The campaign was planned to last 10 days, beginning on the anniversary of Muhammad’s execution on March 30.  Activists were to send an official request to the Kurdistan Parliament asking them to consider their suggestion. But enthusiasm on part of ordinary people and some political parties has extended the effort.

Sadaddin Malla, member of the public relations office of the Kurdish National Convention in Syria, says, “We must dedicate this day as Kurdish Martyrs’ Day as soon as possible. Every Kurd knows that Qazi Muhammad was the first Kurdish leader executed on that day.”

Malla, an avid supporter of the campaign, criticized Kurdistan Region authorities for ignoring these occasions, saying, “We don’t respect our martyrs. We still don’t have a national day for martyrs of all four parts of Kurdistan.”

Massud Tak, leader of the Kurdistan Social Party of north Kurdistan, thinks that having a martyrs’ day would strengthen national sentiment.

“A flag, national anthem and a martyrs’ day are common elements of every nation. If we honor these days together, it will strengthen our patriotic views throughout Kurdistan,” he says.

Muhammad Ahmad, chair of the parliamentary committee for martyrs’ affairs, says it was the sacrifices of martyrs that led to the building of the Kurdish government in Iraq.

“We accomplished what we did because of the thousands of martyrs that shed their blood,” Ahmad says. “We need to have a national martyrs’ day.”

Ahmad maintained that parliament would welcome and discuss any suggestions or projects referred to them in this regard.

Some Kurdish political parties have their own days to honor their martyrs, including the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and the Kurdistan Communist party. But so far, there hasn’t been an agreement on a national day for martyrs.

Faruq Babamiri, a senior leader at the Kurdistan Labor and Revolutionary Party in Iran, supports the idea, saying, “Qazi Muhammad was a great martyr in Kurdish history.” However, he believes that political parties should still be able to honor their own martyrs separately.

“We can have a national day for Kurdish martyrs while each party has its own specific day to honor their martyrs,” he says. “They don’t contradict each other.”

Tak says that given Qazi Muhammad’s name and position as the first president of the first Kurdish Republic in history, it is important to mark his death as the national day for martyrs.

“I believe his execution date is the most suitable day for the Kurdish National Martyrs’ Day,” he says.

Roj Welat, a public relations officer for the Union of Communities in Kurdistan (KCK), says that a national martyrs’ day would create unity among Kurdish political parties.

“But this matter must be decided at a Kurdish national convention,” he says.

By: Gary Kent

Are we missing a vital ingredient in the debate about how to deal with Iran? The debate is stuck between supporters and opponents of bombing and those who argue over whether it is possible or not to contain a nuclear Iran. Yet we are consistently failing to understand the position and potential power of the people of Iran in this complex equation.

I recently met Mustafa Hijri, the general secretary of the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan. He was elected as an MP into the Majlis after the overthrow of the Shah but was subsequently forced into exile into Iraqi Kurdistan.

Hijri maintains that reform of the regime is impossible. Past elections demonstrate this. The regime uses elections in order to claim popular legitimacy. However, since elections in Iran are neither free nor fair, it certainly is the case that the current regime does not enjoy the support it claims. If the Islamic regime had majority support, free and fair elections would be allowed.

The Green Movement, brave though its followers were, sought to put the Islamic Republic back on track rather than be a fundamental opposition to it. Mustafa Hijri believes that this accounts for its inability to mobilise more people and to sustain itself. His case is that the vast majority of Iranians abhor the regime and want it replaced lock, stock and barrel.

My guess is that we will find that, after a generation of incessant propaganda and repression, Iran’s people will turn out to be a proud and profoundly pro-western people anxious to make up for lost time by connecting with the outside world.

Hijri also thinks that the regime is hollow. It is a sectarian theocracy that does not represent a majority of the people. Hijri told me that his party is working with organisations representing Arabs, Balouchis, Azeris and Turkmens in Iran. In 2005, they established the Congress of Nationalities for a Federal Iran in order to speak with one voice on fundamental issues concerning a future democratic, secular and federal Iran. They are also increasing their effort to reach out to the Persians, and they have made important headway in the last two years.

