Rahileh Ahmadi, who was previously arrested on July 10, 2019 for putting pressure on her daughter Saba, has been sentenced to prison. She is another mother who is imprisoned for seeking justice! In this issue of “Peace Line”, we sat down for an interview with this mother seeking justice.

Please tell us about yourself and your life.

I am Rahileh Ahmadi, born in 1349, and the mother of Saba Kurdafshari. Before I talk about my own activities or Saba’s, I want to talk about my childhood as a girl and what things were forbidden for us and we couldn’t do those activities.
I was born in Tehran, before the revolution, at that time the conditions for girls in Tehran were better than in small towns. I remember from my childhood that we were told that a girl should not speak loudly. No one should hear a girl’s voice! Girls should not go out on the streets and ride bicycles with boys. At that time, I had a bicycle and I didn’t pay attention to my parents’ talks. I would go to the alleys and streets and play with boys. We played games like “Zoo” and “Seven Stones”. Sometimes we would fight with boys and then I would come home and get punished. My mother would say that I shouldn

After the revolution, what major changes occurred regarding discrimination against women?

In fact, the same cultural discrimination existed before, but with the difference that these discriminations were also enforced by law. It wasn’t just families who would belittle and punish us based on these discriminations, but now the law would also hold us accountable and punish us. In our time, schools had also joined forces with families and would command and forbid us. When the revolution happened, we had grown up and were in high school. For example, if a boy from the neighborhood, an aunt, a friend, or an acquaintance came and talked to us in front of the school, we would be blamed and expelled, simply because we were girls. But they never expelled any boys for talking to girls. We couldn’t even go out in the street, ride a bike, or ride a motorcycle. They would say that a girl must cover her head, walk slowly, be quiet, and not talk. If a boy said something inappropriate in the street, we weren’t allowed to respond because

What happened that Saba was arrested?

In 2017, my husband became unemployed due to workforce downsizing at his workplace. In 2018, when protests against rising prices were planned to take place, one morning on a Friday, my daughter Saba asked me if I was going to the protest. I said yes, I will go. Unfortunately, I came home late from work that day and Saba had already left, so I couldn’t attend the protest. Saba had gone in front of the city theater where she saw some reporters from the national TV asking about the problems in society. Saba had told them that her father had become unemployed and she was working to support the family. Eventually, the anti-riot forces arrived and used batons and tear gas to disperse the protesters and arrested around 200 people, including my daughter Saba.

Where were the detainees taken? Did Saba explain the situation after the detention to you? What did you do?

On Friday, when they took the children from the ministers to Evin Courthouse, the interrogator had thrown everything on his desk onto Saba and the other children. He had also called for a soldier and placed a gun on Saba’s chest, telling her to write and sign that we are rioters. The children, who were scared, did as they were told and were then transferred to Qarchak Prison.

I remained silent for seventy-five days. I sat behind the doors of Evin Courthouse for a whole month and they gave us no clear answers. Until the seventy-fifth day when my daughter’s trial was held and I posted a video online where I poured my heart out. I said that you arrested my child and others, beat them severely, broke their faces and drenched them in blood. You transferred them to prison with one van in those conditions. This was the first video I had posted online. When Saba and the other detainees were transferred from quarantine to

Can you explain your perspective on “I didn’t stay silent”?

“When I saw the injustice and injustice against my daughter and the other girls of this land, I could no longer remain silent. Once, along with Yasmin Aryan and Mrs. Monireh Arabshahi, we went to the Revolutionary Court and released a video of ourselves. In this video, we challenged “Taraneh Alidousti”. I addressed the journalists and artists in that video, asking them if they were aware of the torture and oppression in Gharchak and Fashafouyeh prisons. Have you ever come to us? Have you ever asked about our pain? Will you join us in front of the Revolutionary Court?”

Why is the song called “Love”?

Last year, a seminar was held in Canada where one of the revolutionary girls named Shaparak Shajarizadeh mentioned Saba, Yasaman, and others who are arrested for supporting women’s rights. Then, Ms. Taraneh Alidoosti denied the unlawful arrests. In response to her statements, my mother and I addressed her in the video that was also shared on social media, saying “These unlawful arrests are not lies, go and visit the Evin and Gharchak prisons and see who has been arrested there.”

