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Marina Nemat: Prisoner of Tehran ranian-born, Toronto resident M a r i n a Nemat's recently / p u b l i s h e d m e m o i r , Prisoner of Tehran, is a tale she felt c o m p e l l e d to tell. In 2 0 0 3 , the beating death of Canadian/Iranian journalist Zahra Kazemi in the notorious Evin prison in Tehran brought her o w n memories back of her time there and it was exactly the catalyst she needed to tell her story. Kazemi had brought international attention to Evin, Nemat would now give it words. A t an age w h e n most teenagers are w o r r i e d about their grades, friends a n d maybe getting a date, 16 year o l d M a r i n a N e m a t was a r r e s t e d , sentenced to death a n d i m p r i s o n e d in Tehran's c o n t r o v e r s i a l E v i n p r i s o n . Iran was in the midst of a p r o f o u n d revolution with the Shaw deposed and Ayatollah K h o m e i n i proclaimed the ultimate ruler under the repressive regime of the Islamic Republic. Nemat's whole w o r l d w o u l d change practically overnight. A t her s c h o o l , many of her teachers were suddenly gone w i t h o u t e x p l a n a t i o n . In their place were r e v o l u t i o n a r y guards p r e a c h i n g the g o v e r n m e n t p r o p a g a n d a of ultra conservative Islamic doctrine. T h i s propaganda replaced math, history and other subjects at Nemat's school. Nemat chose to speak up and defend her higher l e a r n i n g and ask simply for her studies to resume. This act of so-called rebellion landed her and many of her friends on a black list of sorts. It wasn't long before guards came to her house to arrest her and take her away to the horrors that awaited her in Evin prison. Her parents were helpless to intervene. In fact, they w o u l d receive very little information on their 16 year old daughter. Such was the dramatic loss of h u m a n rights in the new Islamic Republic in 1982. Nemat was taken blindfolded to the prison and interrogated. They wanted her to name friends w h o shared her 'progressive' beliefs. Nemat kept quiet and was tortured by a severe beating on the soles of her feet, one of the body's most sensitive areas. She was unable to walk afterwards for days. U n k n o w n to Nemat, her friends were also on the 'list' and were getting the same pitiless interrogation. 6 No«ember|December Nemat's lack of cooperation led to a death sentence for her. W i t h her spirit b r o k e n , she was led to the execution sight s h o r t l y f o l l o w i n g her i m p r i s o n m e n t . A s a guard led her blindfolded to the firing range, a seeming miracle occurred. A n o t h e r p r i s o n g u a r d a r r i v e d and gave the executioner w o r d that her death sentence had been commuted to life. She was saved but the life sentence indeed seemed even more unbearable. However, unbeknownst to N e m a t , one of her captors had fallen in love with her and used his connections with the Ayatollah to save her life. This same prison guard, A l i , found a way to get her sentence reduced to three years, but it was at a terrible cost - Nemat had to agree to marry h i m and convert to Islam. Nemat, a devout C h r i s t i a n , was, of course, repulsed by the idea of m a r r y i n g one of her captors and refused. Threatening to harm her family and friends, he forced Nemat to accept his proposal and she married him and converted. As part of the bargain, she was allowed to leave the prison and live a life of house arrest with her new husband in his home This h a r r o w i n g tale continues with much more drama and plot twists reading more like a work of fiction than real life. But indeed, the tale is Nemat's memoirs, proving once again that truth can be stranger than f i c t i o n . To find out how the rest of the story unfolds, read the critically acclaimed Prisoner of Tehran and be treated to a wonderful story that is a testament to the human spirit's ability to survive in the bleakest and most extreme of circumstances. Better yet, go and hear her story in person. WHO: Marina Nemat WHAT: Speaking about Prisoner ol Tehran in the Cap College IKON Speaker Series WHEN: Monday. November 26 @ 8 pm WHERE: Capilano College Performing Arts Theatre INFO: Tickets, $12/$10 at 604,990.7810 or on-line at www.capcollege.bc.ca/theatre