Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe says “the world cannot turn a blind eye to Iran” and the UK authorities “must act” over human rights abuses, as girls and ladies take to the nation’s streets in protest.
The widespread motion was sparked after the demise of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini final month whereas she was within the custody of the morality police in Tehran.
She had been detained for allegedly not adhering to Iran’s strict Islamic gown code, requiring girls to cowl their hair with a hijab.
Police say that she went into cardiac arrest at a detention centre and died in hospital, however her household say that she died because of police brutality.
Watch interview with Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe in full at 9pm on Sky News
Since her demise, girls and ladies in Iran – and all over the world – have been publicly burning hijabs and reducing their hair as an indication of protest, and dozens of individuals have been detained as authorities search to clamp down on unrest.
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Speaking on Beth Rigby Interviews, British-Iranian Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe – who has confirmed solidarity with the ladies by reducing her personal hair – mentioned it “brings memories… of how helpless you are when you are in custody”, having spent six years imprisoned in Iran herself after being accused of plotting to overthrow the federal government.
“What has helped the Iranian regime sustain the way they are treating people is just the way they arrest you and they disconnect you from the rest of the world,” she mentioned.
“So they put them in solitary confinement or they take you somewhere unknown and they break you emotionally.
“This in my head each time that I hear the information of any person being arrested. I take into consideration what I’ve gone by… imagining what they are going to be going by now.”
Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe said the protests were “very highly effective” and “girls [that] are coming to the streets are making historical past by their very existence”.
“It’s not about violence, it is about peaceable protests – but in addition it is about presenting themselves to the world, in order that they see us, we’re right here,” she added.
But she additionally mentioned the struggle was now not simply concerning the hijab – it was about one thing extra.
“The issue of hijab in Iran is not a religious mindset, it is political. [The] Iranian government has been systematically oppressing Iranian women, and this whole system of repression is the main tool that they have.
“So we see that for those who get up to your rights in Iran, for those who speak about it, for those who make feedback, one single remark about girls rights… about labour rights, you are robotically labeled as a risk to nationwide safety.
“The Iranian government does not turn a blind eye on anyone who does stand up, do the right [thing] and criticise the Iranian government.”
Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe was freed earlier this yr after the UK authorities agreed to settle a £400m debt with Tehran relationship from 1979.
She repeated her earlier criticism of the time it took to safe her launch, telling Beth Rigby the cost was “something that could have been done six years ago”.
And she mentioned she “never felt free” after being launched, including: “Freedom will only become a thing when no one is put in prison for standing up for their rights.”
Now she is demanding the UK authorities “observe”, “protect” and “act” over the human rights abuses in Iran, together with introducing sanctions, and that she is “expecting Liz Truss to condemn what’s happening” within the nation.
“If we talk about human rights, we have to act,” she added. “It’s not just about talking, talk is cheap.
“If you are speaking about [putting] our residents and their rights as a precedence, it’s a must to actually act – simply speaking about it would not resolve my drawback.
“I want the [UK government] to observe what is happening, not to turn a blind eye. I want them to protect us. We cannot be indifferent about what is happening in Iran.
“And if we speak about defending rights of our residents, we have now to do one thing about it. And I feel we have now to carry Iran accountable.”
Source: information.sky.com”