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Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe- how to support her and her husband

65 replies

TableTopTennis · 12/11/2021 11:44

I am just appalled by her continued imprisonment. Her husband always speaks with such dignity and calm but he must be absolutely desperate. He's on hunger strike now.

I want to support his campaign, and pressure our Government to do more, but how? Is there anything I can do other than writing to my MP?

OP posts:
Dozer · 12/11/2021 15:02

It’s awful.

I disagree, however, with his hunger strike. Doubt this will benefit his wife, influence governments, and it’s likely to be very detrimental to him and their DC.

HerculesMulligan · 12/11/2021 15:10

Tulip Siddiqi has organised a debate in parliament next week. You could email your MP and ask him/her to participate - whether or not they do, lots of requests would show the strength of feeling and might move this slowly up the Government's priority list (given that they only seem to react to mass public outrage and / or newspaper front pages).

HeartsAndClubs · 12/11/2021 15:12

I had a stupid idea of crowdfunding/gofundme raising the money and going to Iran with it to say 'here, we've done it ourselves, our government is shit' I think you’d be lucky to raise a grand.

While there are people who believe that the government should pay Iran, most of those same people wouldn’t want to be part of paying off money to another country.

The fact this thread has only 27 posts speaks volumes in terms of the level of interest the majority of the country has in this case. Obviously this thread doesn’t speak for the whole population, but where there have been protests etc we’re talking hundreds of people. Nowhere near enough to raise £4m.

And people need to be very careful about involving themselves in the politics of other countries.

And no government is going to agree to release someone based on money raised by a load of people on the internet.

HeartsAndClubs · 12/11/2021 15:15

*£4bn

In fact to raise that level of money every single person in the UK would need to donate £66.

musicmaiden · 12/11/2021 15:47

@HeartsAndClubs

He’s said he won’t take it to that extreme. He won’t let her lose him. so what is the point then? He’s said publicly that he won’t die, so everyone knows that at some point soon he’s going to end this hunger strike.

Bearing in mind he’s 20 days in now it’s not exactly made much difference has it?

The point is to highlight her plight, keep it in the news, ensure it's not forgotten. It is terrible PR for the Foreign Office and there are now many, many calls for feckin Liz Truss to get to work on this awful situation rather than sitting on motorbikes and pretending she's walking through jungles, as she has been doing these past weeks.

He is quite simply desperate, poor man.

Helocariad · 12/11/2021 15:55

place marking

NOTANUM · 12/11/2021 16:00

The Times reported Liz Truss, who only accepted an invite to meet reluctantly, as a rabbit in the headlights on the issue. She may be the new party darling but she needs to up her game on such matters.
I’m no labour fan but Starmer and Angela Raynor willingly went to see him.

Theunamedcat · 12/11/2021 16:01

They haven't said that even if it is paid off that they will allow her to leave they have suggested it but they won't commit because if they can get uk to do this then what else can they get the UK for

HeartsAndClubs · 12/11/2021 16:16

Of course they haven’t. And regardless of What people think of her plight, there is no way the UK government should be handing over £4bn for the release of one person.

The £4bn is a separate issue which needs to be discussed away from this situation.

Suzi888 · 12/11/2021 17:14

@xxxGirlCrushxxx

I had a stupid idea of crowdfunding/gofundme raising the money and going to Iran with it to say 'here, we've done it ourselves, our government is shit'

but yes, too simplistic and would probably make things worse not better

and yes, its about more than humiliation...lots more. poor family. I actually do believe the public could raise a huge chunk of money but nowhere near 400m

That’s a pretty good idea, only 400 million isn’t going to happen.
Suzi888 · 12/11/2021 17:16

“The fact this thread has only 27 posts speaks volumes in terms of the level of interest the majority of the country has in this case. “
This is the awful truth, I think people on the whole, just don’t care much anymore. It’s all about number one.
I will write to my M.P- for all the good that will do.

Knitwit101 · 12/11/2021 17:20

I care. I've cared for a very long time. I've emailed my mp, I follow and retreat everything I can, I don't know what else to do.
I hope he stops his hunger strike soon and goes home to his daughter but I can understand why he feels he can't. At least she can look back and know that her dad did everything he could to get her mum home.
I can't help feeling that just laying low till the end if this latest sentence, which I think is only a year(?) might have been a better course of action, but what do I know?

Blossomtoes · 12/11/2021 17:22

Signed the petition and am writing to my MP. It’s an absolutely heartbreaking situation. I’m really surprised by some of the callousness on this thread.

xxxGirlCrushxxx · 12/11/2021 17:27

30 days in, how long before he becomes too ill to continue?

What's his plan?

badabadabadababadadadaaa · 12/11/2021 17:30

@HeartsAndClubs

Of course they haven’t. And regardless of What people think of her plight, there is no way the UK government should be handing over £4bn for the release of one person.

