UNITED NATIONS — The United Nations introduced Tuesday evening that its premier prize for press freedom has been awarded to 3 imprisoned Iranian feminine journalists “for their commitment to truth and accountability.”

The winners are Niloufar Hamedi who broke the information that 22-year-old Mahsa Amini died final September whereas being held by the morality police for sporting her headband too loosely, and Elaheh Mohammadi who wrote about her funeral.

Amini’s dying touched off months-long protests in dozens of cities throughout Iran. The demonstrations posed one of the crucial critical challenges to the Islamic Republic for the reason that 2009 Green Movement protests drew hundreds of thousands to the streets.

The third winner is Narges Mohammadi, who has labored for a few years as a journalist and is one in all Iran’s most distinguished activists.

The U.N. Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization World Press Freedom Prize is called for Guillermo Cano, a Colombian journalism who was assassinated in entrance of the places of work of his newspaper El Espectador in Bogota on Dec. 17, 1986. UNESCO has awarded the prize to coincide with World Press Freedom Day on May 3 since 1997.

UNESCO Director General Audrey Azoulay introduced the winners at a ceremony in New York, saying: “Now more than ever, it is important to pay tribute to all women journalists who are prevented from doing their jobs and who face threats and attacks on their personal safety.”

Zainab Salbi, chair of the worldwide jury of media professionals that selected the winners, mentioned the courageous work of the three winners “led to a historical women-led revolution.”

“They paid a hefty price for their commitment to report on and convey the truth,” Salbi mentioned. “And for that, we are committed to honoring them and ensuring their voices will continue to echo worldwide until they are safe and free.”

In late April, Iran’s judiciary acknowledged that two reporters who broke information on Amini’s dying, Hamedi and Elaheh Mohammadi, had been indicted on prices of collaborating with the United States, appearing towards nationwide safety, and creating “propaganda against the system.”

While almost 100 journalists have been arrested amid the demonstrations, Hamedi and Elaheh Mohammadi’s reporting was essential within the days after Amini’s dying to unfold phrase concerning the anger that adopted. Hamedi works for the reformist newspaper Shargh, whereas Mohammadi works for the reformist newspaper Ham-Mihan.

Their detentions have sparked worldwide criticism over the bloody safety drive crackdown that lasted months after Amini’s dying. According to UNESCO, each Hamedi and Mohammadi have been in Iran’s Evin Prison since September, and Hamedi has been in solitary confinement.

Since the protests started, a minimum of 529 folks have been killed in demonstrations, in line with Human Rights activists in Iran. Over 19,700 others have been detained by authorities amid a violent crackdown attempting to suppress the dissent. Iran for months has not provided any total casualty figures, whereas acknowledging tens of hundreds had been detained.

Narges Mohammadi has been repeatedly detained and imprisoned by authorities, and UNESCO mentioned she is at the moment serving a 16-year jail sentence in Evin Prison. She’s received recognition overseas for her work, together with her activism towards the dying penalty in Iran, which stays one of many world’s high executioners.

UNESCO mentioned she is vice director of the Tehran-based civil society group, Defenders of Human Rights Center. She additionally continues to report in print from jail and has interviewed different girls prisoners which had been included in her guide “White Torture,” the U.N. company mentioned.

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