Those who have nothing to lose
Those who have nothing to lose: why are the protests in Iran lasting so long this time? Why don’t the protesters leave the streets? Why do people continue to chant slogans from rooftops or windows at night? Why do they try to solidify their protest against the current situation with ideas and excuses like strikes?
In November 2019, Sedigheh Maleki Fard, the wife of Seyed Hashem Khastar, wrote in a lawsuit that you shut down newspapers en masse, silenced critics and protesters, and brought Iran and Iranians to ruin. You reduced my husband’s salary, imprisoned him, kidnapped him on the first of November last year, and detained him in a psychiatric hospital. He was released on November 19, and this year again, what did you do to us on November 19?
Where should we take our complaint? My husband is a retired cultural critic and protester, and his weapon is his tongue and pen, with no aim but the elevation of Iran and Iranians. But you, the chief justice of the vast province of Khorasan, be fair. Who is causing public unrest? Therefore, I ask you to release my husband unconditionally. Fear those who have nothing to lose.
Now, an official from the Ministry of Intelligence has admitted that among the 16,000 detainees, there are protesters who have nothing to lose and also stated that during interrogations, we learned things that we were completely unaware of.
Voices that were not heard
What the intelligence official admits today, that is, confronting people who have nothing to lose, had already been repeatedly mentioned by sociologists and economists, like when warnings about Iran turning into Venezuela were given. Several years ago, multiple assessments from Venezuela, especially in the economic sectors, reported very unfavorable conditions.
The shortage of essential goods, medicine, and food had created a situation where people who protested daily and with the increasing number of deaths and victims had nothing left to lose. They expressed their opposition to this situation in every possible way.
Albert Bagzian, an economic expert, pointed out that the effects of sanctions on production, increased production costs, and increased household expenses are very significant. He said, from an empirical perspective, if you bind a person’s hands and feet and then ask them to run, it is not possible.
As an economist and someone who has taught economics at university for decades, I say to that official or manager who claims the sanctions are ineffective, they should know that the situation has become unbearable for the people, and they have nothing to lose. Therefore, if something is done for the livelihood of these people today, it is better than tomorrow.
Ismail Gerami Moghadam, a political activist, also pointed out that one of the most important aspects through which the roots of recent protests can be interpreted is the economy, which these days is less addressed in analytical and media evaluations. He believes that the harsh economic conditions are one of the main reasons for the protests manifesting in the streets.
The fact that many protesters are unwilling to leave the streets stems from hopelessness and having nothing to lose. If you talk to these people, they often speak of despair regarding the future outlook. Therefore, one of the important analytical propositions to understand the current situation is the economic and welfare roots.
Hossein Raghfar also said in July last year, analyzing labor protests, that with the events of recent years, the general public, including workers, has been led to feel they have nothing to lose. According to him, before the formation of oil industry workers’ protests, such movements were observed from Hepco and Haft Tappeh workers, meaning that protesters to the current situation, including workers, have reached a point where they have no fear of openly pursuing their demands, and since they have nothing left to lose, they pursue it boldly and without the usual past precautions.
What were you unaware of?
The fact that security and intelligence officials declare they have learned things they were completely unaware of has a reason. They did not want to hear anything else or see things differently. Otherwise, the report Saeed Madani published after the 2019 protest events precisely predicted today. Saeed Madani is the same researcher who is in prison these days for wanting to inform people and officials sooner about things they were completely unaware of.
Madani’s analysis of the November 2019 protests was that the scope of demands in Iran has expanded, covering all political, economic, and social dimensions. The aggregation of these demands has led to a legitimacy crisis, resulting in protesters chanting radical slogans. At that time, he concluded that Iran has entered a state of movement, meaning any social, political, or economic issue has the potential to become a crisis, leading to protests by all or part of society, and sequential crises resulting in sequential uprisings and protests.
While everyone these days talks about Generation Z and analysts believe that the driving force behind recent protests are teenagers of the 2000s, Saeed Madani, three years ago, pointed out the age composition of the protesters, saying that the youth movement in these protests has been active, mainly revolving around demands in economic and occupational fields as well as lifestyle.
All these warnings were just like the reports, research, and warnings that some sociologists or independent researchers, and even the Budget Planning Organization, prepared and presented to officials and even the Shah himself in the 1970s. But the preference was that they were neither heard nor seen. When the power structure is inclined not to listen, people become more and more hopeless until their despair turns to anger. The anger of people who have nothing to lose.
In this regard, other articles have been published on Iran Gate that you can read.
- Iran protests and exaggeration about Generation Z
- Public protests and the West’s increased understanding of Iranians
