Protests Rock Iran Over Death of Mahsa Amini
Protests erupted in Iran after the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who was arrested by the country’s “morality police,” allegedly for wearing her headscarf too loose. Amini was arrested on Sept. 13 and died three days later while in police custody in Tehran.
Authorities claim Amini’s cause of death was heart failure, but many are speculating she was killed by law enforcement. Only hours after her arrest, Amini’s mother Mojhgan Amini heard news that her daughter slipped into a coma. According to the Washington Post, the family insisted that Amini had “no prior health problems,” furthering the theory that her death was caused by something more sinister.
“They killed my angel,” Amini’s mother told BBC Persian in an interview.
Iran’s morality police, also known as the Guidance Patrol, is notorious for their violent enforcement tactics against women who violate the nation’s strict dress and behavior codes. A recent video involving the morality police appears to show a woman being thrown from one of the agency’s vans; another captures a woman trying to stop a vehicle while her daughter was inside, as reported by the Post.
After Amini’s arrest, authorities transferred her to a detention center where she was “educated” on hijab rules. An edited video released by Iranian media outlets shows Amini in a detention center filled with women, where she speaks to a woman who gestures to her clothing. Amini is seen putting her head in her hands before collapsing on a chair moments later.
The Iranian government maintains that Amini died from a heart attack and denies claims that the police beat her in a patrol car, despite the stories of several witnesses. Amini’s family disputes the government’s official story, also reporting that police beat Amini’s brother during the arrest.
According to Amini’s father, the family wasn’t allowed to see the 22-year-old’s body in the hospital to confirm their suspicions about her death. Despite the government’s claims, the Associated Press reports Amini’s true cause of death was “due to a fracture on her skull due to heavy blows to her head.”
When news of the tragedy reached the public, outraged Iranians amassed outside Tehran’s Kasra Hospital to protest. Amini’s death sent a shockwave through Iran, sparking major protests in cities across the country in the following days. Videos on social media show young women defiantly cutting their hair and burning their hijabs in protest, despite the danger it could put them in. Chants of “Death to the dictator” cut through the streets as protestors voice their fear and fury against the regime.
Source: Photo by Artin Bakhan on Unsplash
Protests turned violent as demonstrators clashed with Iran’s oppressive law enforcement. Dozens of protestors and law enforcement members have been killed or injured during the unrest so far, and hundreds more were arrested, according to the New York Times. Iran’s state media reported 41 deaths, but outside human rights agencies believe numbers could be higher. Iran Human Rights (IHR), an organization based in Norway, reported 76 deaths as of Monday, according to the BBC.
As tensions escalated, access to social media and the internet was slowed or shut down entirely by the government in an effort to halt the organizing of more protests. Some social media posts managed to break through the internet freeze, including TikToks showing protest footage of burning cars and weeping women mourning the deaths of fellow protestors.
One TikTok shows a young woman crying as she states, “They’re getting killed on the streets. They are getting beaten to death.” The caption reads: “We need help. Please let our story and Mahsa’s be heard.”
The IHR confirmed citizens’ accounts of the brutal tactics employed by the state to suppress protests, reporting that live ammunition was fired into crowds of protestors – another fact disputed by the Iranian government – according to the BBC.
As protests rage on, the international community is joining the fight. Protests in solidarity with the people of Iran are sweeping the globe, with demonstrations held in Germany, the UK, Turkey, Greece, the U.S. and more. The United Nations released a statement condemning the use of violence by the morality police and calling for an independent investigation into Amini’s death.
“We strongly condemn the use of physical violence against women and the denial of fundamental human dignity when enforcing compulsory hijab policies ordained by State authorities,” a panel of UN experts stated in another release.
As Iranian women continue the fight for their human rights, the words of one young woman strike a harrowing chord: “I have my human rights. I just want them, I don’t want anything more. If you don’t stand with me, I am going to lose faith in everyone.”
Iranians and Germans demonstrate together against the oppression of women and the violent suppression of protests in Iran. Demonstration from Sept. 26 Source: Photo by M. Z. on Unsplash