Omid For Iran

August 25th was my second official day as an intern for the human rights organization "Omid for Iran."  My boss, Amir Soltani, is an exceptionally intelligent man who has written works regarding Iran, Islam, and the Middle East in publications such as the Boston Globe and the Harvard Divinity journal.  Needless to say, I'm very excited to begin working for his organization and helping out in any way I can, even if the help I offer is minimal.  Working for an organization that gives me an opportunity to support global unity, human rights, and international relations while uprooting torture, ignorance, and injustice on a daily basis is really exciting.

Right now my main purpose is to gather information for Amir regarding current events in Iran and to collect any documents we can use including human rights reports, newspaper articles, etcetera.  Amir uses these documents to flesh out a concrete plan of action for Omid and to create articles of his own which detail possible paths to unity between the United States and Iran.

Collecting this information is very much like preparing oneself to write a term paper or extensive essay.  In the two days I've worked I've only barely scratched the surface of the information available and already I feel far more knowledgeable than I was previously.  It is very rewarding to be able to learn something new every day at a job.

But with the rewards and blessings of knowledge always comes the knowledge of despicable acts- acts which are not only unjustifiable in any situation but also incompatible with assertions of basic human dignity.  As you may or may not know, the Islamic Republic of Iran is a signatory to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which essentially is the international equivalent to the United State's "Bill of Rights."  The ICCPR requires that signatories guarantee certain rights to their citizens and allow for international groups to observe elections, treatment of prisoners, and a variety of other governmental institutions.  In addition to Iran's ICCPR agreement, the Iranian constitution also guarantee rights such as freedom from discrimination, equality before the law, rights of human dignity, and freedom of assembly.  These institutions and guarantees of rights look great on paper, but as we have seen time and time again these "guarantees" are yet to be put into practice.

A recent story from the New York Times helps to put the egregious violations of the Iranian government into perspective.  The article describes a young boy of about 14 years of age who joined a group of friends in the recent "Green Revolution."  The boy wore green bands on his arms and shouted the slogans of the movement- asking only that the votes of his parents, friends, and fellow Iranians be legitimately counted in the elections.  He was one of the millions who yearned for solidarity in his homeland.  Sometime later, the boy was taken into custody with a number of his friends, "fellow conspirators" his captors called them.  While in prison the boy was beaten, tortured, psychologically demeaned, and sexually abused.  The boy said that he was raped multiple times and forced to have sex with his friends- all for practicing his "guaranteed" freedom of speech and assembly.  After his treatment in the prison the boy was forced to sign multiple documents "confessing" to his crimes against the nation and was forbidden to ever speak of the treatment he received.  He is now on suicide watch by his doctor, who confirmed to the New York Times that the injuries the boy still bears are consistent with his story.

I don't know specifically about how anyone who reads this feels about Islam, Arabs, Persians, or whatever, but I do know that anyone who reads this in good conscience can clearly see that this treatment is, quite plainly, wrong.  It is wrong because because the Iranian government is lying to its people.  It is wrong because this boy, and countless others, gathered in a peaceful fashion to protest a controversial election- two rights, that of assembly and speech, which are guaranteed in the Iranian constitution and in Iran's covenant to the world.  It is wrong because this boy, and countless others still, were tortured, demeaned, held incommunicado in secret prisons, beaten, raped, and forced to do unspeakable acts, all in the name of preserving the "Islamic" Republic, which in reality is in and of itself an affront to both the true meaning of "Islam" and "Republic."  

It is by this premise that I encourage you all to join me on this journey- not a journey of appeasement of this terrible government but rather a journey to encourage the Iranian Republic to legitimately pursue the guarantees of its constitution with its people.  This can be done through diplomatic pressure and the creation of international observation of Iran's policies and treatment of its citizens.  Pursuing liberty and justice in Iran will not only benefit Iranians, but it will also benefit the United States and the rest of the world by forming a legitimized nation of freed individuals equipped with liberty, civil and human rights, and above all common human dignity.  You can join in this journey by visiting www.omidforiran.org and reading the petition posted there.  Make it clear to Iran's leadership that their actions are intolerable, but that there is still time to make right their many wrongs and failings.  As Ghandi once said:

"We never wanted to bring you to your knees,

we only wanted to bring you to your senses."