Some of the women pictured objected to the huge billboard in Waliasr Square in the Iranian capital. According to their statements, their photos were misused and their consent to use the photos was not asked. At least three of them, including award-winning Iranian actress Fatemeh Motamed-Aria, demanded the removal of the poster ordered by the Revolutionary Guards.
Motamed-Aria posted an emotional video about it: “I am the mother of Mahsa, I am the mother of Sarina, I am the mother of all the children being killed in this country, I am the mother of all of Iran, no woman in the country killer,” she said, referring to Mahsa Amini, the 22-year-old Kurdish woman whose death in police custody sparked the protests, and 16-year-old Sarina Esmaeilsadeh, who died in the protests.
APA/AFP The poster was replaced by a new one on Friday. The photos are gone, what remains is the inscription: “The women of my country, Iran”.
“I am not considered a woman in a country where young children, girls and freedom-loving youth are killed in their camps,” Motamed-Aria said, according to the British Guardian. Shortly after the video was released, other prominent Iranian women followed, including director Marsieh Boroumand and mountaineer Parwaneh Kasemi, whose images also appeared on the banner.
A white poster now hangs
Boroumand wrote on Instagram: “Gentlemen, remove my photo from the wall under which you have oppressed children and youth. I will never allow any group inside or outside the country to use my cultural identity for their own benefit.”
Just a day later, on Friday morning, the new poster was removed again. Government supporters said the reason was not criticism of the women portrayed. A suspicious person was depicted on the banner, which is why it must be removed, he said without details. Now the building in Praça Waliasr has a new poster with the same inscription, but without photos.
23 children and young people killed
The incident shows how Iranian women are speaking out publicly and taking sides against the regime despite the possible consequences. The protests continue unabated and continue to grow. Despite difficult access to online platforms like Instagram and WhatsApp, activists called Saturday rallies under the slogan “The beginning of the end!”.
And this despite the fact that the authorities are cracking down on the protests. According to human rights groups, more than 200 people have been killed by security forces in the four weeks since the outbreak. Amnesty International reported on Friday that 144 deaths had been identified and documented, 23 of which were children or adolescents.
There are 20 boys aged between 11 and 17 and three girls, two aged 16 and one aged 17. Most of the boys were shot dead by security forces, and three girls and a boy died “after fatal beatings by the security forces. security,” the report said.
More serious charges
According to Amnesty International, this action highlights the “brutality” with which the authorities tried to suppress the protests in the country. According to other organizations, the numbers could be even higher. The Iran-based Society for the Protection of the Rights of the Child also reported this week that families are being “left in the dark” about the fate of their imprisoned children.
According to Iranian human rights lawyer Hassan Raissi, some youths are being held in institutions for adult drug-addicted offenders. The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on Monday it was “very concerned” by reports that “children and young people were killed, injured and arrested”.
Despite the turmoil, the regime seems unimpressed. In a speech on Friday, Supreme Spiritual Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned of a “split in the ranks of Muslims” without explicitly mentioning the protests. The Islamic Republic cannot be shaken. Iran is a mighty tree, “and no one should believe it can be uprooted.”