Sama Khosravi Ooryad says that Iran already is changing.

from GU-Journal 5-6-2022

Guest researcher from Ukraine

Believes in a better future for Iran

On September 16, the morality police in Tehran murdered 22-year-old Kurdish-Iranian Zhina (Mahsa) Amini. Since then, protests have erupted all over Iran. – Do I think it will achieve anything? It's not a matter of belief, the change is already underway, explains PhD student Sama Khosravi Ooryad.

– ”Jin, jiyan, azadi!” is, as far as I know, the slogan used by the Kurds during the Rojava Revolution in northern Syria. “Woman, life, freedom" has now become the slogan that rings out in the streets of Iran.

These are the words of Sama Khosravi Ooryad, an EU doctoral student at the Department of Cultural Sciences who researches online hate cultures. However, the protests are not only about women, she points out. – Students are protesting, secondary-school girls are throwing away their veils, workers at the oil refineries are on strike, the LGBTQ movement is protesting, people are lighting fires and dancing in the streets. Different ethnic groups, such as the Kurds, Baloch and Azeris, are also united in their fight against oppression, corruption, poverty and constant economic crises – all of them want to get rid of the regime. Incredible scenes have been recorded using mobile phones which can then be viewed by anyone on YouTube. But mainly this is, of course, the women's protest; every single woman in the entire world should have the right to decide for herself about her body and what she wants to be in this world.

Large-scale protests against the regime in Iran have happened many times before. When Khomeini introduced the veil in 1979, it led to huge protests that lasted for six days. In 2009–2010, people demonstrated against electoral fraud, and the murder of a young woman, Neda Agha-Soltani, became a symbol of the protests then as well. – Also in 2017–2018, people demonstrated against corruption and political oppression, with widespread arrests as a consequence. During the protests in 2019 when, among other things, the internet was shut down, roughly 1,500 people were killed. However, these various protests have not received much attention in the West, says Sama Khosravi Ooryad. – Many people from the West are wilfully ignorant of what is happening in other parts of the world: invade or ignore seem to be the options. This is because the West still has a colonial view of the outside world. They do not want to clash with other undemocratic regimes, and marginalized groups outside the West, who are fighting for justice, are not seen as particularly important.

This time, however, things are different. All over the world, thousands of people are standing in solidarity with those protesting in Iran and demonstrating on the streets. Famous politicians, activists

Sama Khosravi Ooryad says that a change in Iran is already underway.

Many people from the West are wilfully ignorant of what is happening in other parts of the world.

SAMA KHOSRAVI OORYAD

and artists are showing their solidarity by cutting off their hair. – The international support is extremely important. The people of Iran need to feel that their struggle is being noticed and not just forgotten. But the most important battle is still being waged by ordinary Iranians.

During the peaceful protests that have been going on since mid-September, hundreds of people have been killed, including children. More than 14,000 protesters have been arrested or abducted. Nevertheless, Sama Khosravi Ooryad believes that the protests will eventually lead to change. – Regardless of age, social status or ethnicity, people across Iran have united in their fight against oppression. Everyone is demanding freedom and that those in power be punished for their crimes against the citizens of Iran. That people are embracing their differences and fighting together in solidarity is in itself tremendous progress. Change is already underway.

Text: Eva Lundgren Photo: Johan Wingborg