Testimonials
“They are doing everything to silence us”, the Iranian diaspora facing pressure from the regime
In the studios of RFI, two Iranian opponents testify to the pressure their relatives are under in Iran.
© DK / RFI
Text by: Louise Huet
9 mins
Since the beginning of the protest against the regime in Iran, in September 2022, the power has used all possible means to stifle mobilization inside and outside the country.
Threats against families, repeated calls from regime agents, intimidation… The Iranian diaspora is also under constant pressure from the Tehran regime.
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“
They are threatening to put our parents in prison and torture them if we don't stop
,” says Sahar Nasseri, an Iranian refugee in Sweden since 2010. Since the announcement of the death of young
Iranian Mahsa Amini
on September 16, 2022 after being arrested by the morality police for a headscarf deemed "
poorly worn
", the country is shaken by a wave of protest against the Islamic regime.
According to the
latest report from the Oslo-based NGO
Iran Human Rights, at least 481 protesters have been killed in Iran, and more than 100 face the death penalty.
Except that the bloody repression perpetrated by the mullahs' regime is not limited to the country's borders.
Its nationals abroad
who protest against power
also endure blackmail and provocations from the regime.
Their goal: “
Silence us
”, asserts Sahar Nasseri, and prevent the diaspora from “
building a bridge between Iran and the rest of the world to bring Iranians the information they do not have
”.
These threats are far from new.
Nevertheless, with the
national protest
movement , the pressures towards nationals abroad have intensified.
Thus, an Iranian refugee in Finland, preferring to remain anonymous for the safety of himself and his family, claims to have seen his own 30-year-old daughter threatened by the regime.
According to her father, the latter, who lives in Tehran with her husband, received a call from the authorities at the start of the protest movement in September 2022: “
They asked her to give them my phone number, and she promised them to call me to convince me to contact the authorities
".
The power directly threatened his daughter by assuring "
that they know where she lives, that they know everything about her, if she does not persuade me to call them back
", he confides.
Similarly, the sister and parents of Massi Kamari, an Iranian refugee in France since 2018 and a political activist, were questioned by the country's intelligence services about her activities on January 1, 2023, she said.
"
If she doesn't call us back, we'll arrest you
," they were threatened.
Faced with the pressure, Massi then decided to contact them again.
"
If you do not stop your activities, if you do not deactivate your Instagram page, we will send your parents to Evin
prison [prison in Tehran known to hold political prisoners, editor's note]", warned his interlocutors.
Physical and psychological threats
For Simin*, a Franco-Iranian opponent of the regime, the threats against those close to her are on a different note.
“
They want my family to pay for my political activity.
They threaten to withdraw their jobs, fire them from university, cut off their access to their bank accounts,
”she lists.
Demonstrators, including people from the Iranian diaspora, protest in the streets of Lyon to denounce the executions in progress in Iran, Sunday January 8, 2023. © Laurent Cipriani / AP
Sahar Nasseri, meanwhile, regularly receives calls and death threats, but has never wanted to respond to calls from the authorities.
In 2021, his mother is asked by the secret services to get in touch with Sahar.
“
They wanted me to write a letter to the Supreme
Leader [Ali Khamenei, NDLR]
, and ask forgiveness for my activities and my opinions.
They wanted me to explain why I was wrong to support what I work for.
Then I had to record myself reciting this letter, then send them, and publish this message on all my social networks,
”she testifies.
According to Massi, Sahar, Simin and their compatriot in Finland, the modus operandi of the Iranian services against its nationals abroad is simple: “
They try everything to silence the dissident diaspora
”.
According to the four opponents, “
Their method consists in involving every close person who remained in Iran and threatening them in a more or less direct way.
Moral blackmail, psychological threats against the family, torture, attempted bribery, recruitment of Iranians abroad on behalf of the regime… The range of means mobilized by the Islamic power to intimidate its citizens is vast.
»
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Above all, the regime places the responsibility for what could happen to the families on its nationals abroad.
