{"id":144602,"date":"2022-10-06T12:37:46","date_gmt":"2022-10-06T10:37:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=144602"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:26:27","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:26:27","slug":"not-being-able-to-contact-your-family-and-living-in-constant-fear-this-is-the-reality-of-iranians","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2022\/10\/06\/not-being-able-to-contact-your-family-and-living-in-constant-fear-this-is-the-reality-of-iranians\/","title":{"rendered":"Not being able to contact your family and living in constant fear: this is the reality of Iranians"},"content":{"rendered":"

After the Iranian Mahsa Amini was killed by the morality police, there have been several protests in Iran in which many more citizens have died. For a lot of Iranian students and employees at Erasmus University this causes a lot of anxiety. Parnian, Ghazal and Danial share their stories.<\/p>\n

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The Erasmus bridge turned green on Friday in solidarity with the Iranian protesters.<\/span><\/p>

\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSheila Kamerman<\/span>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>

After Mahsa Amini got arrested and killed by the Iranian morality police, Iranians have been risking their lives by protesting against the government and stand up for women\u2019s rights. For years, the Islamic regime has been oppressing Iranian citizens, especially women. PhD candidate Danial has been experiencing this his whole life: \u201cIf you live in Iran, you feel a pattern in what the government is doing. You keep asking yourself: why is the government doing bad things? It is so obviously wrong, but they keep doing it. You can\u2019t do wrong things accidentally for forty years. You must be aware that you do those things.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t

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\n\t\t\u2018The morality police told me they had pepper spray and would be using it if I didn\u2019t come with them\u2019\n\t<\/blockquote>\n\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t–<\/span>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tParnian\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption>\n\t<\/figure>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n

Morality police<\/h2>

The morality police in Iran are Islamic religious police attached to Iran\u2019s law enforcement. Parnian, who finished her masters in Rotterdam and now works in the library, explains that they drive on the streets and arrest everyone they want in the most disrespectful ways. Most of the times, they say they arrest women for not dressing in the right way, according to themselves. Parnian has had an encounter with the morality police and even got arrested then. \u201cThey had no reason to arrest me, but they wanted my ID to check if I had a criminal background. I refused to go in their car, but the man told me he had pepper spray and would be using it if I didn\u2019t come with them\u201d, she says. \u201cThis is how they treated me, but there are videos all over the internet where you can see how they treat women even worse and drag them with them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t

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\n\t\t\u2018What bothers me the most is that I never said anything. When they left, I just sat there and cried\u2019\n\t<\/blockquote>\n\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t–<\/span>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGhazal\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption>\n\t<\/figure>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n

Not only Parnian had an encounters with the morality police, Ghazal, who just finished her Clinical Psychology studies, did too. According to her, almost all women in Iran deal with this at least once in their lives. \u201cOne day I was at the airport, fully covered in black clothes. Two women came up to me and told me my pants were too tight and I could not pass the gate in this outfit. Later, they let me go and told me that if I didn\u2019t walk a lot and just sat down, I could pass the gate\u201d, she says. Ghazal wore that same outfit more often to the university she studied at; there it was not a problem at all. When thinking back of her days in Iran she remembers every encounter she had with the morality police. \u201cWhat bothers me the most is that I never said anything. When they left, I just sat there and cried.\u201d<\/p>\n

Internet shutdown<\/h2>

During situations like the protests happening right now, the Iranian government shuts down the internet for their citizens. Parnian and Ghazal aren\u2019t always able to contact their families and friends living in Iran. This has occurred before the protests as well. \u201cWhen this happens, it feels like my mother in Iran is in prison and I have no access to her. It feels scary, because I don\u2019t know what is happening to her\u201d, Ghazal explains. \u201cLast night I was finally able to call her after a week, and she told me she got hurt by the police when she went shopping. I had no idea. It makes me feel powerless.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t

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\n\t\t\u2018Students don\u2019t seem to know why their Iranian classmates are feeling sad\u2019\n\t<\/blockquote>\n\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t–<\/span>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tParnian\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption>\n\t<\/figure>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n

The three Iranians stress how important support from fellow students, colleagues or the university is for them, especially when they can\u2019t contact their friends and family. Parnian and Ghazal are concerned for Iranian students at the university. \u201cThe university is so quiet about the situation. Consequently, students don\u2019t seem to know why their Iranian classmates are feeling sad.\u201d Ghazal adds: \u201cWhen there is no way to contact my family, I have a hard time concentrating on my work. I can\u2019t even imagine how the students are focusing on their studies.\u201d<\/p>\n\t

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On Thursday morning, Erasmus University published a statement<\/a> about the developments in Iran. \u201cWe are concerned about academic freedom. The latest attacks by Iranian police on students and staff protesting at Tehran’s Sharif University have brought this matter even closer to home.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t<\/div>\n

No support<\/h2>

\u201cTwo years ago, I decided I did not want to go back to Iran\u201d, Parnian says. Just before that decision, the Iranian government shot down an airplane full of Iranian people, including family members of friends and a friend of Parnian. This event is still very emotional for her and made her not want to go back anymore. She explains that she feels a lack of support. \u201cYou don\u2019t want to go back, so you have to make a home for yourself, but what is a home if you don\u2019t have any support from the people here?\u201d, she asks while wiping her tears away.<\/p>\n

Danial came to Rotterdam a month ago, so he hadn\u2019t made a lot of acquaintances yet when the protests in Iran started. \u201cThere were days that I was on the verge of collapsing. My finger was going over and over on social media platforms so I could follow the news. I was going crazy\u201d, he says. Though some people didn\u2019t know about the situation, he appreciates any kind of supportive words he gets. \u201cIt helps a lot when someone says: \u2018Hey, if you want to talk, I\u2019m here for you.\u2019 It means that they are aware and understand the situation. During the days I couldn\u2019t contact my family and had no one to talk to, my mental health was not going well.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t

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Read more<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t