Iran protests: Khatami and Badri Hosseini Khamenei
Sawako Utsumi and Lee Jay Walker
Modern Tokyo Times
Hundreds of people have been killed in Iran since the brutal death of Masha Amini (22). This young lady and countless others have been killed by the tyranny of the state apparatus.
Mohammad Khatami notified the authoritarian ruling elites to rescind the path of persecution. Khatami once ruled Iran. Hence, his words highlight the severity of the crisis.
The BBC reports, “The two-term reformist president, who served between 1997 and 2005, described “woman, life, freedom” as a “beautiful slogan,” and said that it showed Iranian society was moving toward a better future.”
He also rebuked the ongoing persecution of students and the actions of the security forces.
Voice of America reports, “The protests in Iran, sparked by the Sept. 16 death of a 22-year-old woman after her detention by the country’s morality police, have grown into one of the largest sustained challenges to the nation’s theocracy since the chaotic months after its 1979 Islamic Revolution.”
Khatami said, “It should not be allowed that freedom and security are placed in opposition to one another, and that as a result freedom is trampled under the pretext of maintaining security, or that security is ignored in the name of freedom.”
Khatami continued, “I advise officials to appreciate this presence and instead of dealing with it unjustly, extend a helping hand to them and, with their help, recognize the wrong aspects of governance and move toward good governance before it is too late.”
Arab News reports, “Protests have spread to more than 150 cities and 140 universities in all 31 of Iran’s provinces, and are now considered the most serious challenge to the regime since it took power in the 1979 revolution.”
The tyranny of the state said it would carry out the execution of 11 protesters who were sentenced to death. This sums up the brutal judiciary of Iran – and how political and religious elites work hand in hand to crush even modest reforms.
Khatami said, “The overthrow (of the system) is neither possible nor desirable but the continuation of the current situation leads to social collapse.”
Khatami’s solution is “The least costly and most beneficial way to restore the lost confidence of a significant part of society is through a self-correction of the system, both in its structure and its behavior.”
Khatami continued, “Good governance requires the recognition of the rights of the people and respect for fundamental freedoms, especially the exercise of citizenship rights, because the people are composed of different tendencies, ethnicities, tastes and even religions.”
STRONGER CONDEMNATION
However, for many protesters, Khatami merely seeks to implement reforms and protect the Islamic Revolution. Hence, with hundreds of deaths – and ethnic and anti-Sunni Muslim persecution happening in several parts of Iran – the words of Khatami will be deemed too moderate.
The sister of Ayatollah Khamenei condemned the authoritarian regime strongly – unlike the moderate undertones of Khatami.
Badri Hosseini Khamenei said, “I think it is appropriate now to declare that I oppose my brother’s actions and I express my sympathy with all mothers mourning the crimes of the Islamic Republic, from the time of Khomeini to the current era of the despotic caliphate of Ali Khamenei.”
She continued, “Ali Khamenei’s Revolutionary Guards and mercenaries should lay down their weapons as soon as possible and join the people before it is too late.”
Protesters will welcome the words of Badri Hosseini Khamenei.
Reuters reports, “In November, Khamenei’s activist daughter Farideh Moradkhani was arrested by authorities after calling on foreign governments to cut all ties with Tehran.”
Masha Amini (22), Sarina Esmailzadeh (16), Hadis Najafi (22), Nika Shakarami (16), and many others should be alive and enjoying life. Instead, they were killed by the state apparatus – alongside hundreds of more people killed since the protests began.
The blood keeps flowing because the response of the state apparatus is more tyranny – and installing more fear.
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2212206/middle-east
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