Akanksha Khullar

Opinion | Iran protests are defining moment for women and freedom despite government’s deadly response

Mahsa Amini’s death has reignited long-suppressed anger among Iranians over issues including the dress code for women and repression of individual rights

While the government is unlikely to make gestures of accommodation, the protests underline a fundamental change, with Iranians more willing to fight for their rights

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A demonstrator holds a poster during a protest demanding justice for Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian woman who died while in the custody of Iran’s Guidance Patrol, in front of the Iranian embassy in Mexico City, Mexico, on September 27. Photo: EPA-EFE

Akanksha Khullar

Published: 3:30am, 29 Sep 2022Updated: 3:40am, 29 Sep 2022

The protests in Iran following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini on September 16, after she was arrested for allegedly not wearing her hijab properly by the morality police, have spread to all of the country’s 31 provinces. Many cities are engulfed in outrage and anger, with protesters hurling rocks, torching police cars and setting fire to state buildings. The demonstrations, the largest in years, have drawn a deadly security response.

Breaking local laws and religious mandates, many Iranian women have cut off their hair and removed as well as burned their hijabs. Female protesters have also been seen dancing near large bonfires to the applause of crowds chanting “woman, life, freedom”.

Videos posted online have showed women in Tehran shouting “death to the dictator”– a chant often used in reference to the supreme leader – while others screamed “justice, liberty, no to mandatory hijab”.

Amini’s death has reignited anger among Iranians that was long suppressed over issues including the strict dress code for women, restrictions on personal freedoms and more deeply rooted complaints against Iran’s religious establishment.

At least 41 people – mostly protesters but also members of the security forces – have died since the unrest began. Human rights group have said that the authorities had started to use live ammunition to quell the protests. Meanwhile, hundreds of demonstrators, reformist activists and journalists have been arrested.

In an attempt to block the social media networks that protesters have widely relied on to express dissent and rally support, authorities have disrupted access to the internet. According to web monitoring firm Net Blocks, people in Iran are experiencing “rolling blackouts” and “widespread internet platform restrictions”, with WhatsApp, Instagram and Skype blocked.