Victims’ Families for Transitional Justice (VFFTJ) is a non-profit organization founded by survivors, former political prisoners, and families who have lost loved ones to the violence of the Islamic Republic of Iran since 1979.

Our members include families of those executed in the 1980s, victims of the 1988 Massacre of Political Prisoners, relatives of those killed during the 1999 Student Protests, the Green Movement, the Bloody November 2019 uprising, the downing of Flight PS752, and the Women, Life, Freedom movement, as well as families of political prisoners and individuals currently facing execution.

We believe that memory is the foundation of justice. Through documentation, education, advocacy, memorialization, and international outreach, we work to preserve the stories of victims, support affected families, and advance the principles of truth, accountability, and democratic transition.

One of our flagship initiatives is the traveling exhibition “Memories Left Behind,” which has been presented in Stockholm, Oslo, Cologne, Vienna, and Berlin. Through personal belongings, letters, photographs, prison artifacts, and testimonies, the exhibition documents more than four decades of repression in Iran and ensures that the voices of victims are not erased from history.

Unlike many human rights organizations, VFFTJ is led directly by those who have experienced the consequences of state violence. The families themselves tell their stories, preserve the evidence, and carry forward the memory of those who can no longer speak for themselves.

We work to build bridges between victims, human rights defenders, academics, policymakers, journalists, and civil society organizations around the world. Our goal is not only to document the past but also to contribute to a future Iran founded on justice, human dignity, democracy, secular governance, and respect for human rights.

We envision an Iran where truth is acknowledged, victims are honored, perpetrators are held accountable, and future generations are protected from violence, repression, and impunity.

We aspire to contribute to a democratic and secular society where every individual enjoys equal rights under the law, where state institutions respect human dignity, and where the suffering of victims serves as a foundation for justice, reconciliation, and lasting peace.

Victims’ Families for Transitional Justice (VFFTJ) is committed to preserving the memory of the victims of the Islamic Republic of Iran, supporting survivors and bereaved families, and advancing truth, accountability, and justice as foundations for a democratic future.

We pursue this mission by:

• Seeking Justice and Accountability for those responsible for executions, enforced disappearances, torture, and other human rights violations committed since 1979.

• Documenting Human Rights Violations and preserving evidence, testimonies, letters, photographs, and personal artifacts for future accountability and historical record.

• Preserving Memory by honoring the lives, stories, and legacies of victims and ensuring that their experiences are neither forgotten nor erased.

• Advocating for Transitional Justice and supporting truth-seeking, accountability, reparations, memorialization, and guarantees of non-repetition.

• Promoting Judicial Independence and advocating for impartial and independent mechanisms capable of investigating and prosecuting serious human rights crimes.

• Educating the Public through exhibitions, publications, research, and public events that raise awareness about the history and ongoing impact of repression in Iran.

• Building International Solidarity with victims, human rights defenders, civil society organizations, academics, journalists, and policymakers committed to justice and human dignity.

• Supporting Survivors and Bereaved Families by creating spaces for remembrance, dialogue, healing, and collective action.

VFFTJ does not seek political power, government positions, or partisan influence. Our commitment is to truth, memory, justice, and the restoration of dignity for victims and their families.