December 10, 2024

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(NEW YORK) – Artists at Risk Connection (ARC) welcomes the release of cartoonist Atena Farghadani, today, December 10, 2024, after completing her sentence at Evin Prison. On December 9, 2024, the appeals court acquitted Farghadani of the blasphemy charges against her, significantly reducing the prison sentence to 8 months. 

“We are deeply relieved by Atena Farghadani’s release and hope she receives the care and support she needs after enduring such unjust and brutal imprisonment,” said Julie Trébault, Executive Director of ARC. “Her case is a stark reminder of the risks faced by artists in Iran simply for exercising their right to free expression. While we celebrate Atena’s freedom, we urgently call on Iranian authorities to release all artists and cultural workers who remain unjustly detained.”

Farghadani was violently arrested on April 13, 2024, for attempting to display one of her paintings on a wall in Tehran’s Pasteur Street, close to the presidential palace. She was transferred to Evin court the next day, where she faced charges of “propaganda against the state” and “insulting the sacred [the Messiah the twelfth Imam Shia].” On June 10, 2024, Farghadani was sentenced to six years of prison– five years on charges of insulting sacred places and one year for propaganda against the state.

Farghadani’s release comes nine days after the release of Iranian dissident rapper Toomaj Salehi, first arrested in October 2022 after publicly supporting the “Woman, Life, Freedom” mass protest movement on social media and through his music. Since 2022, ARC has received almost 70 requests for assistance from Iranian artists, underscoring a rise in the persecution of creatives in the country over the past two years. Among those targeted are rapper Vafa Ahmadpour (known as Vafadar), Saman Yasin, a Kurdish rapper, and Grammy award-winning Shervin Hajipour. All those named have received prison sentences and travel bans.

ABOUT ARC
Artists at Risk Connection (ARC) is an international organization committed to promoting and advancing artistic freedom worldwide. We work to protect artists and cultural workers who are at risk because of their creative expression, often connected to their identities or roles within their communities. ARC helps artists at risk overcome challenges like persecution, censorship, threats, and violence from both state and non-state actors.

Contact: Elias Ephron, eephron@artistsatriskconnection.org