The western focus on nuclear weapons is understandable. There are grave concerns that the rational imperatives of Mutually Assured Destruction would not be heeded by a theocratic regime and its threats to Israel cannot so easily be dismissed. In addition, a nuclear Iran risks triggering an arms race which could see Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Egypt taking the nuclear road. Equally, if not more, worrying is the scenario that a nuclear-armed regime in Tehran would, in its quest for regional hegemony, be further emboldened and step up its support for international terrorism and cause greater instability in a volatile Middle East.

The emphasis on nuclear weapons without due attention to the crimes of the regime in human rights and women’s rights has, however, led to Iranians thinking that we don’t care about them.

Yet in the end the best way of transcending the vile regime in Iran is via people power. The question then is how to do this.

The Iranian Kurds urge our government and others to express resolute political support for the Iranian democratic movement. The hope is that this can tip an already-weak regime over the edge. But, to be clear, Hijiri doesn’t exclude the possible need to assist the opposition more directly. He argues that, in the event of a popular uprising, a safe haven and no-fly zone in Iranian Kurdistan at least could help them build up their forces to be ready to take over and build a new, federal and democratic Iran. He has in mind the model that successfully saved the Iraqi Kurds from genocide and enabled them to build a prosperous and pluralist regional entity in Iraq.

In the 1980s and 1990s the Kurds in Iran waged an armed struggle with a strong popular support but scant support from the international community. The Iranian regime brutally suppressed this popular insurgency, killing tens of thousands of civilians, ten thousand Kurdish fighters and the assassination of two of Mr Hijri’s predecessors on European soil.

We should listen very carefully to voices such as that of Mustafa Hijri. Ultimately a revolution from below is the better option. We should work with our friends now.

Gary Kent is director of Labour Friends of Iraq

The International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran reports that Golparipour, a Kurdish political prisoner sentenced to death in Iran, wrote a letter before his recent transfer from Oroumiyeh Prison to Semnan.

It’s not clear why the transfer has been made, and rights groups are concerned it may signal his imminent execution.

Golparipour’s father has reportedly travelled to Semnan to visit his son, but prison authorities merely confirmed the transfer of his son and told him that he will not have any visitation rights until after Norooz and the New Year celebrations.

Golparipour’s fellow inmates reported that he was beaten and insulted during the transfer from Oroumiyeh Prison.

Golparipour’s letter indicates that he has resorted to letter-writing because he has “lost all legal oaths to obtain my rights.”

He rejects the death sentence handed to him and says the Islamic Republic equates “the promotion and defence of a national identity as war against the Islamic system.”

Golparipour writes that his death sentence was issued within five minutes during his “sham” trial, which violates even the provisions of the Iranian constitution.

He goes on to say that he has made official complaints to various government bodies for the “long-term arrests and physical and psychological torture that have taken me to the verge of death” but admits that his voice has not traveled beyond the prison bars.

He adds: “Currently my national identity as a Kurd and my freedom-seeking ideas are considered as corruption on earth, and all my efforts in that direction are interpreted as enmity with God, and this is overt discrimination and open injustice.”

He ends his letter urging human rights groups to assist him in any way possible.

Habibollah Golparipour was arrested in September of 2009 on his way from Mahabad to Oroumiyeh. The Revolutionary Guards intelligence agents found that he was carrying a series of books, which prompted his arrest and the ensuing months of torture. In March of 2010, he was charged with membership in the Kurdistan Free Life Party (PJAK), the militant Kurdish group, and sentenced to death.

His appeal has been turned down, and the Supreme Court has approved his death sentence.

Golparipour has reportedly denied any involvement in armed combat, and the only evidence against him is the possession of that set of books.

Fundamentalist Islam nevertheless shapes the domestic and foreign policies of Iran. For example the regime’s ideology rules out normalisation of relations with the United States and recognition of Israel’s existence, it also dictates that only those Iranians who are Shiites believers could be included in the political system.

Ethnic groups in Iran

The Iranian constitution is inherently sexist, and sectarian, in that it only permits male followers of Shia Islam to become the president of the country. This means, women, secularists, Kurds and Sunnis are prohibited from becoming a president. The Iranian regime, according to Ahmedi uses “shame elections to claim popular legitimacy” and manipulates the international public opinion by fabricating an image of a legitimate and ‘democratic’ state. Ahmedi believes the Iranian population rejects the regime by large, and the only reason this regime continues to survive is through coercive and violent means. “A gigantic state apparatus – consisting of the Revolutionary Guards, the Basiji and a plethora of intelligence agencies – is the backbone of the regime”, Ahmedi said.

