Politeia: Who Will Speak Up for Individual Rights in #IranElection?

As even the political show trial in Iran stands symbol for collectivist injustice, it must be said that the tone of some of the reactions to our withdrawal from actively supporting the Iran uprising, serves to confirm the correctness of this decision. As said, God's speed to the collectivists in establishing regime change in Iran, but we fail to see what good it would do to exchange an Islamofascist regime with a (crypto) Socialist one.

But should anyone actually be interested in freedom, this film explains the philosophy of liberty in the simplest possible terms.

Here's the translation of today's Afshin Ellian post in Elsevier:

Images of the Dead Keep Emerging

Over the last thirty years crimes have been committed in the name of religion and belief, so cry out the people of Iran.

Is that true? Is it already thirty years that crimes against humanity are being perpetrated? I have spoken at length about the mass executions of 1988, how the regime within the course of just a few weeks, killed thousands of political prisoners. Even today photos and films of murdered students keep emerging. I've seen photos of Hussein Akhtarzand's body. These images paint a picture of civilians being tortured to death. Akhtarzand was a bachelor from Isfahan, a hard working man of 33 who earned a living for his younger brothers and sisters.

- Caption: Afshin Ellian -

Neda
Information has emerged that journalist Ali Reza Eftakhari (working for newspaper Abrar Eqtesadi) was also tortured to death. Mir Hussein Mousavi says hundreds so far have been killed. But one victim has become the international face of Iran's green wave: Neda Agha Soltan. The 26 year old philosophy student was shot last month on Karegar Street in Tehran. On that day - in order to terrorize the people - those in power decided to set a few examples. To date we knew little of Neda.

This week her mother gave a short interview to Voice of America and Radio Farda. In both interviews she emphasized that Neda did not belong to any group in particular. She just wanted Iran to be free. Here follows a short translation of the interview on Radio Farda.

Neda's mother: "We attended rallies together. Recently she had taken up these activities. She liked going. That Saturday Neda asked me to go with her. I had other urgent matters to attend to. I asked her not to go, because things could turn nasty. But she insisted."

First she attended music lessons. Then, together with her music teacher, she went to the rally. It was a hot and busy day. They got out of the car.

Teargas
Neda's mother: "She left the music school at 16:00. We spoke on the phone twice. She told me rounds of teargas were being fired. Then she fled into an ally to get back to the car. She was only 26 steps away from it. (Could the mother be confusing the age of her daughter with the number of steps, the distance to the car, the distance between life and death? A.E.). Her uncle had also had contact with Neda just ten minutes before her death. She said they had been lighting cigarettes to diminish the effect of the teargas. That was the last time someone has spoken to her. I was called at around 18:00 by the teacher who told me she was hit by a bullet and was taken to Shariati hospital."

Radio Farda: What did you find at the hospital?

Neda's mother: "I had called Neda's brother and sister. They arrived before I did. Her teacher told me she was hit in the leg. There was blood all over his clothes. I asked them: tell me what happened to Neda.

They told me she was hit in the shoulders. I asked: not the heart? In truth, Neda was long gone. She had died on the way to hospital. She was brought there to finish some paper work. I asked to see her. I begged them to let me see my daughter. No, they said, she's having an operation. But shortly after they told Neda's sister and her husband that Neda had died.

I saw from their faces what had happened. Then I went blank."

Buried

On the orders of the security services Neda was quietly buried the next day at 15:00 on an allocated site on Behshte-Zahra. The YouTube video of her death was available on the Internet since Saturday evening. On Sunday morning many (like myself) checked to see if it wasn't a fake. That morning I posted my article to inform you of Neda's death. Geert Wilders MP immediately demanded an emergency debate in Parliament. In the afternoon CNN, and afterwards also the BBC, started broadcasting the footage. That Sunday afternoon she was reborn as Neda, the voice of freedom. Has Neda's mother seen the film? Did she see how her daughter died?

Neda's mom: "No, I'm not allowed to see it. I heard it is a moving video that has impressed many people. Her brother cries every time he sees it. But I haven't been able to see it yet; I haven't been able to see the last moments my child was alive."

In a conversation with Voice of America she thanks the world's citizens of Europe, America and Asia. She also thanked those politicians who declared solidarity with her daughter. Your Government is dead, our Neda (voice) is not, many in Tehran said during the commemorations.

Afshin Ellian (wiki in English)