What are Iranians asking for?

From the perspective of an Iranian-Australian young woman who lived under the Islamic Republic for the first 10 years of her life, and who still feels the impacts of their disease plague her family despite having left more than 20 years ago. 

To understand what Iranian’s are asking for today, we need to go back to the 70s. 

I’m sure many of us have seen images of incredibly fashionable women, young people hanging out at beaches, malls, fancy cars… 

Behind the luxurious scenes that many Iranians hold dear in their hearts, the reality was that very few had access to that life. Some 60% of the country were still illiterate, and there was a rise in leftist and communist ideology.

At the same time, it had become easier for people to travel. Those who could afford it, were sending their children to study abroad in countries like the United States and France. 

Students would go and experience life in democratic countries, and wanted to build that in Iran. 

Of course, political turmoil and instability always leaves the door open for exploitation.

What had started as a wish for democracy and advancement of our country, turned into an ideological nightmare. 

Groups like the so-called “People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran” (MEK) began sharing information in universities, dangerous religious extremism was beginning to rise.

On the other side, the Shah struggled to respond effectively, his “secret police” or “SAVAK” were reigning terror. Protesters were punished and imprisoned, some even executed. 

A key point was the incident of Cinema Rex, on 19 August 1978 in Abadan (southwest of Iran), where a theatre was burned down, killing between 377-470 people inside. SAVAK were blamed for the fire, causing more anger in the public and triggering stronger protests. Later, evidence would link those involved in setting the fire with affiliates of what would become the Islamic Republic.

After the Shah was exiled, a referendum was held. On 30 and 31 March 1979, the Islamic Republic put one question on the ballot - “Yes”, or “No”. To accompany this ballot, people were forced to line up based on how they were to vote, the ballot was not anonymous. The paper for a “yes” vote was green and the paper for “no" was red. Armed guards were placed at voting stations and those who would stand to vote no, were harassed, abused, and in some cases, had stones pelted at them. 

Many did not understand what they were voting for.

With these conditions, officials of the Islamic Republic declared victory with 98.2% of the vote. 

This is my very simplified explanation of the hijacking of a movement that was based in wanting a better future for Iran. A future in which Iran had a democracy comparable to France or the United States. For Iran and all of the people within to be able to thrive.

Protesters at that time could be heard chanting “we did not effect change, to regress”. This is a haunting chant that continues to be heard today. 

Of course, with the revolution having been stolen, protests never stopped. With tensions rising, the Islamic Republic also had the challenge of external forces to contend with. 

Women's rights protests were happening as early as 8 March 1979 with International Women's Day. 

They were met with stones. 

Public hangings of dissidents were common practice. I’ve not spoken to any Iranians who’s lives haven’t been touched by executions. My father recounts seeing bodies hanging from cranes in the streets as he walked to school. 

Many who still hold power in Iran today, were responsible for giving orders of executions then. Thousands were executed. This was the beginning of a long tenure of the weaponization of executions against political dissidents. 

I have always held the belief that war is a sign of a failed state. If a government is unable to perform diplomacy, ensuring the interests of their people and be able to negotiate peace, they are a failed state (in my view). 

It only took about a year and a half for the Islamic Republic to fail. 

They had failed the people, they had failed the country. They had been unable to govern and keep our people safe.

The Iran-Iraq war lasted for 8 years. In the meanwhile, crackdown on dissidents was continuing. People had been left feeling defeated. The trauma of that time still flows in all of our blood. 

The Islamic Republic, in true, exploitative fashion, used the war to embolden nationalistic ideology and gain support where they were able to point to an imminent external enemy. This would not last long.

1988 marked the end of the war, triggering a fresh crackdown from the regime that was slowly stripping away freedoms from the people. An estimated 4,000 - 5,000 imprisoned political dissidents, regardless of sentences, were executed in secret and buried in mass graves, their families told to pick up a bag of their belongings. 

It’s difficult to sit in a democracy and think about these crimes against humanity going unanswered. 

The people would not be deterred. in 1999, a popular “reformist” newspaper “Salam” was closed down, triggering student protests. University students in Iran, just like universities in any other country, have always been grounds for fighting for better futures. 

Unfortunately in Iran, the enthusiasm and will for building something better in students has always been met with undue violence. 

Unarmed student protesters were attacked in their dormitories, at least a thousand students were arrested.

There are images of bloodied students trying to help each other escape. There was videos of people being dropped to their deaths. There are families who to this day, have no answers about the empty seat at their dinner table. 

Following this movement came the 2009 Green Movement which was the end of any “reformist” ideology. If it wasn’t already clear, the regime made it undeniable in 2009 that there would be no reforms possible. From that point, a study has shown that between 2009 and 2024 there have been protests at a rate of one every three days (Mirramezani, Amiri, Mesgaran, 2026). 

