Top 60 Shirin Ebadi Quotes (2024 Update)

1. “It’s not just about hope and ideas. It’s about action.”

— Shirin Ebadi

2. “If you can’t eliminate injustice, at least tell everyone about it.”

— Shirin Ebadi

3. “Everyone’s condition is different, and the way that each person lives his or her life is different.”

— Shirin Ebadi

4. “Human rights is a universal standard. It is a component of every religion and every civilization.”

— Shirin Ebadi

5. “My hopes for Iran’s future lies with women first and foremost. Iran’s feminist movement is very strong. This movement has no leader or head quarters. Its place is the home of every Iranian who believes in equal rights. This is currently the strongest women’s movement in the Middle East.”

— Shirin Ebadi

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6. “The idea of cultural relativism is nothing but an excuse to violate human rights.”

— Shirin Ebadi

7. “People are fundamentally good. But conditions deteriorate them.”

— Shirin Ebadi

8. “Any person who pursues human rights in Iran must live with fear from birth to death, but I have learned to overcome my fear.”

— Shirin Ebadi

9. “I am the voice of the people in Iran whose voices are silent and whose demands cannot be heard by the rest of the world.”

— Shirin Ebadi

10. “There is no “true Islam,” just different interpretations.”

— Shirin Ebadi

11. “Contrary to what certain governments say, human rights are universal. Arbitrary detention, torture and discrimination hurt the human dignity of anybody, whatever his or her country of origin, religion, descent, or any other ground.”

— Shirin Ebadi

12. “Democracy is not an incident that happens overnight, nor a gift that America can give to the world. It is a culture which needs peace to evolve.”

— Shirin Ebadi

13. “When more and more people want something, it becomes easier to achieve that goal.”

— Shirin Ebadi

14. “My aim is to show that those governments that violate the rights of people by invoking the name of Islam have been misusing Islam.”

— Shirin Ebadi

15. “Lawyers have a dangerous job in Iran.”

— Shirin Ebadi

16. “Women are the victims of this patriarchal culture, but they are also its carriers. Let us keep in mind that every oppressive man was raised in the confines of his mother’s home.”

— Shirin Ebadi

17. “Whenever women protest and ask for their rights, they are silenced with the argument that the laws are justified under Islam. It is an unfounded argument. It is not Islam at fault, but rather the patriarchal culture that uses its own interpretations to justify whatever it wants.”

— Shirin Ebadi

18. “Over 60 percent of the university students in Iran are female. The women in Iran are better educated than men.”

— Shirin Ebadi

19. “Democracy doesn’t recognize east or west; democracy is simply people’s will. Therefore, I do not acknowledge that there are various models of democracy; there is just democracy itself.”

— Shirin Ebadi

20. “Because of our youthful population, we suffer from unemployment in Iran. We need more universities and more job opportunities for the young.”

— Shirin Ebadi

21. “I hope the example of Saddam Hussein will give a lesson to leaders of other countries where human rights are not respected.”

— Shirin Ebadi

22. “Islam is not an excuse for thwarting democracy.”

— Shirin Ebadi

23. “When a person is humiliated, when his rights are being violated, and he does not have the proper education, naturally he gravitates toward terrorism.”

— Shirin Ebadi

24. “We demand a non-violent world where human security is the basis of our common global security. People have the right to live in a world where the basic needs of all peoples are addressed. No more military attacks. No more war.”

— Shirin Ebadi

25. “The people are fed up with corruption and embezzlement. They object to censorship. The first thing that the people of Iran want is free elections.”

— Shirin Ebadi

26. “Those who don’t understand any language other than the language of force and violence don’t respect human dignity. They seek violence because they will be irrelevant without it. We should not go their way.”

— Shirin Ebadi

27. “When there is enough oxygen in the air for everyone, no one is going to take to violence in order to access it. But if there were not enough of it for everyone then people would result to violence in order to get it. Therefore we have to improve the conditions to have better human beings.”

