Happy Birthday Roxana Saberi!
By Kate Gardiner in News on Apr 26, 2009 3:30PM
In honor of Roxana Saberi's 32nd birthday, supporters have organized a Facebook profile rally; participants are supposed to change their Facebook profile photo to this one of the imprisoned Iranian-American journalist. Saberi, a former Miss North Dakota, graduated Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism in 1999. She has been in Tehran, freelance reporting for the BBC and NPR, for the past six years. She was arrested Jan. 31 and convicted earlier this month.
Well, it would be an uneventful and presumably happy 32nd birthday for former Miss North Dakota and freelance journalist Roxana Saberi, but the Iranian-American woman was sentenced to eight years in Iranian prison this month following her conviction for espionage. According to her parents, the journalist has been on hunger strike for five days, protesting her imprisonment.
Saberi, who attended Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism, was arrested and jailed by Iranian police Jan. 31. The arrest was originally linked to buying a bottle of wine, but charges were later upgraded to working in Iran without press credentials, and finally, spying for the U.S. government.
A month later, National Public Radio broke the story of Saberi's arrest in Iran; Iranian officials acknowledged she was being held in Tehran, at Evin prison, March 3. Saberi's first meeting with an attorney was March 8, more than five weeks after she was imprisoned.
She was tried and convicted in a closed courtroom April 14, and sentenced to eight years in Iranian prison April 18.
Since NPR broke the story, Saberi's arrest has been universally decried by state and federal officials, including President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. April 22, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told ABC News he would not interfere with the case. Saberi has been granted an appeal, and will be defended by Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Shirin Ebadi at her hearing.
As of last night, no media representatives have been able to see Saberi in her prison cell; ABC's George Stephanopoulos traveled to Iran and was refused, though he was able to interview Ahmadinejad.
The Rev. Jesse Jackson, who said Saberi interviewed him while she was a student at Medill, said he has applied for an Iranian visa and is trying to bring together a group of interfaith religious leaders to visit the journalist in prison.
In the interim, friends and supporters have organized online, using social media and Web sites to keep the public informed. Supporters are encouraged to email birthday greetings to Saberi, who will receive them via her parents.
Saberi is dating prominent Iranian-Kurdish filmmaker Bahman Ghobadi, who said he will wait in Tehran until his girlfriend is freed.
A rally was held at Northwestern University's Evanston campus on Thursday. No date has been set for Saberi's appeal.