Statement by a Group of Mothers of Political and Civil Victims: December 5th, a Day to Pay Respect to Those Killed in November
A number of mothers and family members of political and civil victims in Iran issued a statement declaring December 5th as a day to pay respect to those killed in November.
In this statement, referring to the massacre and suppression of protesters in November and following recent popular protests against poverty, discrimination, and injustice, it states that “our children in Iran take to the streets to enjoy freedom and a dignified life, and are killed by government forces.”
Nahid Shirbisheh, mother of Pouya Bakhtiari; Shahrnaz Akmali, mother of Mostafa Karim Beigi; Ameneh Qadri, mother of Zaniar and Loghman Moradi; Shahleh Pakrowan, mother of Reihane Jabari; and Mansoureh Behkish, among the families of those executed in 1988, and a number of other mothers of victims, all signatories of this statement, called for the deployment of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights to visit Iran and the formation of a fact-finding committee with the presence and oversight of affected families to investigate the dimensions of the tragedy and announce the exact number of those killed, wounded, and detained.
The signatories of this statement, while describing the recent crackdowns on popular protests by the Iranian government as “crimes against humanity,” called for those directly responsible for the crackdowns to be tried in international courts and asked the people of Iran to condemn the crimes of the Islamic Republic in any way they can on this day.
Following a sudden increase in gasoline prices, Iran witnessed widespread protests by people against the Islamic Republic. On Friday, November 15th, following the sudden announcement of gasoline price hikes, protests took place in various Iranian cities, and just one day after the protests began, the Islamic Republic nearly completely shut down the internet on Saturday night, November 16th.
AmnestyInternational in its latest report on the suppression of November protests announced that based on verified reports compiled by the organization, between November 16-19, at least 304 people were killed and thousands were wounded.
Previously, Bryan Hook, the U.S. Special Representative for Iran, on Thursday, December 5th, in a press conference referring to Iran’s popular protests, described it as the greatest crisis in the history of the Islamic Republic and said that perhaps a thousand people have been killed since the protests began; however, the Iranian regime does not allow accurate reporting.
President Donald Trump also on Tuesday, December 3rd, again reacted to the Iranian government’s dealings with protesters and at the margins of a NATO leaders’ summit said: “It is very unfortunate that protesters in Iran were killed simply because they protested.”
The U.S. President at the margins of this summit several times referred to the topic of Iranian protesters and U.S. support for the Iranian people and said: “Protesters in Iran are seeking freedom and we fully support them.”
Source: Voice of America
