The arrest of Mehdi Rajabian followed many reactions as Saeid Boumedouha's lecture, the head of Middle East and North Africa
Amnesty International Organization can be noted in this regard. launched a campaign and acquired to release this artist and then more than twenty thousand artists across the world joined this campaign. However, before that, the international
Free Muse, as the most important institution to track the status of the music artists around the world, launched a campaign and requested all artists in the world to accompany Mehdi Rajabian and protest the prison sentence of this artist. In this campaign, the
International PEN Club, the
International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, the Council of Europe Artists,
Songwriters and Composers Council of Europe and twenty other associations joined with Free Muse. Of course, before that, the annual report of
Ahmed Shaheed, the UN representative for Human Rights in Iran and the letters of more than four hundred musicians and media members were handed to
Ali Jannati, Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance.
Guardian,
Independent,
Al-Arabiya,
BBC,
Le Figaro,
CNN,
Al Jazeera etc. Multiple artists joined the campaign, including
Keyhan Kalhor Iranian musician,
Nazanin Bonyadi Iranian-British Actress,
Shirin Neshat Iranian-American Artist,
Nasrin soutodeh Iranian activist & Lawyer, and
Jafar Panahi Iranian Director.
Official Reactions After imprisonment of Mehdi Rajabian, senior officials of the world started to react officially to this sentence. For instance,
Ban Ki-moon, secretary general of the United Nations, issued a special declaration about the human rights in the world. In the ninth page of the annual declaration, he refers to the conditions of Mehdi Rajabian in the Iranian prisons, and asks the Iranian authorities to release this musician unconditionally. The United Nations in their annual meeting recorded the Mehdi Rajabian name in their annual report, artist who have been imprisoned and under ban for their art. It can be referred to the protesting speech delivered by
Wilfred Moore, the Canadian Liberal Senator in the senate against the Iranian authorities and in support of Mehdi Rajabian. Following that, Philip Luther, the head of
Amnesty International published an official video talking about Mehdi Rajabian and asked all artists of the world to launch a worldwide campaign to support him. After the imprisonment of Mehdi Rajabian,
Åse Kleveland who is a Norwegian an artist and political leader declared her support to him, and asked for unconditional release of him and all artists imprisoned throughout the world. On the other hand, a petition was signed by more than 12,000 people of different human right activists and artists addressing the Iranian authorities to review the judicial case of Mehdi Rajabian and several other prisoners. Finally, the
United Nations Human Rights Committee unanimously passed a resolution against Iranian government for the flagrant violation of human rights as a reaction to the collective hunger strike of Mehdi Rajabian and seven other political and ideological prisoners of
Evin Prison. Following that, the
United States Senate extended the sanctions imposed on Iran for the violation of human rights for another ten years. The citizens of European countries initiated a supporting campaign and a sit-in in front of the Iranian Embassies in different countries while showing his photos. ==Trial sentence==