Exercising human rights needs to be protected.
No to Having Prisoners of Conscience (Please See Note 1)
“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere”
The detention of any prisoner of conscience by any system of government violates the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. All prisoners of conscience are essentially trying to exercise their rights to freedom of expression, association, assembly, and/or movement. Viewed from this perspective, the immediate and unconditional release of all prisoners of conscience needs to be given high consideration and firmly demanded (See Note 2).
To embrace our common humanity as the primary moral imperative (the moral obligation and responsibility as well), the eloquent words of Nobel Laureate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the celebrated poetic words of Persian/Iranian poet Saadi come to mind that still stand to captivate and inspire millions around the world:
“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”
“Of one Essence is the human race,
Thusly has Creation put the Base;
One Limb impacted is sufficient,
For all Others to feel the Mace.”
Notes:
1) Prisoner of conscience is a term used by the Amnesty International (human rights group) in the early 1960s. They and others define prisoner of conscience as a person imprisoned or physically restrained solely for holding and peacefully expressing political, social, religious, or other views (as opposed to a crime in the conventional sense) not tolerated by the government of the state in which they live.
2) Suggested strategies for freeing prisoners of conscience:
http://www.wmd.org/assemblies/fifth-assembly/reports/defending-civil-society-0/freeing-prisoners-conscience-what-are-ef
References:
1) Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
2) Persian/Iranian Poet/Writer/Thinker, Saadi Shirazi
Artwork Credit:
Art Director & Graphic Designer: Ardalan Payvar
Art Production By: 12Petals Media Group, No to Having Prisoners of Conscience. 2013
Special thanks are extended to all those who keep supporting and contributing to the 12Petals’ culture of human rights collaborative projects.
About 12Petals:
12Petals Media Group strives to be a union of visual artists, musicians, filmmakers, cinematographers, playwrights, social entrepreneurs and more, all coming together to produce inspired multimedia pieces that promote and encourage respect for those rights protected by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
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Persian translation of this outreach project can be seen here:
http://www.facebook.com/notes/12-petals-media-group/زندانیان-دگراندیش-نمیخواهیم-داشته-باشیم/10152711182780177
http://www.iroon.com/irtn/blog/1248/
Contribution By: Lawdan Bazargan
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