The scenario in Iran is “essential” as authorities tighten their crackdown on the persevering with anti-government protests after the September dying of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini within the custody of the so-called morality police. United Nations human rights officers report Iranian safety forces in Kurdish cities killed dozens of protesters this week alone, with every funeral turning right into a mass rally towards the central authorities. “The defiance has been astounding,” says Center East research professor Nahid Siamdoust, who reported for years from Iran, together with throughout the 2009 Inexperienced Motion, and calls the protests a “nationwide revolution.”
TRANSCRIPT
NERMEEN SHAIKH: We’re broadcasting stay from downtown Cairo in Egypt with the Nile River flowing behind us.
We start immediately’s present in Iran, the place human rights authorities say the scenario has grow to be essential, with studies of dozens of youngsters being killed, injured and detained at current anti-government demonstrations. The Workplace of the U.N. Excessive Commissioner for Human Rights mentioned Tuesday that worsening repression by Iranian safety forces has led to a rising variety of deaths, particularly in Kurdish cities. That is spokesperson Jeremy Laurence.
JEREMY LAURENCE: For the reason that nationwide protests started on the sixteenth of September, over 300 individuals have been killed, together with greater than 40 kids. Two 16-year-old boys have been amongst six killed over the weekend. Protesters have been killed in 25 of Iran’s 31 provinces, together with greater than 100 in Sistan and Balochistan. Iranian official sources have additionally reported that various safety forces have been killed for the reason that begin of the protests. …
We name on the authorities to launch all these detained in relation to the train of their rights, together with the correct to peaceable meeting, and to drop the costs towards them. Our workplace additionally calls on the Iranian authorities to right away impose a moratorium on the dying penalty and to revoke dying sentences issued for crimes not qualifying as essentially the most critical crimes underneath worldwide legislation.
NERMEEN SHAIKH: This comes because the BBC reports authorities haven’t been releasing protesters’ our bodies until their households stay silent. Some say they have been pressured by safety officers to associate with state media studies that their family members have been killed by, quote, “rioters.”
On Monday, Iran’s nationwide soccer group declined to sing the nationwide anthem earlier than their opening World Cup match in an indication of help for the protests.
AMY GOODMAN: In the meantime, on Sunday, two of Iran’s most distinguished actresses have been arrested after they voiced help for anti-government protests and appeared in public with out sporting a hijab, as required by legislation. Forward of her arrest on Sunday, Hengameh Ghaziani wrote, “no matter occurs, know that as all the time I’ll stand with the individuals of Iran. This can be my final publish,” she wrote. Katayoun Riahi was additionally arrested and accused of appearing towards Iran’s authorities.
CNN reports Iran’s safety forces are utilizing sexual assaults of female and male activists to quell the protests.
This week, the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva is ready to carry a session on the protests with witnesses and victims in attendance and can talk about a proposal to determine a fact-finding mission on the crackdown in Iran. Proof of abuses might later be utilized in courtroom.
For extra, we’re joined by Nahid Siamdoust, assistant professor in Center East and media research at College of Texas in Austin, former journalist who has reported throughout the Center East, together with Iran.
Welcome again to Democracy Now!, Professor. In case you might begin off by speaking in regards to the essential scenario in Iran proper now and likewise the escalating assaults by the Iranian authorities on Kurdish areas?
NAHID SIAMDOUST: Sure. In current weeks, we’ve seen, particularly inside the Kurdish areas, Mahabad most lately, however Bukan, Sanandaj, Saqqez, in all these cities, the Kurdish individuals have risen up. And the individuals have risen up throughout Iran. And the authorities are going very harshly towards protesters. We see picture after picture on social media of individuals with, you recognize, tens, typically a whole bunch, of pellets of their our bodies. A few of these individuals don’t survive these photographs.
And as you already talked about in your report, lots of the individuals, of the protesters who’re killed, are kids. They’re youngsters. They’re youngsters who’ve taken their lives into their palms and gone into the streets to protest their residing situations, you recognize, the grim future that they’re wanting into, and actually asking for a special future.
NERMEEN SHAIKH: And will you clarify particularly what’s it, the connection between Iran’s central authorities and Kurdistan? So lots of the protests, as you’ve identified, too, the epicenter has been within the Kurdish area. May you clarify what the connection between the state, following the revolution, and Kurdistan has been?
NAHID SIAMDOUST: Positive. So, Kurdistan — Iran is a system of governorates, so 30 governorates and states, so to talk. And so, every state, together with the Kurdish area, may have their very own governors. So, the central system controls these areas through the governors that they’ve in these areas, they usually’re oftentimes — you recognize, they’re all the time permitted, in fact, by the central state.
However the individuals have risen up, and their spiritual leaders and sheikhs have spoken up of their protection. So, you recognize, we’ve seen one of many sheikhs in Kurdistan becoming a member of the sheikh in Balochistan in asking for an unbiased worldwide physique to supervise a referendum in Iran.
And so, you recognize, the forces that we see, the sepahis that we see, the plainclothes officers and militia that we see in Kurdistan suppressing the rebellion or the revolution there, they arrive from every kind of various backgrounds, all supported by the central state, in fact. And Kurdistan could be very a lot, you recognize, a part of Iran, and that is one thing that the Kurdish leaders in that area have additionally acknowledged. So, you recognize, we have now to be — once you speak in regards to the central state and the Kurdish area, we have now to watch out to not play into the regime’s personal discourse of this being a separatist motion.
