Kurdistan Human Rights Network

Hiwa is a database of Kurdish political prisoners in Iran, developed by the Paris-based Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN). The platform provides a dedicated page for each prisoner, ensuring that their names and cases are documented and their stories are preserved, contributing to the quest for justice.

Hiwa offers a glimpse into the suffering and injustice faced by individuals arrested and imprisoned due to their identity, beliefs, or political activities. The principles guiding this database are rooted in a commitment to truth, a pursuit of justice, and a hope for freedom.

Hiwa maps the security detention centers and prisons where Kurdish political prisoners are held in Iran, offering detailed information about these facilities and the prisoners housed within them. The infographic section below the map further provides comprehensive graphs detailing the cities, charges, gender, and fields of activity of the prisoners.

In the two sections dedicated to detainees and political prisoners, we create individual pages for each person currently or previously held in Iran’s security detention centers and prisons. These pages detail their arrests, judicial processes, sentences, and imprisonment. To ensure thorough and accurate documentation, we perform daily monitoring, conduct archival research, review legal documents, and interview the individuals, their families, close contacts, fellow prisoners, and lawyers. We also include information shared by members of the public.

Hiwa aims at creating pages for all Kurdish political prisoners and detainees in Iran. We acknowledge that accurately counting and documenting all those imprisoned under the Islamic Republic is a formidable challenge, particularly as time goes on. However, this challenge will not deter us from our collective efforts with you.

If you or someone close to you has been arrested or imprisoned in Iran for political reasons or their beliefs, please fill out this form or contact us directly via email, Telegram, WhatsApp, Signal, Instagram, X (Twitter), or Facebook. You can use these channels to register new individuals in the Hiwa database or to update existing pages.

Hiwa means “Hope” in Kurdish.