The European Parliament posthumously awarded the Andrei Sakharov Prize to Mahsa Amini, the young Iranian symbol of the fight against the obligation to wear the Islamic veil.
The European Parliament posthumously awarded the Andrei Sakahrov Prize to Mahsa Amini, the 22-year-old Iranian Kurd who died in September 2022 three days after her arrest by the Tehran morality police.
Since her death, Mahsa Amini has personified the fight against the obligation to wear the Islamic veil.
According to her family, she became “the symbol of freedom”.
Mahsa Amini’s family had planned to attend the award ceremony, but the Iranian authorities banned it.
Roberta Metsola, President of the European Parliament: “Their treatment is another example of what the Iranian people face every day. Let me say that the courage and resilience of Iranian women, in their fight for justice, freedom and human rights, will not be stopped. Their voices cannot be silenced, and although they are not present today, their presence will be felt.”
The Sakarov Prize is the highest European distinction for the defense of human rights and individual freedoms.
The death of Mahsa Amini led to months of protests in Iran against the mullahs’ regime.