The £4bn is a separate issue which needs to be discussed away from this situation.

It's 400 million, not 4 bn
Effic · 12/11/2021 17:37

This isn’t about the money!!! Iran pumps 400 million pounds worth of oil out of the ground everyday! This is about politics and power. Iran is under international sanctions …. no-one can pay it anything for trade so I’m it sure how anyone thinks that crowdfunding somehow can bypass international sanctions? The govt has already agreed to pay the money from the tank deal but it can’t pay due to the international sanctions preventing it. Iran don’t need the money; they need to world to see that Britain will fold to their will. It’s a massive PR exercise to show that they have power over the west. And we will have shown every authoritarian regime that we will trample international law if you kidnap one of our citizens.

Nomoreusernames1244 · 12/11/2021 17:38

Nazneen is a citizen of Iran and as such it is Iran’s right to try her as per the laws of Iran; if they think she’s a spy and she’s an Iranian citizen that means she can be tried for treason

This.

Big problem is as she has an Iranian passport, Iran see her as Iranian and the British government have no more sway over her fate than they would any other Iranian in jail over there.

It’s part of the risk travelling as a dual citizen. It’s a very sad situation but bottom line is the government can ask politely, but can’t actually do much like they would for a British citizen.

Iran have the upper hand politically and they know it.

Theunamedcat · 12/11/2021 18:05

The money is sitting in a bank account and has been for years we can't pay it because they are sanctions in place its a power play

HeartsAndClubs · 12/11/2021 18:09

This is the awful truth, I think people on the whole, just don’t care much anymore. It’s all about number one. I’m not even sure it’s as simple as that.

Fact is there are people in prison all over the world for all manner of crimes. As a rule each one of them is only really important to their own family. People aren’t going to take an interest in them all, and tbh things like going on hunger strike doesn’t do the cause any favours where most of the public are concerned. The government aren’t going to hand over money because some bloke goes on hunger strike. And it’s not doing his child any favours what so ever. And contrary to a PP, I don’t think she’ll be thinking that at least her dad did what he could when something happens to him and she’s left over here in the UK with no parents at all. is it a price worth paying when there’s a child in the middle? I don’t actually think that it is.

And then there’s the fact that we don’t actually know that she isn’t guilty of a crime. A lot of people say she isn’t, based on the fact she’s a woman, based on the fact she travelled there supposedly just to visit her family, but there is some conflicting information out there which we can’t possibly know whether is true or not.

Chances are it’s not, but not everyone is going to think that, and there are going to be people who will wonder… etc etc.

ChristmasPlanning · 12/11/2021 19:41

It's awful

MassDebate · 12/11/2021 20:01

I care.
Nazanin has been and continues to be tortured by the Iranian regime. She is supposed to be under diplomatic protection, yet the government has done nothing to give that meaning. Richard’s actions are putting this in the spotlight again and anyone criticising him for a desperate action aimed at reuniting his family must be severely lacking in empathy.

myheartskippedabeat · 12/11/2021 20:05

I was sympathetic until I heard about this hunger strike

That poor little girl

This is achieving nothing for anyone involved and isn't going to get her released any sooner

It may however result in him becoming to poorly to care for his daughter which is extremely selfish given she already doesn't have her Mum

myheartskippedabeat · 12/11/2021 20:06

And if Iran want to humiliate the UK this won't bother them in the slightest I can't imagine

Gazelda · 12/11/2021 20:14

@myheartskippedabeat

I was sympathetic until I heard about this hunger strike

That poor little girl

This is achieving nothing for anyone involved and isn't going to get her released any sooner

It may however result in him becoming to poorly to care for his daughter which is extremely selfish given she already doesn't have her Mum

The man is desperate. He probably doesn't feel as though he's being heard.

From what I've read, his wife's mental health is poor, he might be doing this to demonstrate that she's not been forgotten by him, he's still fighting for her.

I'm sure his daughter is being well looked after by loving family members. And Richard won't let the hunger strike go so far as to risk his daughter being orphaned.

Many people probably hadn't thought about Nazanin for a while until this latest hunger strike.

I've emailed my (conservative) MP, asking him to be present at the debate next week, as a demonstration of the strength of feeling of his constituents. We'll see ...

NotThatHomer · 12/11/2021 20:14

The money is sitting in a bank account and has been for years we can't pay it because they are sanctions in place its a power play

It isn't the sanctions though is it? Didn't the US pay back debts to Iran after the sanctions were imposed, as it was money owed?

I do wish he'd stop the hunger strike though, I worry for his health and his child. Obviously the way campaigners keep hostages alive is by keeping their name in the media, not letting people forget, not letting people be brushed under the carpet. But I wish her husband would think of another way.