— Shirin Ebadi

28. “We must not enable anyone to impose his personal view regarding religion on others by force, oppression, or pressure.”

— Shirin Ebadi

29. “Under the Iranian code, the worth of a woman’s life equals half of a man’s, a point that often leads to grotesque legal judgments that effectively punish the victims. In this instance, the judge ruled that the ‘blood money’ for the two men was worth more than the life of the murdered nine-year-old girl, and he demanded that her family come up with thousands of dollars to finance their executions.”

— Shirin Ebadi

30. “The role of Iran has been very destructive. As an Iranian, I apologize to the civilian people of Syria who have been killed as a result of the useless intervention of Iran in Syria.”

— Shirin Ebadi

31. “I have said many times that I wish there was no oil in the Middle East, and more water. People would have been much happier than they are.”

— Shirin Ebadi

32. “What is important is that one utilizes one’s intellect and not to be 100 percent sure about one’s convictions. One should always leave room for doubt.”

— Shirin Ebadi

33. “Certainly, the fight against terrorism is a legitimate fight. And certainly whoever commits terrorism should be brought to justice.”

— Shirin Ebadi

34. “Sadly the job security of lawyers has been ruined, so they are less willing to defend political defendants.”

— Shirin Ebadi

35. “How can you defy fear? Fear is a human instinct, just like hunger. Whether you like it or not, you become hungry. Similarly with fear. But I have learned to train myself to live with this fear.”

— Shirin Ebadi

36. “When you vote, vote for those who are not warmongers, and vote for those who respect human rights. When you see a president who doesn’t respect human rights, don’t vote for that person.”

— Shirin Ebadi

37. “I maintain that nothing useful and lasting can emerge from violence.”

— Shirin Ebadi

38. “No government can make me wear a veil, no government can force me not to wear it either.”

— Shirin Ebadi

39. “Sixty-three percent of our university students are female. But you still see violations of women’s rights in Iran. A Muslim man can have up to four wives. He can divorce his wife without offering any reason, while it is quite difficult for a woman to get a divorce.”

— Shirin Ebadi

40. “The government of Iran claims that every two years there are elections. But none of them are free.”

— Shirin Ebadi

41. “When the gravity of death first touched me, I’d found preoccupation with the minutiae of daily life meaningless. If we ultimately die, and turn to dust in the ground, should it ever truly upset us if the floor hasn’t been swept quite recently enough.”

— Shirin Ebadi

42. “The condition of women in Islamic societies as a whole is also far from desirable. However, we should acknowledge that there are differences. In certain countries, the conditions are much better and in others much worse.”

— Shirin Ebadi

43. “It is totally unacceptable for a government to interfere in the internal affairs of another government and send aid, money, and weapons, to the people who are against a certain regime in another country.”

— Shirin Ebadi

44. “While living in exile I have become the loudspeaker for the people of Iran.”

— Shirin Ebadi

45. “Unfortunately, violence begets violence. And this is how the war on terrorism seems to be going at this juncture. A lot of people are losing their lives. Many children are losing their parents. Too many houses are being destroyed. And, unfortunately, the arms industry seems to flourish.”

— Shirin Ebadi

46. “I have never agreed with President Bush’s argument regarding the axis of evil. Unfortunately, fundamentalists in Iran have used this as an excuse to brand us as allies of Mr. Bush.”

— Shirin Ebadi

47. “Every time I am fearful I think to myself, the reason they do this is to discourage me from doing what I do. Hence, if I discontinue my work I will have succumbed to my fears.”

— Shirin Ebadi

48. “Usually, in any revolution people are focused on who wants to have the most power. But the most important thing is the laws that are written during that time.”

— Shirin Ebadi

49. “Lawyers should not be charged with the same crimes as their clients. Trials related to political charges are not in accordance with human rights.”

— Shirin Ebadi

50. “We adapted to being at war, just as we had adapted to the chaos and upheaval of revolution. How amazing and yet tragic it is, I thought, the human instinct for.”

— Shirin Ebadi