IMAGES © SHUTTERSTOCKChinaLiu Xiaobo
iranAkbar Ganji
The renowned political prisoner
was a bastion for human rights
in China. He was sentenced to 11
years in prison for criticising the
communist government through
a petition called “Charter 08”
which called for drastic political
reforms and the end of one-party
rule. His protests against the
government date back to the
days building up to Tiananmen
Square in 1989, where he was
a student adviser, and joined
the protest leaders in a week-
long hunger strike. His writing,
teaching and human rights
activities earned him the Nobel
Peace Prize in 2010 – the first
Chinese citizen to be accorded
the honour. Earlier this year, he
was released on medical parole
after he was diagnosed with
terminal cancer; he remained
under surveillance. He passed
away on July 13, 2017.The brave Iranian journalist has
voiced his dissent against the
Iranian government, gaining
recognition for his work on “the
chain of murders of Iran”, which
accused a set of senior officials
of the killings. This landed
him six years in jail. During his
imprisonment, he wrote several
important essays, most notably
a political manifesto, which
outlines hopes for democracy
in Iran. He has also been fiercely
critical of the war and US
occupation in Iraq, saying:
“You cannot bring democracy
to a country by attacking it.”
He strongly supported the
election protests in Iran in 2009,
and carried out a hunger strike
outside of the United Nations
headquarters to draw attention
to the plight of Iranian political
prisoners, and the conditions of
oppression in the country.
indiaMohandas Gandhi
He is more commonly known
by his name Mahatma, which
means, “the great-souled one”.
He served many prison terms,
beginning with his campaigning
against the racial discrimination
in South Africa – where he
worked for a period in the early
1900s. He rebelled against the
laws that required all Indians in
the country to be fingerprinted.
When back in India, he was sent
to jail for campaigning against
British rule. After being charged
for contempt of the British
government in India, he pleaded
guilty and was sentenced to a
six-year prison term, of which
he served two years. In
August 1947, India achieved
independence. After Partition,
he continued to promote peace
between Hindus and Muslims.
He was assassinated six months
later in New Delhi.“Negotiation talks are the best way to solve
anything. We must replace wars and weapons
with negotiations and talks”
“I hope that I will be the last victim
in China's long record of treating words
as crimes"“First they ignore you, then they laugh at
you, then they fight you, then you win"