Tell me about your other activities.

One of my activities was that when a bus carrying students at the University of Science and Research had an accident and unfortunately some of them were killed, I went to Tehran University for a few days to show sympathy and protest. One day, a personal dress threatened me and said that I know your intention and why you come here, I will throw you where the Arabs didn’t throw. On the third day, we had gone in front of the university when Yasmin’s mother, Mrs. Arabshahi, was arrested and I just ran away from there to keep our phones away from them, and after 5 days, Yasmin’s mother was released.

After that, our children were transferred to Evin prison and we went to visit them. I saw Athena Daeemi and her family there. I saw Golrokh Iraee and fell in love with this girl from the first day. I saw her elderly parents who came from the north with difficulty every time. I saw other political

What actions have you taken regarding political prisoners?

I posted some posts on my personal Instagram page, for example, I supported Arash Sadeghi, Golrokh Ebrahimi Iraee, Atena Daemi, Haft Tapeh workers, and Neda Naji. The day I was in solitary confinement, they would ask me why I supported them? I continued my activities on my personal Instagram page until one day I was talking on the phone with Saba and I said, “They won’t forgive you, my daughter.” She said, “No, mother, let them take their own anger and forgiveness.” I will never forget this sentence from Saba. They are so unfair that they called my house at midnight and I saw Saba behind the door. I was asking how you got released. She said, “Mother, don’t scream, I got released. Just bring money and give it to the agency so they can leave.”
Imagine, it was eleven o’clock at night and they said Saba,

You mentioned that the simultaneous detention of Saba and others who were detained together had created friendships between them. How do you see these friendships? Were you not worried about this?

I told my daughter not to do anything that would get her arrested again. Saba said, “Mom, have you ever been to prison and seen how many innocent citizens are being held there? It’s not just me, but everyone who is there has a mother.” I was convinced by Saba’s words and realized that we should also pay attention to the suffering of others and take a step in that direction.

In fact, on the day of the arrest, no one knew each other, but when everyone went to prison and were released, both girls and boys had become friends, helping each other and looking out for each other.

Saba was looking for the voice of “Alireza Shir-Mohammad-Ali” in Fashafouyeh prison. Alireza was the only child in his family and his father has been in prison for years due to drugs and addiction. When Alireza went on a hunger strike in prison, Saba tried her best to be

Please tell us about the re-arrest of Saba and the conditions you were in.

My daughter was also an animal rights activist. On August 11th, when she was arrested, she brought a kitten home and took care of it. After she was released, she brought another kitten home. On November 2nd, 2019, we wanted to take the kitten to the veterinary clinic for vaccinations, but on the hallway of the building, several security guards, including some female officers, grabbed my hand tightly. They came to our house and arrested me and my child.
One of the officers, who was tall and thin, was very rude to me. I told him, “Hey, you have no right to shout at me in front of my child’s mother.” He turned to one of the other officers and said, “She talks too much, put handcuffs on her too.” They put handcuffs on me. I said, “Put handcuffs on me, I’m not afraid. It’s not August 11th, 2018 anymore, I

How did you finally figure out where Saba was heading?

It was the 12th day when I returned from work and I was crying with the kitten, Saba. I was asking her where her mother, Saba, had gone when Golrokh called me and said, “Rahleh, my dear, good news! Saba is in Qarchak prison.” I screamed with joy and thought to myself, “Oh God, what have they done to us that I am happy about my daughter being in Qarchak?” I asked Golrokh how she found out and she said Sepideh Ghelichan called her and said they brought Saba to us.
During this time, I supported political prisoners, both on social media and through financial assistance and finding jobs. I also released a video where I said, as a mother and as a human being, I stand with my fellow countrymen and support political prisoners.
Days went by until one day we went to visit Saba in Qarchak prison. When we arrived

On those days when you were arrested, how were you arrested?

