EDITORIAL: On the occasion of 44th anniversary of anti-Shah revolution (1979 Islamic revolution) Iran seems to have finally arrived at the threshold of an era of political change. And the credit for the expected change goes to Mahsa Amini, the 22-year-old Kurdish woman who died in police custody in September last year detained as she was for wearing her hijab ‘’improperly’’.
She had violated the dress code enforced by the clerical establishment, and thus earned lethal imprisonment. But who knew that her death would ignite fire engulfing the Iranian multitude, which would come out onto the streets and demand regime change. Theirs was as not politically motivated protest; theirs was the common cause that Iranian polity too should walk in step with rest of the world. But the government reacted with more than an equal counterattack.
According to rights groups, more than 500 have been killed, including 70 minors, while 20,000 are in detention and four were executed. While the women demonstrators brandished the ‘’Women, Life, Freedom’’ slogan the government agencies accused them of committing ‘’Corruption on Earth’’ and ‘’Enmity against God’’. The Oscar winner Taraneh Alidoosti was arrested in December for ‘’spreading falsehood’’.
But like ever before in 44 years of its uncontested control the cleric government wasn’t cognizant of the fact that the people want change. But that is no more the case. It is now set about defusing the crisis by pardoning ‘’tens of thousands’’ of prisoners, subject to the condition that the pardon would not be available to dual nationals, foreign-funded spies and those who are ‘’affiliated with hostile groups hostile to the Islamic Republic’’. But was release order by supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei a gesture of forgiveness in the build-up to 44th anniversary of Islamic Republic or just a tactic to divert and defuse the rising specter of revolt against the cleric establishment? Probably, the latter is likely the motive, and Iranian politicians see it as such.
Of late the calls for regime change have come from Iran’s former president Mohammad Khatami and former prime minister Mir Hossein Mousavi. Both have called for political changes. Mousavi is for ‘’fundamental transformation’’ of political system as the present setup was facing a ‘’crisis of legitimacy’’. Khatami sees ‘’widespread discontent’’, hoping use of ‘’non-violent civil method’’ can ‘’force the government system to change its approach and accept reforms’’ as he finds the current structure ‘’unsustainable’’.
Put together the calls by Khatami and Mousavi and protests joined by millions, both men and women, across the length and breadth of Iran constitute a timely message to the cleric setup that it is no more relevant to needs of people and dictates of time. Maybe, the government in Iran can afford to be out of step with rest of the world and endure international isolation by way of sanctions and embargoes. But it cannot afford to be out of step with its own people who when angry can throw out as powerful a ruler as the Shah of Iran.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
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