Politics Iran: Protests planned for the second anniversary of Mahsa Amini's death

Numerous protests are planned in Iran to mark the second anniversary of the death of the young Kurdish woman Jina Mahsa Amini, whose death in police custody led to violent unrest.

This was announced by activists on social media. However, there were fears in advance that the security forces would at least consistently prevent public protests. There were also to be demonstrations outside Iran.

In September 2022, Islamic morality watchdogs arrested the then 22-year-old Amini for wearing an improperly fitting headscarf. A few days later, on September 16, 2022, she died in police custody. Iranian authorities said she had fallen ill. Amini's parents and the majority of Iranians, however, blamed the moral guardians and the clerical system for Amini's death. Her tragic death led to the most violent protests in the 45-year history of the Islamic Republic. Due to the leap year in the Islamic calendar, the anniversary of Amini's death will be celebrated in Iran on this Sunday.

Security forces moved to Amini's hometown

Amini's father had not yet received permission for a funeral service in her hometown of Saghes on Saturday. "If the rulers allow it, we will celebrate the second anniversary of Mahsa's death," Amjad Amini wrote on Instagram. But it didn't look like that. According to the news portal Iranwire, the highest alert level was declared in Saghes in the province of Kurdistan. Locals assumed that security forces deployed there would not allow any gatherings, not even in the form of a funeral service.

According to activists, however, the security measures imposed will not prevent the planned protests. "The "Woman, Life, Freedom" movement continues on its path determined and confident of victory," said one of the activists' numerous Instagram messages. Among the renowned activists are the two Iranian Nobel Peace Prize winners Shirin Ebadi and Narges Mohammadi, who is imprisoned in Tehran.

Thousands arrested in the course of the protests

Under the slogan "Woman, Life, Freedom", the death of Amini in 2022 marked the beginning of a women's and protest movement that was not only directed against Islamic regulations, but also against Islam as the country's political ideology. The government at the time, under the late President Ebrahim Raisi, cracked down on the demonstrations.

According to unconfirmed reports, hundreds of demonstrators died in the course of the months-long protests and thousands were arrested. At least ten demonstrators were executed for violent protest actions and almost 20 others were sentenced to death. Although the Iranian judiciary has not confirmed these statistics, it has not denied them either.

More and more women are no longer strictly observing the Islamic dress code

Since the protests, more and more Iranian women, especially in large cities, have ignored the obligation to wear the obligatory headscarf. There are still regular - sometimes violent - checks by the morality police, but without the success hoped for by the leadership. The Islamic dress code is also no longer strictly observed by women. Long jackets and robes were supposed to cover the "provocative female body contours". However, this has become less and less the case since the protests.

For the clergy and hardliners, the Islamic dress code and in particular the obligatory headscarf for women is part of Islamic ideology and therefore non-negotiable. With Operation "Nur" - "light" in the sense of moral enlightenment - the moral police were supposed to ensure compliance with the dress code. However, this failed once again and even led to criticism within their own ranks. "I promise you (women) that the controls will be abolished," said the new president Massud Peseschkian during the election campaign. According to observers, this one sentence was also decisive for his election victory in July.