The Iranian government arraigned 54 lawyers in the city of Bukan (Bokan) as a result of a statement they made in September 2022, publicly expressing their full support for the family of Jîna Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish woman, lost her life in September after being victim to alleged beatings by officers whilst in custody of Iran’s morality police.
According to Hengaw Organisation for Human Rights, the lawyers in Bukan faced an unusual accusation from the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Iranian Islamic Revolution Court. They were charged with “publishing photos, images, and materials against public modesty.
The arraignment announcement followed a year of increased scrutiny since the lawyers issued a statement backing the Amini family. Last year, during the ‘Jin, Jiyan, Azadi’ (Women, Life, Freedom) movement, they openly condemned ‘illegal behaviour by institutions and organisations’.
According to the Hengaw report, since the publication of this statement, the Iranian prosecutor based in Bukan has been exerting a sustained campaign of pressure against the lawyers, employing various contradictory justifications.
