Shahla Lahiji

Shahla Lahiji (Persian: شهلا لاهیجی; born 1942) is an Iranian writer, publisher, translator, women's rights activist, and the director of Roshangaran, a publishing house on women's issues.[1]

Career and activities

Lahiji completed a degree in sociology at the Open University of London.[2] She established Roshangaran publishing house in 1983, becoming the first female publisher in Iran.[3][4] As of 2006 Roshangaran published more than 200 titles which are produced by female authors concerning women's issues.[5][4] The publishing house received the PEN International prize in the United States and the Pandora prize in the United Kingdom in 2001.[6]

She was one of 19 writers and intellectuals prosecuted for participating in an academic and cultural conference sponsored by the Heinrich Böll Foundation in Berlin on 7–9 April 2000 at which political and social reform in Iran were publicly debated.[7] Before being released on bail in June 2000, Lahiji was kept in Evin Prison where she was interrogated for several months without access to an attorney. Six of the 19 intellectuals charged in connection with the Berlin conference were acquitted, while 11 were sentenced to prison terms ranging from four to fourteen years, however, several of these, such as notable cleric and writer Hasan Yousefi Eshkevari, have since been released. Shahla Lahiji had been sentenced to three years and six months in prison for interfering with national security by attending the conference, plus another six months for spreading propaganda against the Islamic Republic by speaking out about the dangers facing Iranian writers. Her sentence was eventually shortened to six months.[8][9]

Shahla Lahiji has also served as a member of the Violence Against Women Committee in Iran.[10]

Books
  • The Quest for Identity : The Image of Iranian Women in Prehistory and History, co-authored with Mehrangiz Kar, 1992
  • Iran Awakening: One Woman's Journey to Reclaim Her Life and Country, co-authored with Azadeh Moaveni, 2007
  • Quello che mi spetta by Parinoush Saniee, (Contributor), 2010(first published in 2002)[11] ISBN 978-8-811-66599-1

Other publications
  • Lahiji, ShahlaScarecrow Press, Inc 2013. ISBN 978-0-8108-7086-4

Honours and awards

21 September 2006, Geneva (Switzerland) and Göteborg (Sweden) – Iranian publisher Shahla Lahiji will receive the first IPA Publishers' Freedom Prize today at the Göteborg Book Fair's opening ceremony, in recognition of her extraordinary defense and promotion of freedom of expression and freedom to publish in her country and globally.[13] Shahla Lahiji was chosen as the prize-winner by the board of the International Publishers' Association (IPA) from among many deserving candidates nominated by IPA members, independent publishers, and human rights organizations.[14][15]

See also

References
  1. "Iranian feminist dissident hopes protests will succeed and stay peaceful". Deutsche Welle (DW). 15 June 2009. Retrieved 2021-04-26.
  2. "Women's Literary & Artistic Creativity in Contemporary Iran. Speakers". The University of Toronto. Retrieved 11 September 2019.
  3. "Shahla Lahiji: Iran's First Female Publisher". ASHARQ AL-AWSAT.
  4. Loubna H. Skalli (Spring 2006). "Communicating Gender in the Public Sphere: Women and Information Technologies in the MENA Region" (PDF). Journal of Middle East Women's Studies. 2 (2): 35–59. doi:10.1353/jmw.2006.0023. Retrieved 7 October 2014.
  5. "Iranian Activists Campaign To Bring More Women Into Parliament". RFERL.
  6. Wendy Kristianasen (2 April 2004). "Islam's women fight for their rights". Le Monde diplomatique. Retrieved 8 October 2014.
  7. "Iranian publisher and Uzbek novelist to receive 2001 PEN/Barbara Goldsmith Freedom to Write Awards". ifex.
  8. "SHAHLA LAHIJI IRAN". PEN AMERICA.
  9. "Non-violence for change". DW.
  10. "Statement by Iranian Women for International Women's Day". Payvand.
  11. "Quello che mi spetta by Parinoush Saniee". goodreads.
  12. "Iranian publisher and Uzbek novelist to receive 2001 PEN/Barbara Goldsmith Freedom to Write Awards". ifex.
  13. "Tehran's Women Cultural Center Holds Ceremony in honor of Ms Shahla Lahiji". Payvand News.
  14. "First IPA Publishers' Freedom Prize goes to courageous Iranian publisher Shahla Lahiji". ifex.
  15. "Shahla Lahiji in Brescia: "Children in Iran die for freedom". Catholic Democratic Cooperative of Culture.


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