Status: 06.10.2022 7:30 p.m
From the point of view of the European Parliament, the death of the young Kurdish woman Amini, which triggered nationwide protests in Iran, is a “tragic murder”. The panel is calling for sanctions and an independent investigation.
The majority of the European Parliament voted in favor of punitive measures in connection with the protests in Iran and the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini.
The panel condemned the young woman’s death as a “tragic murder” and called for punitive measures for those allegedly guilty, as stated in a press release published online called. The EU Parliament also suspects that Amini was mistreated during her detention – citing eyewitnesses who reported that the 22-year-old had been beaten by police officers.
Amini was arrested in mid-September for violations of the Islamic dress code, according to official information from the Iranian authorities. How it came to the death of the woman is still unclear. What is certain is that Amini fell into a coma and died in a hospital on September 16. The European Parliament is calling for an independent investigation into her death.
A sign of solidarity with the strand
The death of the young woman has been the cause of nationwide, massive protests in Iran, which are still ongoing. They are directed against the regime, women take to the streets for more rights and freedoms. Western governments, including Germany, declared their solidarity with the protest movement and condemned the violent crackdown on the demonstrators.
The Swedish MEP, Abir Al-Sahlini, also used her speech during the debate for the symbolic act of cutting off part of her hair. This gesture is intended to show solidarity for the women in Iran who, among other things, are taking to the streets against the headscarf requirement. Several celebrities, such as some French actresses, had already publicly cut strands of hair.
A sign of solidarity: The Swedish MEP, Abir Al-Sahlani, used the scissors during her speech.
Image: via REUTERS
Sanctions against security forces are also required
In addition to the sanctions resulting from the “murder” of Amini, the EU Parliament’s resolution also calls for punitive measures against Iranian security forces that use violence against protesters. In the statement, Parliament declared its “strong support for the peaceful protest movement in Iran and in particular for the young women leading and participating in the demonstrations” and harshly criticized the “widespread and disproportionate use of force”.
MEPs are calling on the Iranian authorities to immediately drop charges against “persons who have been detained solely for exercising their rights to freedom of expression, association and assembly” and to release those affected from detention.
Faeser for deportation stop
Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser also spoke to “Spiegel” about the current “disastrous human rights situation” in Iran and therefore advocated suspending deportations to the country for the time being. “Stopping deportations is the right step, which the federal states should decide on as soon as possible,” said the SPD politician. Faeser also criticized the “brutal violence” with which the “peaceful protests” in Iran were put down. Young women rebelled “with incredible courage against the rule of violence and oppression” and risked their lives in the fight for freedom. Faeser demanded:
Anything we can do here to protect courageous Iranian civil society, we must do.
Lower Saxony has already suspended deportations to Iran. State Interior Minister Boris Pistorius also announced that he would campaign for a general freeze on deportations at the next conference of interior ministers and that he would like to submit a corresponding proposal for a resolution.