For Immediate Release: January 4th, 2023
Majid Jowhari, Member of Parliament – Richmond Hill
Francesco Sorbara, Member of Parliament – Vaughan-Woodbridge
Tony Van Bynen, Member of Parliament – Newmarket-Aurora
Leah Taylor Roy, Member of Parliament – Aurora-Oak Ridges-Richmond Hill
Hon. Mary Ng, Member of Parliament – Markham-Thornhill
Hon. Helena Jaczek, Member of Parliament – Markham-Stouffville
Paul Chiang, Member of Parliament – Markham-Unionville
We, as individual Members of Parliament from York Region, Ontario, Canada, hereby undertake the
political sponsorship of a list of individual detainees who are currently under threat by the government
of Iran. Community members have called for our commitment to helping prevent the executions of
those condemned to death or their ongoing torture and imprisonment by the Iranian regime.
We know that endorsements by elected officials in Europe have already brought the plight of
detainees to the forefront and have declared to the regime that they are being watched - that there are
advocates keeping track of the lives and well-being of many of the victims of the violent crackdowns
imposed by this ruling regime.
As many of you are acutely aware, the Iranian regime's brutality against its people- particularly
women and girls - is unrelenting, and the situation is worsening. Tens of thousands of Iran's own
citizens are imprisoned for protesting the regime's violence and egregious human rights violations.
Many hundreds have been killed, including numerous children.
Our support for the Iranian people to live their lives free from persecution is unwavering. We hear
their powerful voices, and we will continue to amplify them wherever we can. That is why we are
releasing this statement today.
We voice together that we are appalled by Iran's wrongful imprisonment and execution of protestors.
We oppose the death penalty in all circumstances for all people, everywhere. On December 16,
Canada introduced a resolution to reaffirm our commitment to human rights for the people of Iran
and condemn the application of the death penalty, a resolution that the UN General Assembly
adopted.
We call on Iran to immediately establish a moratorium to halt all executions, sham trials and to end
this brutal and inhumane punishment.
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As individual Canadian Members of Parliament, we commit to speaking the names of these detainees,
to remind the Iranian government that we are watching, that the world is watching, and that we
condemn Iran's ongoing human rights violations and threats to individual freedoms as well as regional
peace and security.
Through research via organizations tasked with monitoring human rights violations and the Iranian
regime, we have chosen wildlife conservationists and environmental experts, who have been issued
final prison sentences following unfair trials in Iran on trumped-up charges of acting against the
Islamic Republic of Iran’s “national security”.
Seven of these detainees, who are linked to the Persian Wildlife Heritage Foundation (PWHF), co
founded by the Iranian-Canadian university professor who suspiciously died in Tehran’s Evin Prison
in February 2018. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claims that he committed suicide,
something that his family strongly denies. So far, no evidence has been provided to the Canadian
government by the Islamic Republic of Iran’s authorities to justify his arrest and death.
According to Amnesty International, seven of the PWHF members and collaborators have been in
Evin Prison since January 2018. These detainees had been conducting legitimate research into Iran’s
endangered animals, including the Asiatic cheetah and Persian leopard. These conservationists have
been denied access to a lawyer of their choosing throughout their entire detention and trial and
credible evidence demonstrates that they are subjected to extreme physical and psychological torture
in prison and other ill-treatment including through prolonged solitary confinement in order to extract
forced “confessions”. According to Philip Luther, Middle East and North Africa Research and
Advocacy Director at Amnesty International, these environmental defenders have been prosecuted
without any evidence and are being treated as criminals by the IRGC.
The other detainee, an environmental studies student of the University of Tehran, is among those
recently arrested by the Iranian regime’s security forces during the Iranian people’s legitimate fight
for their fundamental human and women rights. i.e., the Woman-Life-Freedom movement.
These individuals, named below, are valued and are in our thoughts as they suffer at the hands of this
brutal regime. We demand their release immediately and unconditionally and the drop of the
outrageous national security-related charges against them. These conservationist detainees will be
followed on our social media, and we will remind those in power that they must not flagrantly ignore
universal human rights, international laws and individual freedoms that must be affirmed and assured for every person.
We, as Members of the Canadian Parliament, strongly stand in support of all political prisoners in
Iran that are raising their voices against the brutality of the regime. We remind the Islamic Republic
of Iran that we will not lend credence to sham trials, to invented charges and to a lack of legal
representation for these individuals and many others presently imprisoned by their own government.
We ask that Canadians stand strong and united in our support of international conventions on
human rights, particularly the rights of women and girls, and rights to freedom of expression and
freedom of association.
In this resolve, we endorse the following mentioned Iranian environmental experts and wildlife
conservationist detainees:
o Majid Jowhari: Endorsing Ms. Niloufar Bayani, (McGill University alumna, former employee of
the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and a member of PWHF), sentenced to 10 years in prison)
o Francesco Sorbara: Endorsing Mr. Sam Rajabi, (A wildlife conservationist and former
collaborator of the PWHF, sentenced to 6 years in prison)
o Tony Van Bynen: Endorsing Ms. Sepideh Kashani, (Treasurer of PWHF, sentenced to 6 years in
prision), and her husband Mr. Houman Jowkar, (PWHF member and collaborator of the Iran’s
Department of Environment (DOE), sentenced to 8 years in prison)
o Hon. Mary Ng: Endorsing Mrs. Azin Saeidi Nasab, (A University of Tehran’s environmental
studies student, sentenced to 5 years in prison)
o Hon. Helena Jaczek: Endorsing Mr. Taher Ghadirian, (A wildlife conservationist and PWHF
member, sentenced to 8 years in prison)
o Leah Taylor Roy: Endorsing Mr. Morad Tahbaz, (Iranian-American-British wildlife
conservationist and businessman, sentenced to 10 years in prison)
o Paul Chiang: Endorsing Amir Hossein Khaleghi (A wildlife conservationist and former
collaborator of the PWHF, sentenced to 6 years in prison)
As the fight for justice continues, our support for the Iranian people to live their lives free from
persecution is unwavering. We hear their powerful voices, and we will continue to amplify them
wherever we can.
