Committee of Concerned Scientists

An international non-profit organization of scientists, physicians, engineers and scholars dedicated to protecting the human rights and scientific freedom of our colleagues around the world.

An independent non-profit organization of scientists, physicians, engineers and scholars dedicated to protecting the human rights and scientific freedom of our colleagues around the world.

Australian Academic Still In Solitary Confinement In Iranian Prison After Large Prisoner Release

Kylie Moore-Gilbert, researcher in Islamic Studies at the University of Melbourne, is being held in solitary confinement and sentenced to 10-years in prison, allegedly for espionage, which she has denied. While tens of thousands of prisoners have been released, due to threat of Covid-19, Moore-Gilbert is being retained. CCS has written the letter below to the Prime Minister of Australia as her case has received little attention from the Australian government.

May 8, 2020

 

The Honorary Scott Morrison
Prime Minister
Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet
P.O. Box 6500
Canberra Act 2600  AUSTRALIA
Email: scott.morrison.mp@aph.gov.au
Fax: 011-61-02-6273-4100

Dear Prime Minister Morrison,

The Committee of Concerned Scientists is an independent organization of scientists, physicians, engineers and scholars that has been working, since 1972, on the advancement of human rights and scientific freedom for our colleagues all over the world.

We write to express our grave concern about the lack of effort, on behalf of your government, to achieve the release of Dr. Kylie Moore-Gilbert of the University of Melbourne, who is falsely imprisoned in Iran.

Dr. Moore-Gilbert, an expert on Islamic studies, was arrested while on a research visit to Iran in September 2018. She was sentenced to 10 years in prison by the Iranian Revolutionary Court on undisclosed charges that are believed to be related to her writings on revolutions and protest movements in the Middle East.

Since her arrest, Dr. Moore-Gilbert has been kept in solitary confinement at Evin prison under inhumane and unsanitary conditions. She, reportedly, attempted to commit suicide after losing hope of ever seeing her loved ones or  returning to academic life.

This horrific story, of an aspiring young Australian academic, has caused a strong reaction from human rights organizations worldwide; but, apparently, has received insufficient attention from Australia.

Time is of the essence. We urge you to set up a task force to achieve Dr. Moore-Gilbert’s release, possibly her exchange for an Iranian prisoner held in a Western country.

 

Sincerely,

Joel L. Lebowitz, Paul H. Plotz, Walter Reich, Eugene M. Chudnovsky, Alexander Greer

Co-Chairs, Committee of Concerned Scientists, Inc.

Who We Are

Co-chairs

Joel L. Lebowitz, Rutgers University

Paul H. Plotz, M.D., Washington, DC

Walter Reich, George Washington University

Eugene Chudnovsky, Lehman College

Alexander Greer, Brooklyn College

Vice-chairs

Astronomy – Arno Penzias, New Enterprises Associates*

Biology – Max E. Gottesman, Columbia University

Chemistry – Zafra Lerman, MIMSAD Inc.

Computer Science – Rachelle Heller, The George Washington University

Computer Science – Jack Minker, University of Maryland, College Park

Engineering – Philip Sarachik, NYU Polytechnic School of Engineering

Mathematics – Simon Levin, Princeton University

Medical Sciences – J. Joseph Blum, Duke University

Honorary Board Members

Nancy Andrews, Duke University

David Baltimore, California Institute of Technology*

Alan J. Bard, University of Texas

Jacob Bigeleisen (deceased), SUNY, Stony Brook

Raoul Bott (deceased), Harvard University

Owen Chamberlain (deceased), University of California, Berkeley

Stanley Deser, Brandeis University

Edward Gerjuoy, University of Pittsburg

David Gross, (2004 Nobel Prize in Physics), Kavil Institute for Theoretical Physics, University of California, Santa Barbara*

Pierre Hohenberg (deceased), New York University

Walter Kohn (deceased), University of California, Santa Barbara*

James Langer, University of California, Santa Barbara

Peter Lax, New York University

Louis Nirenberg, New York University

Marshall Nirenberg (deceased), National Institutes of Health*

Honorary Board Members

John C. Polanyi, University of Toronto*

Stuart Rice, University of Chicago

Sir Richard J. Roberts, (1993 Nobel Prize in Physiology & Medicine), New England Biolabs*

Myriam Sarachick, City College of New York

Harold Scheraga, Cornell University

Sylvan Schweber (deceased), Brandeis University

Maxine Singer, Carnegie Institution of Washington

Alfred I. Tauber, Boston University

Steven Weinberg, University of Texas, Austin*

Myrna Weissman, Columbia University

Rosalyn S. Yalow (deceased), Mount Sinai School of Medicine*

* Nobel laureate

Committee of Concerned Scientists

c/o Alexandra R. Bender, Executive Director
P.O. Box 4525
Easton, PA 18043
Phone: (570) 994-2093
abender@concernedscientists.org