THANK YOU!
Great news: 2 Iranian women have been released
– at least for now

Dear friend of Amnesty,

Thank you for being one of the more than 2,400 Canadians who responded immediately to Amnesty International’s urgent plea last week to write on behalf of these two courageous human rights campaigners in Iran.

Prisoners of conscience Mahboubeh Abbasgholizadeh and Shadi Sadr were released on Tuesday 19 March from Evin Prison, Tehran , on bail of over US$215,000. They were among 33 women detained on 4 March during a protest in Tehran. Mahboubeh and Shadi had been held in solitary confinement between 6 and 15 March.

Amnesty welcomes the news that Mahboubeh and Shadi have been released on bail, and will continue to call for all charges to be dropped against anyone charged in connection with the peaceful demonstration on 12 June 2006, or in connection with the peaceful protest on 4 March 2007.

Thank you for being one of the dedicated Amnesty supporters who took time to write on behalf of these courageous women!

Women like Mahboubeh and Shadi inspire us and deserve our admiration. To know they had been detained in substandard conditions, with fear of ill-treatment, for saying what every member of Amnesty International firmly believes comes as a shock.

Would you like to participate more regularly in actions like this? 

If so, I’d like to invite you to join Amnesty International’s most topical and effective letter-writing group, our Urgent Action Network.

Sign up now for Amnesty’s Urgent Action Network
It's easy to join and your participation is completely flexible to your time.

Members of this letter-writing network typically receive 1 message each month. In many cases, it is not a message that can be sent by email, but involves sending a letter by regular mail.

	Indigenous Mayor Dominga Vásquez holds the Urgent Action issued on her behalf. Death threats against her stopped when messages began to arrive in Guatemala from Urgent Action Networ letter writers.

We'll email you the specifics on each indiivdual case, including:

• background information,
• tips on writing a letter with Amnesty,
• the email address of an experienced Amnesty letter-writing volunteer who can act as a mentor.
• we can also alter the frequency and type of actions that are sent to you. We’re flexible because we need to serve YOUR needs, and the time you have available.

Learn more about the Urgent Action (UA) Network.

Our letter-writers are backbone of Amnesty International’s effectiveness. It's the incredible response we get to urgent actions like this one that gets Amnesty International heard by governments all around the world!

Thank YOU so much for not just reading the message, but for taking the few minutes to say it’s just not acceptable that these women have been imprisoned.  Amnesty International will continue to put pressure on Iranian officials to secure their release, and we’ll be relentless in defending their right to speak out for a better life for women in Iran.

If you are not able to join our Urgent Action Network, but would like to stand behind the thousands who diligently respond to Amnesty’s ongoing calls to action, please consider making a financial contribution today.

Thank you, on behalf of both Amnesty International and these two brave defenders of women’s rights in Iran for sharing our concern, and backing up your beliefs with action.

Sincerely,

Alex Neve, Secretary General
Amnesty International Canada

P.S.  If you have any questions about our Urgent Action Network, please contact Marilyn McKim or Kathy Price at urgentaction@amnesty.ca.