The uprising in Iran has entered its third month, with no end in sight. At issue is democracy and human rights, not religious dogma . This uprising is for life, for democracy, for human rights, for gender equality and for equality of each individual Iranian, regardless of their ethnic or religious affiliation.
And it is a pointedly non-violent struggle. The Islamic Republic is trying every trick in the book to turn it into a deadly confrontation of the type they inflicted on Syria.
Will they be successful in transforming this peaceful democratic movement into a sectarian civil war? The Iranian diaspora - and the international community - can play a role in keeping it peaceful and democratic.
Four points need to be underlined:
1. This struggle is driven by women who are participating en masse and who have shown they are willing to sacrifice everything to achieve their humane goals.
2. This struggle is a direct result of the despotic regime’s own policies, which have resulted in deeply rooted hatred for the regime throughout the country. It is NOT foreign- instigated or led.While forces hostile to Iranianself-determination will try to take advantage of it, this uprising is defiantly non-violent.
3. This struggle encompasses and represents Iranians of all ethnic backgrounds and faithaffiliations, all keenly intent upon creating a united country in which all minorities can live inpeace and democracy together.
4. The Islamic Republic is trying to turn this into a civil war, especially in the ethnic minority areasof Baluchistan (south-eastern Iran) and Kurdistan (western Iran). In Kurdistan, the Islamic Republic has repeatedly bombarded bordering areas of Iraqi Kurdistan and has acted savagely in Iranian Kurdish towns and cities. The Kurdish response has been continuous, unswervingly and distinctly peaceful demonstrations against repression and for a democratic Iran.
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