Iran is a multinational and multi-religious country, with Kurds, Arabs, Azeri Turks, Balochis and Turkman national communities. These ethnic groups are discriminated against because of their religion and nationality. Ahmedi says there are arbitrary imprisonments, torture, rape and disappearances of activists. Kurdish female activists have been raped on numerous occasions prior to being executed. He said, the regime’s interpretation of Islamic law, or Sharia law is used to legitimise rape, torture and execution of political dissidents.

On numerous occasions, Kurdish female political activists have been raped before being executed. The religious justification for these cases of rape is that if a woman dies as a virgin, she will go to heaven. To make sure that female Kurdish political activists go to hell, they are raped in Iranian prisons.

Many Kurdish activists have been executed, and even threatened with rape. They are charged under a loosely defined principle which Iranian courts use ‘Mohareb’ (enmity against God) and Fesad fill-arz (spreading corruption on earth). This means, Kurdish political activists can be sentenced to death for distribution of pamphlets that promote Kurdish political parties.

Kurdish rights in Iran

Kurdish struggles for autonomy and self-governance in Iran has been ongoing for nearly 70 years. Ahmedi believes the suffering of Kurdish people has dramatically increased since the revolution in 1979. Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini declared Jihad (holy war) on Kurdish people. Ahmedi pointed out, “Kurds in Iran are the only Muslim nation in the world with a Fatwa of Jihad issued against them”. It is because of this Fatwa that tens of thousands of civilians and Kurdish political activists have been killed.

Khomeini banned the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (PDKI), despite winning the majority of votes in the first parliamentary elections in Iranian Kurdistan after the revolution. It was labeled as “the party of Satan”. Ahmedi explained that their party opposed an Islamic constitution, and favoured a secular democratic constitution that granted Kurds autonomy within the borders of Iran.

Iranian agents have assassinated numerous activists within PDKI, including two leaders of PDKI on European soil. Ahmedi explained that Kurdish people are not the only ethnic group suffering but other groups have faced brutal discrimination under the regime.

Although the Kurdish people have been subjected to the worst kinds of oppression by this regime, the regime has, especially during the last ten years, increased its oppression against other nationalities in Iran. We have witnessed a more brutal oppression of the Arab Ahwazis, Balouchis, Azeri Turks and Turkomans during the past ten years. The main reason for this is that these nations are more openly demanding their political rights.

Ahmedi believes despite the current rhetoric espoused in favour of a war against Iran by some groups, war is not imminent. Change for Iranians must come within, and it is the responsibility of Iranians to bring change themselves, with the support of the international community.

The economic sanctions should be supplemented with the most effective sanctions of all: a relentless scrutiny of the regime’s systematic violations of human rights and an unequivocal support for the universal right of Iranians to live in freedom. We believe that sooner or later, the international community will realize that only a democratic Iran at peace with itself can have peaceful and cooperative relations with the outside world.

Kurdpa – Kurdish writer and translator Ebrahim Yunesi who was in bed in the last three months died on Wednesday afternoon at 85.

Yunesi wrote and translated many different books in diverse fields including literature, linguistics, novel, short story, history and politics.

“Springless winter” is his own autobiography that describes his life from childhood to his release from prison.

Dada Shirin, Praying for Arman, Kurdish National Movement, Turkey- Iran relation and Kurdish problems are some of his known works.

He also was the first post- Islamic Revolution Kurdish Kurdistan governor who spent years his life in former regime’s prison.

Don Quixote, Great Expectations, Spartacus and Three Friends were some of his many translations that made him one of the most known translators in Iran.

February 6th, 2012

The speculation over whether Israel will attack Iran this spring is having an unintended consequence: It’s bringing Iranian opposition groups together.

About 50 activists, including university professors, lawyers and students now living outside Iran, met on February 4th and 5th at a snow-covered retreat outside Stockholm. They were the guests of the Olof Palme International Center, a group associated with Sweden’s Social Democratic party with a long history of supporting opposition groups around the world.

I was an observer at this meeting and was struck by how factions who had been at odds for many years – from Kurds to staunch secularists to Green movement leaders – tried to reach common ground.

Most voiced opposition to a military strike against Iran, even though they all agreed that the current government should be toppled. They felt an attack would directly or indirectly harm the population, empower the regime and cause severe instability in the region when Iran retaliates.

