I'm very frustrated today. Yaghoub Mehrnehad, a 28-year old social activist in southeast of Iran
was recently executed. They killed him because they said he was working with a local separatist terrorist group called Jondollah. In reality he was simply a young social activist who worked in peaceful ways and who had an unfair trial behind closed doors and then sentenced to death. There are several others in the same situation;
Ronak, a 21-year-old Kurdish women's rights activist has been in jail for more than nine months. She is at risk for getting a very harsh sentence (possibly death) because she is accused of having relations with a certain kurdish-Iranian group. The group is accused of carrying out bombings in Iranian kurdestan. The US
has been said to be secretly funding groups like these in areas of Iran in order to prepare for a war. The result is that anyone who works for equality, for human rights, or for ethnic rights in these regions is labeled as working with these groups. The sentence for this charge is hanging.
Ronak is not part of such a group. In fact she is against violence altogether, she is a vegetarian because she doesn't want to kill animals. Ronak is merely an activist for women's equality in an area where her work is desperately needed; where women are sometimes in such harsh conditions that they choose to end their life by setting themselves on fire. Ronak was helping these women.
What is happening to the Iranian civil society is a shame and I hold many responsible.
I hold the Iranian government responsible
For so easily killing and repressing the Iranian people. For risking Iranian lives with its stupid foreign policy and ambitions. I hold them responsible for failing to be just to their own people, like women and minorities. I hold the Iranian government responsible for suppressing progress by corrupt, authoritarian and dishonest practices, and by suppressing freedom of speech above all. By sacrificing your most hard working and intelligent people to hold on to power longer. And for doing it all in the name of religion.
I hold the governments of the world responsible
For closing your eyes on human rights issues in Iran. Especially the government of China which helps the Iranian government repress freedom of speech and which continuously sides with the Iranian government in the UN in its breaches of human rights.
I hold the American government responsible
For lacking any regard for human security and dignity around the world. For seeing the solution to everything in its military. For lack of respect for the world and for interfering with affairs of countries like Iran. For risking the lives of Iranian civil society activists and in fact hurting the progress of democracy in Iran with your Democracy Fund and for giving the Iranian government more reason every day to suppress intellectuals, journalists, teachers, workers, human rights and women's rights activists. For failing to become at least slightly more independent from oil despite huge technical capacity and financial resources to do so. For destabilizing the middle east and for empowering fundamentalist ideology through stupid hawkish foreign policy. For being so weak in the face of big money and big businesses.
I hold the American Media responsible (more than anyone)For failing to preserve democracy despite having enormous freedom. American media and people enjoy amazing freedom of speech. A democracy is about people making choices and the choice is meaningless without good professional journalism, and without education on the issues. The American media has failed miserably in informing people. The American news media is at a point where they would show Tom and Jerry all day if they thought it would make more money than news. For Shame. The American media, is responsible for the weakening of democracy in the US, it is responsible for the breach of rights of the American people by the government, it is responsible for the Iraq war, and it is responsible for Guantanamo. For Shame. American media corporations need to answer to people of the world for generations to come.
I hold the American People responsible
You enjoy democracy, yet you are oblivious about what your government is doing. The Iranian people do not live in a democracy. They also enjoy less financial prosperity. They have very little power over what their government is doing. You have the resources and you have the correct system in place, so what is your excuse for what the American government is doing around the world? What is your excuse for your ignorance and lack of action through powerful means accessible to you? I hold the American people responsible for Iraq, and especially for what is happening to Iraqi women's rights. I hold the American people responsible for the killings that are happening and might continue to happen in Iran as a result of the US arming underprivileged minority groups. Your government is sacrificing the ethnic minorities, the most vulnerable people of Iran, just to make the Iranian government slightly uncomfortable. And this is not Bush or even just the republicans, this is both the democrats and the republicans in your congress. These are your representatives. You are responsible for every innocent person who is killed in Iran as a result of your government's actions.
And YOU are responsible if the US goes to war with Iran.
