DC Photo Exhibition: Iran’s Ongoing Human Rights Violations

DC Photo Exhibition: Iran’s Ongoing Human Rights Violations

Published by on September 11, 2020
DC Exhibition

International Liberty Association: The Organization of Iranian-American Communities (OIAC) held a large photo exhibition on Friday, September 4 in Washington, DC on the Iran four decades of systematic human rights violations, particularly the 1988 massacre of 30,000 Iranian political prisoners, the November 2019 killing of 1500 protesters, as well as assassination of political dissidents abroad.

Thousands of photos and graphics portrayed Iran’s atrocities and their victims. Some of the family members of the victims, as well as supporters of human rights in Iran, were present at this exhibition.

Several prominent U.S. politicians attended this event. This event and its panellists, while condemning Iran’s ongoing human rights violations, which has increased and continued due to the international community’s silence over these crimes, called on the world community to immediately intervene and save the life of Navid Afkari, an Iranian wrestling champion who has been sentenced to death. Navid was arrested during the 2018 nationwide Iran protests.

ILA: The following is part of speeches by the panellists:

Ambassador Lincoln Bloomfield:

“We are here to make sure the prisoners are remembered. We cannot ignore 1988 anymore. This was one of the largest crimes against humanity. The United States and some of its allies don’t always agree on policies toward Iran. But they don’t disagree on Iran’s human rights violations. The people who sent these political prisoners to their deaths must be held to account. I call upon my government and other governments to act now.

They must stop these extrajudicial killings. They have sentenced Iranian wrestler Navid Afkari to death and his brothers to decades in prison for standing in protests. These are brave people, ladies, and gentlemen. Let’s stand with them,” he concluded.

Gholam Torshizi

“I am the only survivor of four brothers. Three of my brothers have been executed by the regime. The regime must be held to account. My younger brother Behrooz was very gifted and talented. He was a supporter of the MEK when he was studying in college. In 1981, one day he left home and we never saw him again. We searched for him for 17 days. Finally, we found out about his fate in the newspaper Keyhan among the names of others executed.


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