a reason to care

This has not been a good day.

Reza Saberi, Roxana Saberi's father, had some disconcerting news. Roxana will not only continue to be held in Tehran's Evin prison for some time. Iranian authorities have decided to proceed with a trial, charging her with violating the law by working as a journalist without approved documentation.

None of this is positive. And this comes after preliminary guidance that none of this would happen, that Roxana could be released, and that payment in some form could free her from the solitary situation she faces each day in Evin.

Earlier today I learned that Reza is planning to write a letter to Iranian authorities that will be published as soon as tomorrow morning in a major Tehran daily. He hopes to be able to read the letter to local media in Fargo, North Dakota, where they live, in order to garner attention and coverage for the story.

If you are a working journalist in Fargo, or a cable news producer or reporter here in the States, see about obtaining Reza's letter for use in a story about the travesty of putting this woman up on trial.

This is a terrible turn, and a bit of a surprise given what Reza had been hearing from the attorney. He does not know how this will play out, and in the short term recognizes that Roxana will not be released over the next two weeks as all of Iran will literally shut down for the celebration of the Iranian New Year.

Further, and here's where this story can get even more complicated, Roxana produced freelance reports for a number of international media outlets. NPR was one of the primary beneficiaries of her reporting. As such, they have a responsibility to work on her behalf, to seek to squash the false charges levelled against her, and to obtain her release from prison, and from Iran. To date, NPR has done nothing but act as a signatory to a letter requesting a fair hearing for Roxana. More is expected, and more is needed from Roxana at this time. Not only for her, but for every freelance journalist filing for NPR. Not one senior NPR manager has been put on a plane to Tehran, or done anything directly on behalf of Roxana, and that is a shame. They often used her reporting, and any person who freelances overseas for NPR might begin to wonder whether NPR has their back when things get hairy. We all know what the television networks did in the past when their people were taken into custody. NPR does not seem to have stepped up on this, and appears to be waiting out the work of the official authorities, none of whom have been able to make any progress.

Even the US State Department are reliant upon the Swiss, whose reported inquiries have been rebuffed by the Iranians.

Attention matters. The world is literally watching. Voice your support. Be heard. Help to make a difference. A life is at stake.