“They come at night to arrest us”: Three women from Iran share their suffering Major strike in the auto industry: Three factories in the US stand still

A year ago, the death of the young Kurdish Iranian woman Mahsa Amini in police custody sparked months of protests. The move represented the biggest challenge to the country’s hardline government in decades.

Hopes that the protests would end in a change of power have not yet been fulfilled. Instead, the mullahs are taking even bolder action against their own people. Nevertheless, many people in Iran continue to fight for their freedom in various ways.

Among them Leila, Mina and Ariana – the names have all been changed to protect the protagonists. In an interview with CH Media, they talk about desperate young people who are hired as informants, about shots fired at their cars and the fear of going back to prison.

Leila, thirty years old from Tehran: “I will participate in a demonstration on Saturday”

When the protests started a year ago, I had hope for freedom. Today I am disappointed because the world does not support us. Right now the streets are full of patrols. They are busy telling people to put on their headscarves. Sometimes they take pictures of those who don’t wear one to punish them later. Last night I received a message that my car was impounded.

The hijab has bothered me for a long time. Since Mahsa’s murder, I have let go even more. Even as a teenager, I was arrested repeatedly. Recently at a funeral service. I was blindfolded and taken to an unknown location and was not allowed to have contact with my family for three days. Then I was taken to Gharchak Women’s Prison. The conditions were terrible. During the trial before the Revolutionary Court, the judge put so much pressure on me that I had a nosebleed. It was humiliating. I was eventually released on bail, I was lucky.

At demonstrations we have to cover our faces because they film us all and then arrest us at home at night. The police break the windows of our cars and shoot at shops and houses where we seek shelter. My car has been shot at twice during protests in the past year.

On Saturday I will participate in a demonstration with my friends. But we can’t form groups from scratch. If we went out on the street together, they would arrest us immediately. But I’m sure there will be meetings. I hope they will happen in all cities and spread. They treat us like the enemy. But we will shout as long as we live: woman, life, freedom.

Ariana, 35 years old, mechanic, lives in a suburb of Tehran: “I don’t think this movement will be successful soon”

I never really paid attention to my headscarf, not even when I was working in Tehran. That’s why I kept getting into trouble with HR. Nowadays I work as a mechanic in a suburb of Tehran. A job that almost no woman in Iran does.

Since the start of the protests, I have only worn the headscarf on special occasions or in places where I am not allowed to go without a headscarf. I threw away most of my scarves. For example, if I am recognized without a headscarf, my car will be towed away. I then have to promise never to break the dress code again so I can get the car back.

I have not yet participated in official protests. Still, I support them. I despise the government officials who send their children to other countries so they can live in prosperity and freedom. Although things have calmed down, the protests are still ongoing. Whether it concerns posts on Instagram, women going out without a headscarf or artists showing protest art.

Due to the anniversary of Mahsa Amini’s assassination, the government has been introducing strict security measures for several months and many people have been arrested. Just today, on my way home, about thirty terrifying, enormous black police vehicles drove past me to line up in the city’s main squares.

I don’t think this movement will be successful anytime soon. But I know that the necessary foundation for success has been laid. The new generations are becoming increasingly courageous. I am sure they will no longer suffer the burden of coercion and religious lies.

Mina, 42 years old, lives in a town in the south of the country: “The government hires young people as informants”

It was the hardest year of my life. After I was released from prison late last year, I was under house arrest for a month. At that time I followed the news every day. I became sad knowing that I could no longer participate in the protests.

Iranian police have sent text and email alerts to anyone out on bail. It said we would be watched and that the slightest violation of the rules could result in us being sent back to prison. Nevertheless, I will of course continue to fight for freedom.

Before the protests I wore a headscarf. Now I only wear it at work because I have to. Once the work is over, I’ll take it off. The requirement to wear a headscarf has always gone against my wishes. At work, I’ve noticed how many people act as if nothing happened over the past year. I wonder how the disappearance of so many people can matter to so many people. Nowadays I know much less about the people around me than I used to.

Compared to a year ago, the protest movement has calmed down considerably, also because the financial situation in the country is very bad due to inflation. The government is responding to this, for example by hiring young people as informants. They then walk around in public places and report to the police people who make negative comments towards the government. This is the dirtiest job there is.

Many people are currently planning demonstrations again. Innocent people will die again just to be free. That is a painful thought. I would like to live long enough to experience and enjoy freedom. (aargauerzeitung.ch)