Freedom for Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe

British people have the right to expect that the UK government will do everything it can to secure their freedom and bring them home if they are ever unjustly imprisoned.

But when Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a 45-year-old British-Iranian journalist, was cruelly separated from her daughter and unjustly imprisoned, it exposed how easy it is for one person’s plight to be overlooked.

In March 2016, Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a 45 year old British-Iranian journalist, took her one-year old daughter, Gabriella to visit her parents in Tehran. As she and Gabriella were about to board a plane back to the UK, Nazanin was stopped and arrested by Iran’s notorious Revolutionary Guard.

Gabriella was separated from her mother and handed over to her grandparents while their documents were confiscated, with no explanation.

Nazanin was placed in solitary confinement, denied access to her lawyer, and only allowed limited contact with her family.

In September 2016, after a grossly unfair trial, she was sentenced to five years in prison on a trumped up national security charge. The evidence against her was kept secret.

No one should be subjected to imprisonment without fair trial. Continuing a tradition that goes back to Amnesty’s earliest days, Amnesty’s supporters sent cards and letters to Nazanin in prison, letting her know she wasn't alone.

For five and a half years we consistently called for her release, designating her a ‘prisoner of conscience’ and highlighting the unfairness of her detention.

When we come together we can’t be ignored. Over 170,000 people signed our global petitions calling on Iran's Supreme Leader and judiciary to release Nazanin. And still more of our supporters wrote directly to their MPs asking them to take action on her case.

Together, we showed our support and solidarity with Nazanin’s husband, Richard Ratcliffe, who was a tireless advocate for Nazanin’s freedom. He even went on hunger strike to raise awareness and put pressure on the government. We stood by him in his bravery.

We know that even in the face of despair it is important to find common humanity and humour. So we worked with Richard, Iranian-born comedian Shappi Khorsandi, and anti-torture charity Redress to arrange a comedy night in support of Nazanin’s cause.

Speaking at the event, Richard said, “I don’t know how it’s been for you but I’ve had a wonderful evening so far, and it’s not often I say that these days.”

On 7 March 2021 - the official end of her sentence - Nazanin's ankle tag was removed and her movements restricted.

However she immediately faced a second charge and after a short trial, the Iranian authorities announced that she had been sentenced to one more year in prison.

Eventually, in March 2022, after negotiations between Iran and the UK, Nazanin was allowed to return home to the UK, to reunite with her family.

Anoosheh Ashoori, a UK-Iranian dual-national, who had been jailed for ten years on spurious espionage charges, travelled with her.

Helping to free Nazanin was a joyful moment. It is testimony to the power of our shared conviction that wrongs can be righted and proof that together we are a force to be reckoned with.

Nazanin's ordeal – and the ongoing suffering of other unjustly detained Britons and their families – shows how essential it is that the UK government develops a clear and consistent approach to the arbitrary imprisonment of British people overseas.

This is just one of many hard-fought victories we have won together. Through our people-powered campaigns, we have changed thousands of lives around the world. We have saved people from torture, detention, harassment and other abuses, reunited hostages wth their families, and overturned miscarriages of justice.

But we will never stop fighting until everyone is free, and till the fear, suffering and injustice that comes with human rights abuses is over.