Many here believe that Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is trying to buy time in order to develop a nuclear weapon and render Iran virtually immune to an attack.

“From the regime’s point of view, there are two scenarios: Libya or North Korea and Khamenei is choosing North Korea,” said one student activist, referring to the fact that North Korean obtained nuclear weapons while Libya stopped its program.

This student expressed anxiety over whether the opposition would be able to destabilize the regime if there were a quick, isolated attack rather than a sustained military operation. “We might not have time to do anything – to mobilize. We need to start getting prepared,” he said.

The activists also agreed to work hard between now and March 2nd when parliamentary elections are held in Iran, to organize a nationwide boycott of the polls.

“We need to encourage people to stay at home that day,” said one well-known  activist. A low voter turnout, the activists agreed, would send a message that Iranians do not respect the rigged, opaque electoral process. Already, a governmental body called the Guardian Council has banned many candidates from running in the elections who do not agree with the regime.

The Iranian government considers elections to be critical to convincing the world that the country is democratic. However, after the disputed presidential election in 2009, which returned President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to power and sparked millions of Iranians to protest, the regime has lost legitimacy at home and abroad. The opposition hopes to use the March 2nd parliamentary elections to stage more demonstrations and convince the part of the population that still supports the regime to join their cause.

Inspired by the once severely divided Syrian opposition which faces a brutal regime, the activists believe that this first well-organized meeting will be the beginning to uniting with the opposition inside Iran. By the end of the two-day meeting, they had laughed and cried together, sharing their stories of imprisonment, torture and murder of their relatives in Iran for their political activity.

They issued a report at the end of the conference which states: “The cordial meeting was successful in building a consensus on the continuation of dialogue among (the) opposition, the necessity of a broad coalition against dictatorship and any type of discrimination and violation of human rights, achieving democracy based on the separation of religion and state and free elections in accordance with international standards.”

The views expressed in this article are solely those of Geneive Abdo.

Editor’s Note: Geneive Abdo is the director of the Iran program at The Century Foundation. Reza H. Akbari, the research associate for the program, contributed to this article.

Reports by local activists about security sweeps in the towns of Hamidiyeh, Shush, and Ahvaz indicate that authorities carried out at least some of the arrests in response to anti-government slogans and graffiti spray-painted on public property expressing sympathy for the Arab Spring and calling for a boycott of Iran’s parliamentary elections, scheduled for March 2, 2012. Human Rights Watch received information that Mohammad Kaabi, 34, and Nasser Alboshokeh Derafshan, 19, died in detention facilities run by local intelligence officials in Shush and Ahvaz respectively, apparently as a result of torture. The local activists say that most of those arrested are being held in incommunicado detention.

More from HRW

The Asadis came to the United States from Iran as political refugees. The family now lives in Mesa and said they can never go back to their homeland.

“They will kill us; they will kill my children,” Asadi said.

The mother of three hoped to get a green card, but instead got red tape.

“We are not terrorists, we fight for freedom in my country,” Asadi said.

Since coming to the U.S. almost nine years ago, the definition of terrorist organizations has changed. It now includes the Kurdish Democratic Party of Iran; the Asadis are members. The husband and wife said the KDPI fights for freedom inside of Iran.

“They think it’s not fair,” said attorney Azadeh Najafi, with the Law Office of Najafi & Adib, LLC. “They’ve had their benefits terminated; they’re not free to travel like the rest of us.”

Najafi said her client’s SSI benefits have been terminated due to a time limitation. Asadi said that was her main source of income to feed her family.

Najafi said her client is in immigration limbo.

Asadi hasn’t been able to leave the country in nine years and hasn’t seen her mother in more than two decades.

The family is now suing the government for a ruling.

“We understand this puts people in a difficult situation where they must wait for many years for something that they might get right away, but we think the situation in keeping these cases on hold while we work through the exemption process is the best possible situation for the time being,” said Tim Counts with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

Counts admits thousands of people are battling the same problem.

“We believe leaving some 4,500 people in limbo for the time being is a much better option than adjudicating the applications because we would have to deny them right now,” Counts said.

If the mom’s case is denied, she could be deported to Iran. If that happens, Asadi said her family would face execution

“We didn’t do anything wrong for them to not give us a green card for no reason,” said Asadi.