Ever since she obtained her lawyer’s license in 1992, Shirin Ebadi has been taking on controversial cases in the fight for human rights and equality for women, children, and political prisoners in Iran. In 2003, she was the first Muslim woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. In addition to being an internationally renowned advocate for human rights, Ebadi established the Million Signatures campaign, with the aim of ending legal discrimination against women in Iran.
Ebadi also went to great lengths to outlaw child abuse in the country, co-founding the Society for Protecting the Rights of the Children in 1994.
Before beginning her law career, Ebadi served as one of the first female judges in Iran. She achieved Chief Justice status as she headed the city court of Tehran from 1975 to 1979. After her appointment as a clerk in the court, Ebadi petitioned for retirement. Once she had ended her judicial career, she created her own private law practice. Throughout the years, she faced several arrests because she supported controversial figures in the country that dared to challenge the Iranian regime.
One of her most famous cases involved the representation of the Forouhar family in 1998. Dariush Forouhar and his wife, two prominent Iranian intellectuals, were found dead at their home. Investigations revealed that the couple was stabbed to death. The Iranian community started to grow highly suspicious of the Islamic extremists who were trying to put an end to the growing liberal climate in the country. Ebadi solved the murder mystery by connecting the crime to the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence.
In 2000, Ebadi faced accusations of distributing a videotaped confession revealing the plans of prominent conservative Iranian leaders. The message disclosed that these leaders were planning physical attacks on pro-reform gatherings and liberal/intellectual figures in the country.
Ebadi received a prison sentence, which was later suspended. As a result of this case, human rights groups from other countries started to focus more on Iran.
By 2001, Ebadi created another non-governmental organization in Iran, known as the Center for the Defense of Human Rights. In addition to this monumental establishment, she wrote many books and articles emphasizing human rights. A number of her books were translated into English, including “The Rights of the Child: A Study of Legal Aspects of Children’s Rights in Iran,” and “History and Documentation of Human Rights in Iran.”
In 2004, Ebadi filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Treasury Department after it refused to publish her memoir, “Iran Awakening: A memoir of Revolution and Hope,” in the United States. The block on the publication ensued from the anti-Iranian embargo laws, but she eventually won her case. As a result of her daring acts, Forbes Magazine recognized Ebadi as one of the 100 most powerful women in the world, and Random House published her book in 2006.
Aside from being a prominent Iranian lawyer constantly fighting for human rights, Ebadi is also a university professor. Often, students from other countries participate in her human rights training classes. Her teachings on human rights prevail throughout her numerous articles, 12 books, and some of her writings published by UNICEF. Her latest book, “Iran Awakening: A Memoir of Revolution and Hope,” was published in English, French, and German. It is now scheduled to print in another 13 languages.
With the re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in May 2009, Ebadi again faced prosecution charges. As thousands of Iranians were unhappy with the outcome of the election, the Iranian government began chasing after reformers and their families. In June 2009, an editorial in a local newspaper announced the government’s plans to prosecute Ebadi for capital offenses. Officials resorted to extreme measures, freezing Ebadi’s financial accounts, detaining her husband, and then beating him months later. In November of the same year, journalists around the world discovered that the Iranian government had stolen Ebadi’s Nobel Prize diploma and medallion.
Though Ebadi criticized the Iranian government on many of their policies, she still believes that violence is not the solution in overturning the fanatic regime. She thinks nonviolent reform within Iran is still a possibility.
She continues as a leading prominent voice against U.S. conservatives’ propositions to invade the country. Despite continuous harassments and threats from the Khamenei/Ahmadinejad regime, Ebadi remains safe and positive about her work. To this day, she continues her fight as an active human rights advocate in Iran.
Sources:
http://www.nobelwomensinitiative.org/about-us/laureates/shirin-ebadi
http://www.answers.com/topic/shirin-ebadi
http://civilliberty.about.com/od/gendersexuality/p/shirin_ebadi.htm