Iran Bars Travel by Female Activist

Monday, March 03, 2008

By NASSER KARIMI, Associated Press Writer

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TEHRAN, Iran —

An Iranian women's rights activist was barred from traveling to Sweden to receive a prize for her work, but she vowed Monday to continue pushing for equality despite restrictions imposed on female activists.

Parvin Ardalan, 36, was to receive the 2007 Olof Palme award in Stockholm, Sweden but was told just before her flight Sunday that she was not allowed to leave the country.

She had not been told of any ban when she received her passport recently, but "it happened in the last moments before departure," she said.

Iranian officials did not immediately reply to requests for comment.

Ardalan, a columnist in women's publications, is the co-founder of a campaign aimed at gathering 1 million signatures in favor of equal rights for women.

Activists say the government of hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has tried to roll back rights won by women in past years and has cracked down on female activists.

Ardalan was among dozens of women arrested during a 2006 demonstration in Tehran demanding equal rights and she was sentenced to three years in prison on charges of jeopardizing national security. She has been free as she appeals the ruling.

She had been scheduled to receive the $75,000 Olof Palme Prize at an award ceremony in Stockholm on Thursday.

"We expect the Iranian government to reconsider its decision and allow Parvin Ardalan to leave Iran and come to Stockholm to receive the prize," said Pierre Schori, chairman of the Palme fund.

In its citation, the prize committee said Ardalan "has succeeded in making the demand for equal rights for men and women a central part of the struggle for democracy in Iran."

"Despite persecution, threats and harassment, Parvin Ardalan has been persistent in her struggle and never compromised her ideals," the citation added.

The award is endowed by the family of the late Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme, who was murdered in central Stockholm in 1986. The prize is typically presented by Palme's widow, Lisbet.