have faced brutal attacks perpetrated by Iranian authorities. Following the murder of Mahsa Amini in September 2022, Iranian students and professors have withstood threats to academic freedom as the regime continues to attempt to quell protests by committing egregious acts of injustice in the form of arrests, shootings, beatings, kidnappings, and torture.
The petition specifically asks that President Biden halt all negotiations with the Iranian state, prevent sanction relief in any form, and recognize the right to self-defense of the Iranian people as they “seek to attain sovereignty and self-determination.” The letter can be read in its entirety here.
Endangered Scholars Worldwide (ESW) endorses the petition and calls for additional signatures to the letter addressed to President Biden, which has currently accumulated over four thousand signatories, including ten American Nobel Laureates and over one hundred members of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. The letter is available for signature here. ESW continues to condemn the ongoing detention and mistreatment of Iranian protestors, including students, academics, and civilians, who continue to be oppressed by Iranian security and police. We call upon all international organizations, academic and professional associations, and other groups and individuals devoted to the promotion and defense of human rights and academic freedom to strongly protest and condemn the actions of the Iranian government and security forces; to ask for all arrested student protestors’ immediate and unconditional release; and to support the local protests on behalf of Mahsa Amini and the Iranian students, who continue to advocate for their justice and freedom. Please see ESW’s Iran country page for additional coverage.
Please send appeals on behalf of the student protestors to the following:
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei
The Office of the Supreme Leader
Jomhouri Street
Tehran
Islamic Republic of Iran
Fax: +98 21 644 11
Website: http://www.leader.ir/langs/en/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/www.Khamenei.ir
President Raisi
The Office of the President
Palestine Avenue, Azerbaijan Intersection
Tehran
Islamic Republic of Iran
Javad Zarif
Minister of Foreign Affairs
The Minister’s Office
Imam Khomeini Square
Tehran
Islamic Republic of Iran
Fax: +98 21 66743149
Website: http://www.mfa.gov.ir
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jzarif
Michelle Bachelet
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
Palais des Nations
CH-1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland
Email: InfoDesk@ohchr.org
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