Protests have always been met with undue violence, from police, Basij paramiliary and IRGC agents using live ammunition, pellet guns, tear gas canisters and paintball guns against civilians to cause death or injury, to arbitrary arrests and executions. 

None of this has deterred the people. It has caused lasting damage, disability and trauma, but it has not stopped the chants of “death to Khamenei” or “Death to dictator” from being heard in the streets. 

In 2022, the woman lead Woman Life Freedom movement triggered by the death-in-custody of Kurdish woman Mahsa “Jhina” Amini, presented the biggest challenge yet to the Islamic Republic. Not only did women refuse to comply by the mandatory hijab after this movement, but significant strides were taken abroad as well. 

The regime was removed from the UN Commission on the Status of Women. Many countries announced new sanctions. 

Pressure has been steadily increasing, but it cannot stop there. 

On 28 December, fed up with the collapsing economy under a regime that has done nothing but steal from our people and mismanage everything from the economy, to infrastructure, to the environment, the Bazaar shopkeepers in Tehran went on strike. Strikes and protests spread. 

The regime, having spent the last two years since the massacre of 7 October 2023 in Israel, pretending to be on the side of protesters for the free Palestine movement (all the while violently cracking down on any none state-sponsored mourning ceremonies for Palestinian people inside of Iran), attempted to pretend that they were willing to hear the concerns of the protesters. 

This was short lived.

The people do not want to negotiate. Too much blood has been spilt. The people want justice. 

Quickly, the “nice” face of the regime disappeared, the internet was shut down and people were massacred. 

We may never know the extent of this massacre. Estimates have ranged from 12,000 to as high as 90,000. Those injured would be immeasurable. 

So what is it that the people of Iran are wanting from the international community?

The answer is simple. Protection. 

For decades, they have fought tooth and nail against this regime. The answer has been mass graves, arrests and empty seats at dinner tables with no accountability or blow back on the regime. 

How can the world continue to sit idly by as regimes like the Islamic Republic act with impunity? 

Protesters are unarmed. Possession of arms in the Islamic Republic carries a death sentence from a regime that is terrified of its people. 

The Islamic Republic has shown over and over again that there are no limits to how far it will go to silence dissent. And the global response has been nothing more than a slap to the back of the hand. They continue to legitimize this regime, give them and their children visas, allow them to hold bank accounts in countries like Canada, England, and even here in Australia.

It is incredibly difficult for the people of Iran to have access to half the things that mass murderers are able to access. 

The UN was established in the face of fascism. As a body that was supposed to work to prevent mass killing. 

Time and time again, it has failed. 

The UN has failed both in places where action was taken (Libya), and places where the decision was made not to act (Syria). 

In all of the debates of morality versus sovereignty, civilians are being massacred. 

American presidents have liked to use a tagline: “we don’t negotiate with terrorists”.

But we have seen over and over, that this is only true where their interests don’t align with those of the terrorists. 

The UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Islamic Republic of Iran, established on 24 November 2022 has had its mandate extended multiple times and has had thousands of submissions. They have established crimes against humanity. And still, no accountability.

The people of Iran are tired, but they are unwilling to accept the toll that has been paid. This is not the future that they deserve. But they need help.

The people of Iran are currently stuck in between multiple fascist governments, all acting in their own self-interest at the risk of massive civilian casualties. 

President Trump actively encouraged the people of Iran to continue to protest, he stated that “help is on the way”. But no such thing has happened.

He quickly changed tone to “rioters have been killed in stampede” and continues to flip-flop as he “negotiates” with the regime that has just massacred at least 12,000 civilians. 

This is unacceptable. 

The people continue to live under the uncertainty of war with the US, while they are used like pawns in a game to make the rich richer. 

The UN and its signatories have a responsibility to protect civilians from mass casualty.

Failure to act in Syria lead to the loss of hundreds of thousands of lives and in the end the regime fell regardless.

This regime will fall. We just need to ask ourselves, how many civilian lives are we prepared to lose before that happens?

Before this failed state drags our people into another horrific war, the UN must step in and put into place protections for the dismantling of this regime and protection of civilian lives. 

Responsibility to protect must be activated. We cannot wait until more civilian blood is shed. 

The more genocides we allow to happen, the more our world suffers. There needs to be a strong response to the violence. 

It is our responsibility to keep our world safe for our children. 

We cannot have a safe world where children are being massacred with impunity. 

Stand with the people of Iran. Stand with humanity. Create statutes to protect against violent regimes. Put arrest warrants in place for those complicit in mass casualties. 

Do not allow murderers to continue to operate with impunity. 

Bring an end to the suffering.

We have the power to do this. All we need to do is act.