This statement was sent to the Iranian authorities and the Iranian Embassy in Delhi yesterday.
Here is a link to one of Prof Hoodfar’s most influential essays, “The veil in their minds and on our heads.”
We, the undersigned, are in solidarity with Dr. Homa Hoodfar, a Canadian anthropologist of Iranian origin who has been imprisoned by the Iranian authorities on June 6, 2016. Dr. Hoodfar is a respected academic scholar and researcher on women and family in the Middle East and the Muslim world. She travelled to Iran in March 2016 to visit family and for research on women’s participation in public life.
Prior to her arrest, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard interrogated Ms. Hoodfar repeatedly without the presence of a lawyer, searched and seized her belongings including passport, phone and laptop. Ms. Hoodfar fully cooperated with the process and has been very respectful of the domestic Iranian judicial system. Since her arrest however, her family, colleagues and supporters in Iran were left with no choice but to go public with the news of the arrest.
Iranian authorities have given no reason for the arrest and the charges under which she has been held. She has not been granted access to her family or legal counsel. Dr. Hoodfar, aged 65, is not in good health and has already suffered from a mild stroke in 2015. Her family is concerned about her health and fears she may not have access to the specialized care that she requires.
We urge the Iranian government to:
- Provide Dr Hoodfar immediate access to her family and lawyer;
- Ensure Dr Hoodfar has the medicines she requires for her neurological illness, her condition is monitored and the report shared with her family;
- Release Dr Hoodfar and return her passport and other essential documents so she can travel back to Canada to continue her treatment there and resume her academic work.
A. Mani
Abha Bhaiya
Albertina Almeida, Goa
Ammu Abraham
Anuradha Kapoor
Anuradha Pati
Aruna Burte
Ayesha Kidwai
Celin Thomas
Chayanika Shah
Chayya Datar
Dr. Mira Shiva
Dyuti Ailawadi
Gabriele Dietrich
Geeta Seshu
Geetanjali Joshua
Geetanjoli Gangoli
Hasina Khan
Indira Jaising
Jessica Mahadevan
Johanna Lokhande
Kalyani Menon-Sen
Kamal
Kavitha Murlidharan
Kiran Shaheen
Lata P.M.
Mary E John
Mira Savara
Nalini Nayak
Nandita Shah
Nazia Akhtar
Neeraj Malik
Nevedita Menon
Nimisha Desai
Nivedita Menon
Nizara Hazarika
Pramada Menon
Prof. Saswati Ghosh, Kolkatta
Pushpa Achanta (Journalist, Bangalore)
Rajashri Dasgupta
Ramlath Kavil
Rohini Hensman
Roshmi Goswami
Sadhana Arya
Sagari R Ramdas
Saheli Women’s Resource Centre
Sakina Bohra
Sarojini N
Saumya Uma
Shahida Murtaza
Shalini Mahajan, Writer, Bombay
Sheetal Sharma
Shilpa Phadke
Shraddha Chickerur
Shreya Sangai
Shubha Chacko
Sujatha Gothoskar
Sumi Krishna
Suneeta Dhar
Supriya Madangarli
Swatija Manorama
Teena Gill
Uma Chakravarti
Urvashi Butalia
Vahida Nainar
Vani Subramaniam, Film Maker
Vibhuti Patel
Virginia Saldanha
Vrinda Grover
KAFILA - COLLECTIVE EXPLORATIONS SINCE 2006 
This is the danger when you mix religion with state. The religious vigilantism is also tiptoeing in India . It shouldn’t be pooh-poohed as just an election strategy. We are seeing it in the form of stridency of khaps, belligerent and regular statement of so called fringe leaders, and propagation of obscurantist ideas through education syllabus, so on and so forth.
The worst victims of such vigilantism are always women and poor. We have seen that in our westward neighbours.
The irony ( or design, maybe) is that one religious fundamentalism will never publicly oppose the religious fundamentalism of the other group.They will always exhort to oppose the religion and followers of the religion in general. And this is very important and quite obvious. It exposes their commonality in where they all wish us to lead to.
This fundamentalism must be opposed. The care must however be taken that religious fundamentalism of all hues and colours must be opposed equally , for taking it on only one kind will weaken our stand as it will open to the charge of being biased. This mistake was committed in the past and therefore allowed such fundamentalist forces to take a high moral ground.
LikeLike
Iran has a history of illegal detentions. The minority ahwazis are tortured and imprisoned for months. Dr. Hoodfar has been working on subjects the government dislikes. Hence, she has been detained and imprisoned. World feminists and all civil rights activists should express solidarity and see that the government releases her unharmed.
LikeLike
Its a gross human rights violation not only hers but of entire humanity. Corrective action must be taken immediately.
LikeLike