Two or three days after they took Saba away, I saw that Golrokh had posted something addressed to Mr. Mohammadi and said, “When you took me and Atena, you told us to be silent, not to make a fuss, and to have patience. Now why did you give Saba to the guards, a 20-year-old girl? When I saw this post from Golrokh, I felt very upset. I wrote to Mr. Mohammadi, the head of Garchak prison, that if it was your own child, you would do the same and wake up your sleeping conscience and many other things.

I have an 85-year-old mother with a broken leg who cannot walk and I take care of her. It was July 10th when my mother happened to be with me. We were sitting at home when the doorbell rang. A woman in a chador accompanied by 12 men, including a representative of the prosecutor, had

After 4 days, they released me from Garchak prison with a bail of 700 million. I left my heart in Garchak and came out.

During the time you were detained, were you also subjected to severe torture?

I was not subjected to physical torture. The interrogator also asked me and said, “Mrs. Ahmadi, when you were released from detention, do you say that I was tortured?” I also said that torture is not just beating and hitting, but torture is that I still don’t know where my child is after 22 days. You repeatedly mention the name of my eldest daughter, Sogand. You took my breath to an unknown place and I still don’t know if my child is alive or dead. From my point of view, the biggest torture is not knowing where your child is and under what conditions they are living. During detention, they told me that they wanted to take me and face me with Sogand, but I did not see Sogand and these are psychological torture.

What was the court’s procedure? What was the result?

The court session was held under the presidency of Judge Afshar and a sentence of 4 years and 2 months of imprisonment was issued for me. Out of this period, 3 and a half years are executable and due to my submission to the verdict, I have to endure 2 and a half years of disciplinary imprisonment and I must present myself to prison by mid-February to serve the sentence.

Now that you have been arrested and put on trial, what do you expect from others and the media, as you previously supported prisoners and detainees?

I just want my voice to be heard by everyone. I want the world to know that in Iran, even being a mother is a crime. Girls in this land are sentenced to years in prison for their clothing, their thoughts and expressions, and even for their dreams. They have to spend the best years of their lives in prison. Tell the world that I am a mother and as long as I am alive, I am the voice of my child. I told this to Judge Afshari on the day of my trial. I said, “Mr. Judge, even if I receive a life sentence, it doesn’t matter to me because as long as I am alive, I am the voice of my child.”

In Iran, women do not have the right to ride bicycles. They do not have the right to ride motorcycles. They do not have the right to become judges. They do not have the right to choose their own clothing. They do not have the right to speak. They

Why didn’t you request a review and submit to the verdict?

It’s a good question because this always tormented my conscience. I didn’t want to give in to their verdict. I told myself that giving in meant accepting their accusations, but the judge had told my lawyer, Mr. Taj, that he would acquit me of the hijab charge. The judge had told him it was better for his client to give in to the verdict, as it would not be overturned in the appeal process. Mr. Taj said that because he had reduced the sentence by half for Saba and she had caused a lot of commotion, the court did not bring up the hijab charge against you and will not overturn the verdict in the appeal. I said it’s better for me to stay with Saba longer. He said your presence next to Saba doesn’t help her, but your absence can help her and others a lot. Don’t let this situation affect you emotionally.

One of my other friends who was aware of the situation and knew about my rights

“Considering the bitter events that have occurred, if time were to turn back, would you be willing to join Saba in a protest gathering?”
If time goes back to the past, yes, I would participate in gatherings again with my daughter Saba and Doushadoosh. It is true that we were harassed and received a heavy judicial sentence, but these difficulties made me understand those who have suffered like us and that is why I will not remain silent and stand by my daughter, my brave and heroic daughter. When Saba was arrested and taken away, I released a video and sent a message to all mothers not to remain silent and I am sorry for the mothers who remain silent while their children suffer.

If there is an unsaid word that you feel needs to be said, please do tell.

I want to say as a mother; I came to be the voice of my daughter, but I couldn’t swear to be a mother for my dear daughter. I am very sorry. I also couldn’t be a good daughter for my mother. My mother spends her last years and needs me to be by her side and take care of her. Unfortunately, being a mother in Iran is a crime. If you want to be a mother for your child, you can’t be a mother for your other child and ultimately you can’t be a good child for your mother either.

• Thank you for the time you have dedicated to the peace line.