Mahsa Amini and The Tireless Struggle For Freedom

A poignant reminder that the quest for human emancipation from authoritarian rule is far from finished

Photo by hosein charbaghi on Unsplash

Farsi, Ferdowsi and Freedom

Readers of my previous blog posts may be familiar with my passions for philosophy, science, literature and art, amongst others. What lies alongside these passions is a love for the country of Iran and its people. The impact of its history and contribution to the world stage can simply not be done justice by my words. Its people are acutely aware of their Persian heritage which they fought so dearly to preserve.

The Persian poet, Ferdowsi, is classically regarded as the preserver of the Persian language and Iran’s pre-Islamic cultural identity. His ‘Shahnameh’, or ‘Book of Kings’ in English, acted as a catalyst for the preservation of Iranian identity and history.

Iran is a country home to 2500 years of literary excellence from the likes of Ferdowsi, Sa’di, Hafez and Khayyam, the historical sites of Persepolis and Pars, elaborate Persian carpets, fragrant tea with sohan, and warming hospitality that will forever be unmatched in my travels.

“Iran’s glory has always been its culture” — Richard N. Frye

So why then, may my criticism be confused for a dislike of Iran? There is a misguided belief that has been allowed to take up mainstream discussion in today's discourse. That belief tells us that criticising a part of something, means the critic dislikes the whole. This couldn’t be further from the truth.

Imagine for a moment you find yourself sitting on the fringes of a conversation, overhearing proceedings when one individual makes a comment that is contrary to the principles you believe in. Are you likely to interfere in this discussion and offer a rebuttal to that individual? Well, Maybe. But would you be more likely to interfere if that same individual was a close friend or family member? I would submit more individuals would answer yes to the latter.

This leads us to an obvious truth — That we criticise those people, places and ideas that we hold essential to our being. We hold those that we love to a higher standard of scrutiny. Contrary to what others will have you believe — Criticism is an undeniable admission that we care.

In Pursuit of Freedom

Mahsa Amini was a 22-year-old woman from a Kurdish province in Western Iran. On the 13th of September, as she travelled to the Iranian capital, Tehran with her family, she was stopped by the regime's ‘moral security agency’. The morality police act as a law enforcement power in Iran, having access to employ ‘Islamic re-education classes’ to those that they perceive are deviating too far from the established norm.

Following the protest of her arrest, Amini was severely beaten and 3 days later died in a hospital in Tehran. Her crime? Iranian authorities reported Amini had been wearing immodest clothing at the time of her arrest.

Senior Middle-Eastern researcher, Sepehri Far, notes that the death of Amini has united Iranians of different mindsets and shifted the spotlight onto a regime that seems to be incompatible with 21st-century enlightened life. Our television screens have shown thousands of Iranians taking to the streets in the pursuit of justice for Mahsa Amini, the establishment of civil and human rights, and a life without a theocratic religious regime.

Democratic Disarray

It was during the tenure of president Mohammad Khatemi (1997–2005) that debate surrounding freedom and civil liberties resurfaced. It was predicated on an apparent contradiction between the promised notion of democratic principles in the 1979 constitution and the doctrine of Velayat-e Faqih (Governance of the Jurist), which endowed unique powers to the clerical elite of the regime.

Pick up any political textbook and you will see the works of the French social commentator and political thinker, Montesquieu. Montesquieu famously coined the political term ‘Separation of powers’ — This is a principle that would go on to underpin healthy liberal societies for generations to come. So what does it mean?

“When the legislative and executive powers are united in the same person, or in the same body of magistrates, there can be no liberty” — Montesquieu

The separation of powers tells us, that for a society to be run as a liberal one, the branches of government need to be kept separate from one another with healthy checks and balances on its functioning. It is why we see clear separation in the personnel and the workings between congress, the office of the American president, and the supreme court.

It is important to note that Iran’s political system cannot be said to have the same checks on its functioning. It is a system where power ultimately lies in the hands of the supreme (religious) leader, who yields a divine authority, not subject to the democratic principles of election and voting. Underneath the supreme leader, Iran holds elections to elect a president which serves as the head of the executive branch of government. Presidential candidates will first need to gain approval from a body of 12 theologians and jurists before any voting is allowed to commence. This body calls itself ‘the guardian council’ and needless to say, no women are allowed to partake in this process.

Universal Values

It is easy to forget the fight we had to endure for the civil liberties that act as the foundations of our nation’s prosperity. Let’s remember the protracted fight for the principles born out of the Enlightenment and the French revolution. Liberté, égalité, fraternité— These are not values desired solely by the occupants of the west. These are ubiquitous values that are needed for human flourishing in all walks of life. These are the virtues that the Iranian people desire.

True nobility isn't found when one stands up for a cause when it is easy or convenient to do so. Rather, it is found in moments where one stands up for a cause in the face of great difficulty or reputational cost. It is this hardship that the Iranian people face on a daily basis for the temerity of calling out for the ability to be the masters of their own fate, to exercise their freedom of speech and to feel the wind as it blows through their hair.

The struggle for freedom, the battle for enlightenment values and the emancipation of our people is a fight that we should never give up on.

“Better to die on one’s feet than to live on one’s knees” — Emiliano Zapata