RAFIF ESLEEM

Gaza- On September 16, 2022, 22-year-old Jina Mahsa Amini was killed by Iran’s so-called “morality police” for not wearing her hijab properly in Iran’s capital Tehran. Following her killing, people, especially women, took to the streets in the cities of Iran and Rojhelat Kurdistan by chanting the slogan Jin, Jiyan, Azadi (Women, Life, Freedom)"

In an interview with NuJINHA, Islah Hassaneya, the feminist activist and director of the Center for Research, Legal Consultation and Protection for Women, commented on the “Jin, Jiyan, Azadi” uprising.

“The rights of Iranian women are violated and they suffer from male control and deprivation of their social, economic and political rights. We know that women led revolutions in various Arab countries, and Iranian women have been leading the uprising because they have been oppressed. Protests are legitimate ways to convey messages to authoritarian regimes. Protesters must be respected and their demands must be taken into account,” she said.

‘Women are deprived of their rights’

Islah Hassaneya thinks some professions or academic specializations are still thought of as men's jobs. She said, “This should be changed because women have proven their capabilities in various fields such as judiciary, engineering, nuclear sciences, and technology. In Iran, women are always subjected to the political status of the ruler of the country. If the president is concerned with women’s rights, women are given the opportunities to develop themselves. The poisoning of schoolgirls in Iran is an inhuman practice. The aim is to deprive women and girls of all their rights and to restrict them by creating crises.”

‘International conventions are not implemented’

She added, “There is a system in Iran that aims to achieve its goals by killing girls and women. Women are oppressed in the name of the compulsory hijab rule. The international conventions and agreements are not implemented and this takes us back to the ancient human era in the application of human rights. Why are women always oppressed? Is it because they are weak, or because they are powerless and unable to confront themselves? Or because there is no support for them to demand their rights? We demand the international community to impose sanctions on the Iranian regime because it does not implement the international convention ratified by it.”

‘The Iranian women’s revolution is a renaissance that will soon reap its fruits’

She recalled that some Iranian female athletes were forced to flee to other countries when they   participated in international competitions without wearing hijabs. “If this situation continues, many women will flee from the country. Iranian women should keep resisting because they will definitely achieve their freedom. Women lead all movements for freedom. International Women's Day is one of them. Now, this day is celebrated all around the world. What brings women to decision-making positions is their determination. The revolution led by women in Iran is a renaissance. I believe that the Iranian women’s revolution is a renaissance that will soon reap its fruits.”