Women for Rights of Sri Lanka: In Solidarity with Iranian Women
Following the DOIW’s call for solidarity with the women of Iran’s struggle in Iran, the organisation: Women for Rights of Sri Lanka, have issued the statement that follows.
‘We as the Women for Rights of Sri Lanka have been observing the situation that Iranian women has to face over the years and also regarding the death of Mahsa Amini a 22 year old young woman who was taken to custody of the so called Morality Police on 13th of September alleging that she was wearing hijab wrongly. Few hours after taken into custody, she had fallen gravely ill and had hospitalized. On 16th of September Mahsa was pronounced dead while she was still at the hospital. According to the relatives of her she was in good health before she was taken into custody and it is suspected that she was beaten while in the custody of so called Morality Police. We initially condemn irrational arrest and the inhuman treatment which have caused the death of Mahsa Amini.
Economic crisis which has spread around vast majority of the countries has made working class people suffer regardless their ethnicity, age and gender. However, within most of the countries women are compelled to bear more due to the social norms, moral barriers, male dominance and well as religious regulations and in most Islamic countries due to religious norms which have been adopted by the State as laws. According to our opinion every woman and man born to world must have freedom to make decisions regarding one’s own body as well as the life as long as such does not violate rights and well-being of another person. Hijab is a piece of clothing that is worn by women of Islamic faith, but it must be her own choice. Making it an obligation is amount to limiting her freedom. Women must have the right to take decisions regarding their lives and they are capable of such decision making equal to men of her similar age and experience. What any country must ensure is that women get the equal and reasonable education as well as opportunities develop skills and to grow as a human being. We firmly stand in solidarity with the struggle of Iranian women for dignity, equality and justice.
We are aware that many progressive groups in Iran have joined hands in demanding justice for
Mahsa Amini as well as demanding freedom and equality for women. Our sincere greetings are extended to all youth and teenagers who struggle demanding a real change in Iran. We stand by the struggle of Iranian people and we urge the President and the government of Iran to listen to the demands of the people and also we urge the government to grant women the rights to make decisions about their lives without being oppressed. We also condemn any attempts of USA and its allied imperialists to manipulate the death of Mahsa Amini to destabilize the State of Iran for narrow imperialist gains.
We also strongly condemn the violence on people who are struggling for a just cause and condemn unjust incarcerations of the protestors. We convey condolences to the families and the friends of the people who sacrificed their lives in the struggle and we wish fast recovery for those who have been injured. Our comradely greetings are extended to the Democratic Organization of Iranian Women. We also request all progressive organizations around the world to stand in solidarity with the people of Iran in their struggle of demanding rights and justice.’
25th October 2022