The Iranian based in Finland recounts the exchange he made with the police after the threats perpetrated against his daughter.
"
On the phone, a man said to me:
'We hear so much about you'
, although I am not known, not very politically active
", he laments.
Despite everything, the man on the phone keeps talking to him about his daughter, hammering at him: "
We take care of her, we know where she lives, we always keep an eye on her, we are in contact with her
" .
A way for the authorities to remind that they know everything about her, and about him, and that nothing escapes them.
Create paranoia
“
I fear for my daughter.
They can easily put her in prison, use violence and torture her
, ”he laments, holding back a sob.
In addition to intimidating the diaspora, “
Iranian power intends to establish a state of perpetual paranoia by monitoring them.
»
"
I'm careful not to talk to people I don't know.
We must continually be wary of others around us, who can be double agents for the regime
,” Simin said.
"
Giving your trust is not easy
," adds Massi Kamari.
“
They make sure we are always on our toes.
I changed my phone, I put surveillance cameras in my house.
They make us doubt our own friends, while we remain without news of our relatives, sometimes
for several weeks in a row
, ”says the Iranian.
Same observation for Sahar Nasseri, who has almost no contact with her mother to try to protect her.
“
I don't know what's happening to my parents and they don't know how I'm doing either.
They make my mom paranoid and worried all the time, because they tell her they can do whatever they want with me, that I'm talking to people who are actually spies, and they can kill me. 'anytime
,' indignant the activist.
Since January 1, 2023, Massi Kamari has also cut all ties with his family in Iran.
A demonstrator brandishes a gallows to protest against death sentences in Iran, in the streets of Lyon, January 8, 2023 © Laurent Cipriani / AP
Refusing to comply with the demands of the Islamic regime is therefore accompanied by the weight of guilt.
Because in these calls and these constant threats, the power poses a terrible dilemma: to choose between the safety of its family and its close relations, and its own values for freedom and democracy.
“
Sometimes I feel like my family is mad at me.
But I never feel guilty because I know I'm doing the right thing.
Sometimes it's hard to have so much pressure, but I remain optimistic
,” admits Simin.
“
The authorities are trying to bribe us by promising to make our family famous, rich, if they work for them
,” says activist
within the HamAva Coalition
, Sahar Nasseri.
The message is similar for the Iranian in Finland: “
It's simple.
They tell us
'you help us, we will help you'”.
But at what cost ?
"
I would feel guilty if something happened to my family, and I would feel guilty if I did nothing against the Islamic regime
", summarize Sahar and his compatriot.
► To listen also: The March of the World - Iran: woman, life, freedom
"
The only responsible is the Islamic Republic of Iran
"
“
I don't feel guilty, because I tell myself that whatever happens to those around me, the only responsible party is the Islamic Republic of Iran.
What happens to my parents matters to me, but what can I do?
I will not give in to the regime
, ”says Massi Kamari.
For her, even if she conceded to the demands of the secret services, “
they would always ask for more
”.
Despite this terrible ultimatum imposed on them, these opponents show a striking resilience.
For Sahar Nasseri, this is an untenable position, but the fight for his country and his freedom is stronger.
“
With my parents, I learned what it means to sacrifice for the common good.
I'm sad, I'm heartbroken, but I try not to be afraid
, ”she reveals, in tears.
“
That's why I accept the fear of losing a loved one rather than the fear of being silenced for what is right.
The father living in Finland is torn by the same internal dilemma as Sahar.
“
I'm afraid for my daughter, but I can't do nothing
,” he sighs.
"
I think the authorities are afraid of us because we are showing the rest of the world their flaws and above all all their cruelty
", continues Massi Kamari.
“
We are the voice of Iranians who have no voice in the country.
And by doing what is right, we are threatening the Islamic authority,
” punctuates Simin.
While the Islamic Republic of Iran struggles to muzzle its dissident diaspora, the latter strives on the contrary to make itself heard more than ever, and to give a voice back to its people.
*Name has been changed for security reasons
► Also to listen: Iran: faced with the repression of the regime, the choice of exile
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