NERMEEN SHAIKH: No, completely, you’re proper about that. And I needed to say additionally — for those who might remark, as well as, to the studies that we’re seeing now, and that we mentioned a bit in our introduction, of the systematic use of sexual violence towards prisoners, principally ladies protesters but additionally males? What are you listening to about this on the bottom? There have been studies, extensively publicized, of assaults by safety forces in public, however that is the primary that we’re listening to of assaults on prisoners, protesters who’ve been imprisoned.
NAHID SIAMDOUST: Proper. So, a few weeks in the past, there was a video printed of a lady type of open in public being, you recognize, type of touched completely inappropriately, and that set off conversations about what is definitely occurring by way of the sexual abuse of those prisoners. And extra lately, a pair days in the past, there was a report by CNN with, you recognize, type of ladies and others alleging that they’ve been sexually abused in these interrogation rooms. And we’ve seen different studies coming via on social media.
The mother and father and the households of those detainees are very a lot pressured to maintain silent, and so we don’t actually have a full account of what’s occurring in these interrogations. And we all know they’re abused bodily, however the nature of the sexual abuse is one thing that also wants to essentially be narrated and are available to the fore.
AMY GOODMAN: Are you able to speak in regards to the defiance of the Iranian individuals, the ladies who’re main these protests, and the importance of what’s occurring proper now in Qatar with the Iranian soccer group refusing to sing the nationwide anthem of Iran earlier than the sport?
NAHID SIAMDOUST: Proper. We’ve seen, you recognize, Iranians throughout the board, everywhere in the nation. As you talked about, individuals in 25 out of 30 states have been — have been killed. And so, that is actually a nationwide revolution. And the defiance has been astounding. The braveness with which individuals have gone into the streets week after week, regardless of the killings which might be occurring, regardless of the, you recognize, additionally extreme accidents — it doesn’t simply should be deaths — individuals dropping their eyes, individuals dropping their limbs — regardless of all of that, they’ve risen up and are persevering with to protest. And now they’ve been joined, as you talked about in your report, by actresses, by athletes, by academics’ unions and professors’ unions and so forth.
The Iran nationwide group on the World Cup refused to sing the nationwide anthem. Nevertheless, they haven’t been totally supported by Iranians at giant. It’s a really contested area. There are some amongst Iranians who’re supporting their nationwide group, however there are numerous who aren’t, as a result of the nationwide group had a go to with the conservative president, Ebrahim Raisi, proper earlier than their departure, and Iranians didn’t wish to see their nationwide group type of bowing and being pleasant with a president whom they see as being on the head of, you recognize, the repressive authorities — not the state, that might be the supreme chief, however main the cost towards ladies, not least as a result of since he took workplace, he promised to convey morality to the streets. And this wave of protests that we see was not least attributable to a yr lengthy of the morality police type of upping the ante towards ladies in public areas. And so, the nationwide group assembly the president didn’t sit effectively with many Iranians. And, you recognize, that they had a historic defeat on the World Cup, dropping to England.
NERMEEN SHAIKH: And, Professor Siamdoust, you, amongst others, have identified, in fact, that there have been many protests in recent times in Iran, beginning, in fact, with the 2009 protest, which is the time that we spoke to you on Democracy Now! However there’s something, as you’ve mentioned, qualitatively totally different in regards to the protests that at the moment are ongoing. May you speak about what these variations are and the way you see this taking part in out? Do you assume, regardless of the brutality of the state response, that these protests will go on?
NAHID SIAMDOUST: Proper. In 2009, which was the most important protest motion for the reason that 1979 revolution, we noticed plenty of individuals coming into the streets. You realize, in one of many largest, there was maybe 2 or 3 million individuals without delay. However the nature of the slogans was nonetheless very a lot about reforming the system from inside. We noticed individuals partaking with the Islamic discourse of the federal government — proper? — going to their rooftops and calling “Allahu akbar,” calling God to type of convey forth that type of Islamic morality and decency, to convey the federal government right into a movement of reforms.
That’s now not the case. The revolution that we see now — and there’s a number of contestation round language, as effectively. There are individuals who say we must always now not be calling this an “rebellion,” this could undoubtedly be referred to as a “revolution.” It’s not only a matter of semantics, I believe.
Within the nature of the slogans that we see, this motion is now not in any respect partaking with authorities discourse. There’s no reference in any respect to Islamic, you recognize, type of slogans or phrases that folks had been utilizing and the federal government itself had been utilizing. Persons are calling for a brand new system. Within the 2009 Inexperienced Rebellion, for instance, individuals would band collectively and say, “Natarsin, natarsin, ma hameh ba ham hastim!,” “Don’t be afraid. We’re all collectively.” And now it’s type of filtered all the way down to individuals saying, “Betarsid, betarsid, ma hameh ba ham hastim!,” “You ought to be afraid. You ought to be afraid, as a result of we’re altogether.”
After which, after we have a look at the slogans, you recognize, the harshness of it, type of there’s — all notion of Persian politeness or any sense of respect for authority or any of that’s utterly out the window. And we see this within the cuss phrases which might be used towards the supreme chief, towards the Sepah. They’re ferocious. The slogans are ferocious. The motion is ferocious.
And it’s of a special nature, as a result of, you recognize, this motion is leaderless. And so, there are teams of individuals all throughout Iran popping up right here and there, however there are not any leaders to be put down. So the regime can’t, identical to in 2009, go after the leaders of the motion and attempt to quell the motion via its leaders. It’s a leaderless motion. It’s a really good motion that’s type of coming collectively and dissolving, and actually type of taking part in this strategic sport, a really type of natural strategic sport towards the forces.
NERMEEN SHAIKH: Thanks a lot, Professor Nahid Siamdoust, assistant professor in Center East and media research on the College of Texas at Austin. She’s a former journalist who has reported throughout the Center East, together with in Iran.