Maryam Mirzakhani condition your return to Iran on the freeing of political prisoners

The Iranian regime, which ideologically perceives and socially treats women as lesser than men, now tries to use Maryam Mirzakhani’s status as the first woman in history to win the Fields Medal for mathematics (a prize in the field of mathematics which is equal to, if not higher than, the Nobel prize) to drum up its own legitimacy by inviting her to Iran.

I don’t know where Dr. Mirzakhani’s political tendencies lie or whether she has any (though it is easier to find snow in the Sahara than an Iranian who has no political view). But if she is considering going to Iran, I would suggest that she condition her return on the liberation of Iran’s political prisoners – unlike Ms. Shirin Ebadi, who encourages her to go back and give recognition to a regime whose entire existence is based on the violation of the human rights of Iranians. I have no doubt she knows that a good number of Iran’s political prisoners come from her alma mater, Sharif University; she might even know some of them. The reward has provided her with a great opportunity to advocate for women rights and human rights in general in Iran.