Ghoncheh Ghavami (born 1989), also spelled as Goncheh Ghavami (), is a British-Iranian law graduate of the

School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London The School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS University of London; ) is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the federal University of London. Founded in 1916, SOAS is located in the Bloomsbury area ...

who was held in solitary confinement in

Evin Prison Evin Prison () is a prison located in the Evin neighborhood of Tehran, Iran. The prison has been the primary site for detaining Iran's political prisoners since 1972, before and after the Iranian Revolution, in a purpose-built wing nicknamed "E ...

for protesting for equal access to sporting events in

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

. On 20 June 2014 she was arrested for the first time after she attempted to attend a men-only volleyball match in

Azadi Indoor Stadium The Azadi Indoor Stadium, officially named Azadi 12,000 Capacity Hall (), is an indoor arena, indoor sports arena in Tehran, Iran. The stadium has a seating capacity of 6,583, and the stadium capacity with standing room is 12,000. The stadium i ...

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

. Women have been prohibited from attending male-only football matches in

since 1979, and this restriction was extended to volleyball matches in 2012. Although she was released on the same day, she was re-arrested days later when she returned to collect her belongings; she was then taken to Evin Prison. Her arrest raised international protests, but Iranian officials denied the link between her arrest and the volleyball match. She was charged with "propaganda against the

regime In politics, a regime (also spelled régime) is a system of government that determines access to public office, and the extent of power held by officials. The two broad categories of regimes are democratic and autocratic. A key similarity acros ...

", according to Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejeie, the second-ranking member of Iran's judiciary. Ghavami was released on bail on 23 November 2014. She was sentenced to a one-year jail term and a two-year travel ban.

Life

Ghavami was born circa 1989 and has an elder brother. She lived in

Shepherd's Bush Shepherd's Bush is a suburb of West London, England, within the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham west of Charing Cross, and identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Plan. Although primarily residential in character, its ...

in London in 2014. She has dual British and Iranian nationality. She studied law and graduated from the Law School at the School of Oriental and African Studies,

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

. She worked for a charity in Iran teaching children to read and write.

Arrest and detention

On 20 June 2014, Ghavami was detained while trying to enter a

Volleyball World League The FIVB Volleyball World League was an annual international men's volleyball competition. Created in 1990, it was the longest and richest of all the international events organized by the Fédération Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB). The wome ...

match ( Iran vs Italy) at

. She and other women's rights campaigners were protesting outside the stadium for equal access to sporting events. It is illegal for women to interact with male spectators at sports facilities in Iran. This law was allegedly introduced to protect female spectators from the lewd behaviour of other spectators. The arrested campaigners broke this law. Ghavami was arrested at the security gate to the stadium and released on bail. When she returned a week later to collect her belongings, she was re-arrested and taken to

where she was held in solitary confinement. She shared a cell for a brief while with

Atena Farghadani Atena Farghadani (; born 29 January 1987) is an Iranian artist and political activist, who was imprisoned for 18 months. Amnesty International considers her a prisoner of conscience. She was released on 3 May 2016. Arrest and imprisonment One ...

, an Iranian artist and political activist. She began a

hunger strike A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance where participants fasting, fast as an act of political protest, usually with the objective of achieving a specific goal, such as a policy change. Hunger strikers that do not take fluids are ...

on 1 October 2014 after being held in solitary detention for 100 days. Iran's judiciary has denied that the charges against Ghavami are related to her stadium visit, stating she was charged with "propaganda against the regime". Ghavami was released on bail in November 2014. ''The New York Times'' reported Ghavami's bail as being "around $30,000" and reported that the Iranian authorities would not allow her to return to the UK due to her two-year travel ban.

Responses

Change.org Change.org is a website which allows users to create and sign petitions in an attempt to advance various social causes by raising awareness and influencing decision-makers. The site is a US-based for-profit company and claims to have 551 million ...

petition started by her brother, aiming to free her and bring her back to the United Kingdom, was signed by over 750,000. In an open letter to President Hassan Rouhani, 300 Iranian human and civil rights activists highlighted the conditions Ghavami was being held under. The foreign secretary of the United Kingdom,

Philip Hammond Philip Hammond, Baron Hammond of Runnymede (born 4 December 1955) is a British politician and life peer who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2016 to 2019 and Foreign Secretary from 2014 to 2016, having previously served as Defence ...

, raised her case with

Mohammad Javad Zarif Mohammad Javad Zarif (; born 8 January 1960) is an Iranian career diplomat and academic. He served as the vice president for strategic affairs from August 2024 to March 2025.United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

in New York City. However, Iran does not recognise her dual nationality as a British citizen.

References

External links

Amnesty International Campaign to free Ghoncheh GhavamiAmnesty International Urgent Action about Ghoncheh Ghavami
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ghavami, Ghoncheh Living people 1989 births 2014 in Iran 21st-century British lawyers 21st-century British women lawyers 21st-century Iranian people 21st-century Iranian women Alumni of SOAS University of London British hunger strikers British people imprisoned in Iran Inmates of Evin Prison Iranian dissidents Iranian emigrants to the United Kingdom Iranian hunger strikers Iranian prisoners and detainees Iranian women activists Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom People from Shepherd's Bush

Life

Arrest and detention

Responses

See also

References

External links