Iranian authorities crack down on mourners trying to honor people killed in protests : NPR
Iranian authorities are cracking down on mourners as they try to commemorate loved ones killed during last month’s protests.
LEILA FADEL, HOST:
Iranian authorities are cracking down on families of those killed in recent protests as they attempt to perform an important ritual marking the 40th and final day of mourning. Ceremonies were to be held across the country for the more than 6,000 people killed in the uprising, according to rights groups. But the authoritarian regime discourages and intimidates families from doing so. NPR international affairs correspondent Jackie Northam has this report.
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JACKIE NORTHAM, BYLINE: In the town of Kahrizak, on the outskirts of Tehran, a ceremony to honor the dead. In a ritual deeply rooted in Iranian culture, families and friends come together to commemorate 40 days after their assassinations during widespread protests that rocked Iran. In the widely shared social media post, women, many wearing dark abayas and headscarves, sway, moan and put their hands to their chests as music plays, anguish written across their faces.
UNIDENTIFIED HAIRDRESSER: (Through interpreter) All this dancing and singing at the graves comes from anger and a desire for revenge.
NORTHAM: So says this 35-year-old Iranian hairdresser from Bandar Abbas, in southern Iran. Like others interviewed for this report, she asks that we misrepresent her voice and not use her name for fear of reprisals from Iran’s authoritarian regime. The hairdresser says families who can openly mark the last day of mourning are relatively lucky. They found the body and were able to put an end to the situation by organizing the funeral ritual. The hairdresser says the authorities made things very difficult during several ceremonies honoring her friends.
UNIDENTIFIED HAIRDRESSER: (Through interpreter) They wouldn’t let us film or see the dead bodies of our friends to say goodbye. They threatened anyone with a phone in their hand to film. They kept yelling and pressuring us and the family to move quickly. We couldn’t cry at all.
NORTHAM: Iranian authorities are increasingly intolerant of honoring those killed in protests, even at regular funerals, says a day laborer in Gilan province along the Caspian Sea. He said his family was forced by Basiji paramilitaries to bury his brother-in-law at night.
UNIDENTIFIED DAILY WORKER: (Through interpreter) The Basijis said we had to bury him after dark. The family resisted, cried and screamed. We couldn’t even bring flowers to his grave. My friends brought about 20 bouquets. The next day, they were gone. The Basijis called the family on the phone and threatened them again, saying: If we didn’t tell you, you are not allowed to bring flowers.
NORTHAM: Now the diet is making things even tougher, the hairdresser says.
UNIDENTIFIED HAIRDRESSER: (Through interpreter) From what we’ve heard, security forces are warning that no one is allowed to hold a ceremony – certainly not at the cemetery, only at home and quietly.
NORTHAM: Security forces backed up their threats with violence earlier this week. Social media posts showed people fleeing amid the sound of gunfire during a 40th day commemoration in Abdanan, western Iran.
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UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: (Shouting in a language other than English).
NORTHAM: The regime is doing its best to force people not to talk about the deaths at all, as if the protest didn’t happen, says a Tehran restaurateur. But she says the Iranian people will continue to honor those killed by the authoritarian regime.
UNIDENTIFIED CATERING: (Through interpreter) We’re not just going to go back to our old routines like nothing happened. We constantly read, write and share the stories of those who came out to protest and died. We all mourn those who were killed or arrested.
NORTHAM: And being too harsh on mourners could backfire. Protests have already taken place during some 40th day ceremonies.
Jackie Northam, NPR News.
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