The Equations Have Changed and the Government Must Wake Up

The equations have changed and the government must wake up

The equations have changed and the government must wake up as public protests in Iran enter their third month, and narratives of our people’s demands in various cities have become the main part of the daily news we follow. What is somewhat difficult to believe in the current situation is the change in international equations for the Iranian regime on one hand and the Iranian people on the other. A few months ago, if we heard that before the end of 2022, Iran would participate in the Ukraine conflict,

its nuclear program would be more closely monitored than before, and at the same time, its sanctions would not be lifted. Meanwhile, its security and intelligence activities in European countries and the US would be tracked and neutralized like those of Russia and China in those countries, it would have been hard for us to believe. All of this has happened, and the Iranian people are not mere spectators of international developments.

Now, the top news about Iran in the international arena is not Iran’s participation in the invasion and occupation of Ukraine, nor the assassination and kidnapping plots by Iran’s security forces in Western countries, nor the nuclear program discussions. The Iranian people are at the forefront of the news.

Western media have gotten to know Iran better.

In recent months, an interesting phenomenon in Western media is the deepening of news and analyses offered on these platforms about Iran. The widespread protests in various parts of Iran on one hand and the increasing meticulousness of European and American experts and journalists to maximize the accuracy of their news have led to some Westerners hearing the names of certain Iranian cities for the first time from their country’s journalists.

The ethnic diversity of Iran has been reflected in international news in an unprecedented way, and on the other hand, this more accurate and deeper reflection of news has made many Westerners more familiar with the cultural richness of our country than before.

Western media have recently engaged in fact-checking the news coming from Iran. The latest example is the intense media shock resulting from the false news about the issuance of the death penalty for fifteen thousand Iranian protesters. Western media quickly engaged in fact-checking and recognized the reality regarding the number of issued sentences.

They corrected the false news of fifteen thousand death sentences while confirming and emphasizing the issuance of death sentences and quickly warned political figures like the Canadian Prime Minister about this, leading his office to remove their posts on the subject from social media.

The wall of unfamiliarity and media estrangement with Iran in the international arena has crumbled. Meanwhile, even rumors and small and large, even contradictory news on social media no longer have the power to mislead public opinion in Iran and abroad. The recent events in Iran, particularly the tragic death of Kian Pirfalak, showed that media deception and lying to justify events are no longer effective.

Thus, with the increasing familiarity of international experts and analysts with the realities of Iran, the speed and power of justification by the regime’s officials have diminished, and political figures from other countries also follow Iran’s events more closely.

The two social and political poles of Iran have become ineffective.

The reformist justifiers within Iran have become unable to slow down and wear out the process of internal demands. One of the main reasons for this transformation is the inefficacy of this particular faction’s politics, which has lost the public’s attention and favor to the genuine reformists who speak of truth and reality in Iranian society.

This particular justifying faction engaged in justifying multiple events during the years of Rouhani’s presidency, including protests following the currency crisis, protests following the livelihood crisis from gasoline price hikes, and most importantly, protests after the deliberate downing of the Ukrainian plane. Now, after several years and exactly on the anniversary of the November protests, there is no need to explain the status of these justifying forces.

On the other hand, the wave of overthrow advocates and media organized by foreign countries also do not have much ability to guide the news reporting process about Iran’s realities. More than ever, these media and the political and social activists affiliated with them, who claim to be active and leading, are following the people’s movements.

Specifically, the leaderless nature of the recent demands alongside the Iranian people’s refusal to wait for a leader is noteworthy. But beyond that, even defining the nature of the recent public protests has slipped from the hands of those media and activists. There is no need for loud and fame-seeking figures for the people’s voice to reach outside Iran.

In the US, there is no supporter of dictators.

One of the most important differences between the recent protests and those of 2019 and before is the political change in the US from Trump’s era to Biden’s era. During Biden’s era, there is no news of hollow and ineffective sanctions aiding Iran’s regime, Trump’s servile alignment with Putin’s policies in the Middle East, or his team’s suspicious plans during the deliberate downing of the Ukrainian plane and the assassination of General Soleimani.

Biden’s America is making maximum efforts to impose targeted sanctions and punishments against the suppressors without repeating the Obama era’s decision of covert and not very explicit support for public protests. The empty news hype and speeches are no longer present, and Robert Malley can be compared to the suspicious and ineffective figure responsible for policies towards Iran during Trump’s era.

Iran’s regime cannot trust China and India.

Next week is the week when the United Nations Human Rights Council will hold its important meeting and address Iran’s situation. Iran has remained silent in response to the Chinese government’s behavior towards its Muslims and the Modi government’s behavior towards Indian Muslims. Specifically, what the Chinese Communist Party has done to the Uyghurs is disgraceful and catastrophic, and Iran’s regime has shamefully remained silent about it.

China, with its high influence, has escaped the consequences of its behavior towards the Uyghurs in the United Nations Human Rights Council. If Iran’s regime thinks that China will be Iran’s supporter and defender in international organizations in justifying and managing the consequences of its actions, it is mistaken.

The US and its allies condemned Iran in the commission known as the Third Committee of the United Nations and prepared for this week’s meeting. Even being spared from the consequences of recent events in the upcoming meeting will not be the end. China and India will not be loyal supporters.

Violations of children’s and women’s rights will not go unanswered.

The exact number of innocent children killed in recent protests in Iran is being carefully examined and monitored by Western media and governments. The wave of arrests of Iranian women, a social and public movement that began with the killing of the innocent Mahsa Amini and continues to this day, has placed the recent public movement on the axis of women’s activities. It is rare to find a man who is more leading and pioneering than women in recent movements.

Even Westerners turn to Iranian women, especially those who are more public and ordinary and not affiliated with specific governments, to stay informed about Iran’s situation. Iran’s regime has changed the equations by violating women’s and children’s rights. The image reflected by the arrest of female artists, journalists, and social activists of Iran’s regime naturally leads to public demands in the West for dealing with Iran’s regime based on rightful demands, and punishments against Iran will no longer be political but public.

In this context, the following articles have been published in Iran Gate:

• Continuation of nationwide protests in Iran, increase in arrests and intimidation
• Iran protests and exaggeration about Generation Z
• Iranian women become Time’s Person of the Year