In defense of Toomaj Salehi and the condemnation of the death sentence for him, the cities of the world witnessed numerous protests
The teachers Association of Harsin, Kermanshah Province, in Kurdistan of Iran, published a statement and announced: "The death sentence of Toomaj is the murder of art and life."
A part of this statement reads: "Lies would kill us, if it were not for art. Those who live in lies have built a gallows for art."
Harsin Teachers' Association emphasizes: "We consider Toomaj Salehi's death sentence to be a murder of art and life, we condemn it in unison with the rest of the world. Toomaj Salehi is an extension of Socrates."
Also, Deniz Daei, the daughter of famous footballer Ali Daei, took a stand against Toomaj Salehi's death sentence by publishing a video on Instagram.
Condemning the accusations against this famous rap singer and referring to the execution of more than 800 people by the Iran, Deniz Daei said: "Unfortunately, this kind of barbaric actions do not belong to the past and the execution machine of Iran is still active."
She asked her audience to be the "voice of the voiceless", even though the Iran is dealing with the freedom seekers with full force and suppressing them "in a merciless way", "but we must continue and not be afraid".
It is worth mentioning that Amnesty International recently announced in a report that at least 853 people will be executed in Iran in 2023.
During the recent days, famous artistic figures also took a stand against this inhuman sentence. Meek Mill, a famous American rapper, wrote in a tweet: "Got sentenced to death over a song, free him."
Amnesty International also wrote on X social network: "Iranian authorities must quash Toomaj Salehi’s conviction and death sentence and release him immediately."
Ye-One Rhie, a member of the German Parliament and a political sponsor of Toomaj Salehi, also stated in a tweet: "It is now clear that Toomaj was only sentenced to death because he expressed his opinion. Because he spoke out about the conditions during his imprisonment. Because he spoke to his fans. In short: execution for just talking!. I don't need to tell you what this means for Iranian society and for the people in Iran. There is no freedom,no human rights in this country.This verdict is alarming.Once again.I don't want to conceal who is responsible for this cruel verdict: the judge Mohammad Reza Tavakoli."
She added: "we will not stop drawing attention to the arbitrariness and the lack of the rule of law. We stand together for Toomaj, his freedom and freedom of expression!"
Also, On Thursday, April 25, a group of United Nations human rights experts issued a statement calling for the immediate release of Toomaj Salehi.
"Criticism of government policy, including through artistic expression is protected under the rights to freedom of expression and the right to take part in cultural life. It must not be criminalised," the experts said. “Art must be allowed to criticise, to provoke, to push the boundaries in any society."
"We are alarmed by the imposition of the death sentence and the alleged ill-treatment of Mr. Salehi which appears to be related solely to the exercise of his right to freedom of artistic expression and creativity," the experts said.
"As harsh Mr. Salehi’s songs are to the government, they are a manifestation of artistic freedom and cultural rights," they said.
"We are very worried at the reported criminalisation of the legitimate exercise of artistic expression through the imposition of a range of dubious charges," they said. "Executions following unfair trials constitute an arbitrary deprivation of life."
"All individuals have the right to participate in varied information exchanges, to contribute to artistic expression, and to take part in cultural life and in the development of their society, including through political debate and expression of opinion and dissent, without fear of imprisonment, torture, reprisals or even execution,"the experts said.
