43 Iranian groups thank Naumann Foundation over Freedom Prize for Prince Reza Pahlavi

Forty-three Iranian organisations, associations and professional networks in Australia, Canada, the United States, Europe, New Zealand and the Asia-Pacific region thanked the Friedrich Naumann Foundation in a joint letter for its decision to award the 2026 Freedom Prize to the Iranian people and to invite Prince Reza Pahlavi to accept it on their behalf. The Prince's press office published the letter on Thursday, 29 October 2026.

The letter, dated 19 October and addressed to Steffen Saebisch of the Naumann Foundation, describes the prize as a tribute to the courage and sacrifice of Iranians in the cause of freedom, human dignity and the right to self-determination. The signatories point to nearly five decades of imprisonment, executions and denial of basic rights under the Islamic Republic and to the bloody crackdown on the Dey uprising.

Why Iranian groups backed the Prince's invitation

According to the signatories, Prince Reza Pahlavi, in several decades of opposition to the Islamic Republic, has consistently defended Iran's territorial integrity, the separation of religion and state, equal rights, individual freedoms and the people's right to choose their future political system in a democratic process. They cite the support he receives from protesters inside Iran and from Iranians abroad as another reason for the choice.

The signatories ask international institutions to take seriously the voices that rise from inside Iran at the risk of their lives in discussions about Iran's future, and to pay attention to the experience of ordinary people beyond security and geopolitical perspectives. In their words, the prize is a reminder of those who were killed, imprisoned or tortured.

The letter says the choice of Frankfurt's historic St. Paul's Church (Paulskirche), tied to the history of German democracy and lawmaking, adds to the importance of the event. The award ceremony will be held in that church on 7 November.

Statement of Dey survivors and political prisoners

At the same time, a group of survivors of 8 and 9 January 2026 and political prisoners of earlier uprisings thanked the Naumann Foundation in a separate statement. They write that they took to the streets on those two nights in response to the Prince's call, and they see the prize as the result of 47 years of struggle. The statement says Prince Reza Pahlavi is their only representative. The signatories expressed the hope that the Prince will bring the prize back to the people in a free Iran.

Groups of athletes, Christian clergy and activists, writers and Iranian political parties had earlier backed the prize in separate letters. DIAR has previously reported on Prince Reza Pahlavi's 47 years of resistance and his national cooperation campaign.

Forty-three Iranian organisations on five continents backed the invitation to Prince Reza Pahlavi to accept the Freedom Prize ahead of the Frankfurt ceremony.