On 25.08.2021, Homayoun Sabetara, a migrant fleeing Iran, was arrested by Greek authorities in Thessaloniki after having driven a vehicle across the Turkish-Greek border. Following an unfair trial in a language foreign to his own, on 26.09.2022, Mr. Sabetara was then sentenced to an 18-year prison sentence for alleged smuggling. Mr. Sabetara was reportedly coerced into piloting the vehicle from their departing point near the Turkish-Greek border, having to transport seven additional persons. Since his arrest in August 2021 he has been held in prison in Greece.

At the time of his escape from Iran, Homayoun Sabetara had no legal and safe passage available to travel to Germany, where his children currently reside.

The Campaign

In June 2023 Mahtab Sabetara, Homayoun’s daughter living in Berlin, started the campaign #FreeHomayoun.
The campaign demands the acquittal of Homayoun Sabetara, as well as all migrants who are criminalized for the act of ‘smuggling’.

In view of the appeal trail of Homayoun Sabetara, which is scheduled for 22 April 2024, the case is in urgent need of public attention. On the 22nd of each month, there is a new video to share. The latest campaign material will be posted on the freehomayoun.org website and social media channels. Get active: donations will constantly be collected to cover the legal costs and you can sign the petition.

You can support the campaign by:

• signing the petition at https://innn.it/freehomayoun
• sharing and supporting our social media channels @freehomayoun on Instagram, Facebook, Bluesky and X
• spreading and using the hashtags #freehomayoun, #Migrationisnotacrime and #NoDriverNoSurvivor.
• contributing financially to the campaign via betterplace: https://www.betterplace.me/freehomayoun
• wiriting letters to Homayoun via email or by sending it to Civilfleet-Support e.V., Lausitzer Str. 10, Aufgang C, 10999 Berlin.
• writing your own statements, organizing actions, expressing solidarity through photo actions.
• informing your friends and acquaintances about the case.
  https://www.freehomayoun.org/en