The women arrested in the March 8 protest in front of the Ministry of Labor, have been released. After 5 days of detention the remaining women arrested on March 8th were released tonight on March 12, 2018. The women who were being held at Qarchak prison, were transferred to the court in Evin prison in the morning. They were released at the end of the day on third party guarantees, which is a release guarantee for some of the least serious charges. Some of the women had been told that they would have post bond, but they had refused to accept this requirement which is sign of more serious charges. In the end their instance paid off.
According to reports five men arrested on March 8 remain in detention. They include: The men in detention are: Ali Afsoongar, Ali Salem, Mehrdad Ghazi, Payman Chehrazi, Javab Abbas Tavaloli,
A collective of women activists planned a protest in front of the Ministry of Labor on March 8, demanding economic justice and equal employment opportunities for women. The protesters arriving at the scene were dispersed before a protest could take shape, but according to reports over 80 persons at the scene, some passing by, were arrested. Police and security officers used violence to disperse crowds and to arrest some protesters. Most of those arrested were released within a couple of days on their own recognizance or on personal guarantees.
According to reports at lease 16 women and five men were taken to prison from the detention centers. The women were transferred to Qarchak prison and the men to Fashafouyeh. The women included the followig: Shahla Entesari, Zohre AsadPour, Soudabeh Rakhsh, Banafsheh Jamali, Azadeh Behkish, Marzieh Khosravi, Marzieh Amiri, Mahshid AsadPour, Bahar Aslani, Marzieh Amiri, Moloud hajizadeh, Masoumeh Akbari, Atefeh Khosravi, Zahra Ahmadi, Ayna GhotbiYaghoubi, and Zahra Ayati. Family and friends from the women’s movement as well as other social movements had been waiting outside detention centers and prisons in anticipation for the release of these activists. They greeted those released with flowers and cheers.
According to promises made by the judiciary officials the men should be released on Wednesday.
Iranian Women 