The media is giving the pro-democracy Green Movement in Iran less and less attention as the regime prevents the assembling of massive headline-generating crowds. The Iranian people remain just as opposed to the regime as ever, boldly protesting and clashing with security forces on the first anniversary of Ahmadinejad’s so-called “re-election” on June 12.
The media’s reporting on the anniversary described the scene as quiet with few expressions of discontent, but the regime’s preparations need to be mentioned in order to understand the context. The regime firmly stated that any protests would be immediately crushed. The two top opposition leaders, Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi, cancelled the protests to avoid bloodshed. It is also possible that they made the decision to lower expectations for the day.
Like in times past, the regime dramatically slowed the speed of the Internet to prevent communications and stop the spread of news. In many areas of the country, text messaging was blocked. The regime detained activists arrested during the last year and moved two million members of the security forces from around the country into Tehran.
The Iranian regime has also budgeted $1.5 billion to enforce new rules related to “moral conduct” that allowed them to target the youth and aggressively search cars. They banned males and females who aren’t married from congregating, and became extra strict with regulating attire, especially for females. Eyewitnesses reported being fined up to $800 for the way they dress. Some universities went even further, banning loud laughter, nail polish and high heels. This made it much more difficult for young women to turn out in the intense heat, and many don’t even own clothes that meet the regime’s requirements, forcing them to stay inside.
Many residents in Tehran received threatening text messages shortly before the June 12 anniversary, warning that they will be prosecuted for anti-government activity. Security forces were widely deployed and tasked with preventing any type of group forming, using violent means if necessary.
When these measures are considered, it is clear that the Iranian regime is frightened, and the actions taken by the Iranian people can be greater appreciated. The security forces were reportedly ordered to only shoot protestors from the waist down and not to kill anyone because then the demonstrators become heroes, as Neda Soltan did when her horrifying death was caught on tape.
The National Council of Resistance in Iran reports that Basiji commanders wrote in a secret document that they were concerned about the widespread protests on June 12, describing hit-and-run attacks as having occurred against them in different areas of Tehran. In the week prior to the anniversary, the security forces were warned about the distribution of pepper spray and tazers in Kermanshah Province that could be used against them.
Their fear was well-founded. In the days leading up to the anniversary, residents in Isfahan placed a picture of Ayatollah Khamenei around the necks of dogs, forcing the security forces into a wild chase to capture them and remove the pictures. On June 12, the Iranian people showed that they lead Mousavi and Karroubi and not the other way around by protesting despite the cancellation. Protests occurred throughout Tehran, as well as in Karaj, Rasht, Tabriz, Qazvin, Mashhad, Isfahan, Shiraz, and other parts of the country. The regime admits to arresting 91 people, but the Human Rights Activist News Agency says the real number is at least 200. The number could be far higher than that.
Various clashes between protestors and security forces were reported at these locations. At Shohada Square in Mashhad, the people successfully made the security forces retreat so a woman they were trying to arrest could escape. This also happened at Ferdowsi Square in Tehran. The regime videotaped many of the protestors for later punishment and used helicopters to spot gatherings. A huge cloud of tear gas was reported at Taleqani Street.
Amir Abbas Fakhravar, a former activist in Iran who was thrown into the notorious Evin Prison and escaped and is now the Secretary-General of the Confederation of Iranian Students, told FrontPage that the day was “definitely a huge victory.”
“…After a year of struggle against a government whose forces have inflicted every possible atrocity on the Iranian people, from murders on the streets to massive imprisonments, torture, rape and executions, Iranians still have the tenacity, bravery and resolve to show up on the streets and chant ‘Death to Dictator,’” Fakhravar said.
Fakhravar said that the security forces only showed up because “they are paid on the average three times as much as any other government employee and it was reported last year that they are paid an extra $250 on these important dates.”
He said that “hundreds of thousands of people” protested, but they were spread out and not in one spot. This is corroborated by other opposition sources and the reports I received. The media is misinterpreting the dispersed nature of the acts of discontent as weakness, when it is really just an adaptation to the regime’s security measures.
Chip Cummins wrote in The Wall Street Journal that the U.N. sanctions hurt the Iranian opposition by rallying the country behind the regime, including some prominent critics like former President Rafsanjani. A source in Iran connected to a group called the Iran Students Committee painted a much different picture to me, expressing great excitement and encouragement from the development.
“We, the Iran Students Committee, believe that this is the first united economic and political front against the clerical regime. The world is deciding to put itself at the side of the people of Iran. We believe there, therefore, this regime can’t long last and for sure, change and freedom will soon come for the Iranian people,” he told me.
The source told me that as the news about the sanctions broke, the satellite networks in Tehran were disconnected. As the news spread, chants of “Allah Akbar” could be heard being chanted from rooftops in most areas of Tehran, a chant that is now used to express anger towards the regime. These chants were also heard as night fell on June 12.
Unfortunately, my source and other Iranians encouraged by the U.N. sanctions are going to be disappointed. There is no indication that the support they so desire from the U.S. and the international community is going to become a reality soon. The Treasury Department is now helping the opposition by allowing companies to sell communications and anti-censorship software to Iranians, but at the same time, the State Department has cut funding to other organizations dedicated to the cause by training Iranian activists, documenting human rights abuses, and other means.
The importance of instilling confidence and morale in the opposition cannot be overstated.
“Why risk our lives to make a change, when it is completely unclear what the outcome will be?” an Iranian office manager who opposes the regime was quoted as saying in The Washington Post.
The U.S. and all opponents of the regime must help prove to Iranians like that office manager that the outcome will be their victory.
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