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4 Telexes from TEHRAN to PARIS sent on March 9, 11, 12, and 13, 1979 by the "des femmes en mouvements" team (lire en français ici)
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Telex n°1 from Tehran, March 9, 1979
TELEX TO FRANCE (1)FRIDAY, MARCH 9 TEHRAN
FIRST TIME IRANIAN WOMEN CELEBRATE INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY.THEY EMERGE FROM THE TERROR OF THE SHAH'S REGIME. MANY OF THEM HAVE JUST RETURNED TO IRAN AND HUMAN RIGHTS GROUPS ARE NOW MAINLY CONCERNED WITH WOMEN.LAST WEEK, 200 WOMEN WERE GATHERING TO PREPARE FOR MARCH 8TH, AND MEN CAME IN SAYING, "WE'RE NOT GOING TO LET YOU TALK. WE'RE NOT GOING TO LET YOU HOLD YOUR MEETING. »BECAUSE THE ISLAMIC REVOLUTION FOR WOMEN HERE MEANS:- NO DIVORCE- NO ABORTION, NO CONTRACEPTION- PROHIBITION OF ADULTERY (8 DAYS AGO, A WOMAN PUBLICLY FLOGGED 80 TIMES)- IN QOM, THE SACRED CITY, STONES ARE THROWN AT THE UNVEILED WOMEN, AND THEY SAY, "EITHER THE VEIL ON THE HEAD OR A BLOW TO THE HEAD."- WOMEN ARE NO LONGER ALLOWED TO WORK CERTAIN JOBS (JUDGES, ETC.)- ALL LAWS THAT PROTECTED ISLAM FROM THE LITERAL APPLICATION OF ISLAM (E.G., THE QUR'AN SAYS THAT A HUSBAND CAN BEAT HIS WIFE) HAVE BEEN ABOLISHED.
MARCH 8 – DAY OF BIRTHA MEETING AT 5 P.M. TO LAUNCH THE IRANIAN WOMEN'S LIBERATION MOVEMENT: THE FIRST MAJOR MEETING DECIDED BY WOMEN, AWAY FROM ANY ORGANIZATION. BUT THE COMMUNIST PARTY ORGANIZES ANOTHER MEETING WHERE THE ROLE OF WOMEN IN ALL REVOLUTIONS IS BEING PRAISED, BUT NO WOMEN CAN SPEAK, INSTEAD THEY ARE TOLD: "STAND BY YOUR MEN."THE MAOISTS, ON THE OTHER HAND, TRY TO DISCOURAGE WOMEN FROM ORGANIZING AMONG THEMSELVES, THEY SABOTAGE THEIR EFFORTS AND OREFER TO SEEK SUPPORT FROM OTHER PARTIES AND ORGANIZATIONS.ON THAT DAY, KHOMEINI CLAIMED: "MUSLIM WOMEN ARE NOT DOLLS. THEY MUST GO OUT VEILED AND NOT WEAR MAKEUP. WOMEN HAVE TO CHANGE THEIR BEHAVIOUR IN OFFICES, THEY CAN WORK, BUT THEY HAVE TO WEAR THE ISLAMIC VEIL. AND ALSO: "CURTAINS, ARMCHAIRS AND OTHER SIGNS OF LUXURY MUST GO." HE ALSO SAYS THAT MARCH 8 IS A SLOGAN OF THE WEST.SO IMMEDIATELY AND VERY SPONTANEOUSLY, THE WOMEN WENT OUT INTO THE STREETS: 10,000, 20,000... THEY SHOUTED: - "MARCH 8 IS NEITHER AN EASTERN NOR A WESTERN DAY, IT IS A GLOBAL DAY"- "AT THE DAWN OF THE REVOLUTION, WOMEN ARE FORGOTTEN"- "WE ARE IRANIAN WOMEN, WE WILL NOT REMAIN IN CHAINS"- "WITHOUT WOMEN'S LIBERATION, LIBERATION IS MEANINGLESS"- "INDEPENDENCE, FREEDOM, EQUAL RIGHTS"- "INSULTING AND MOLESTING WOMEN IS A CONSPIRACY OF THE SAVAK"- "WOMEN ARE STRUGGLING, AND THEIR STRUGGLES ARE VICTORIOUS"- "WE DON'T WANT THE MANDATORY VEIL"- “DEATH TO THE ISLAMIC GOVERNMENT”THE POLICE FIRED SHOTS INTO THE AIR AND TRIED TO PUSH THEM BACK. THE WOMEN SHOUTED, "WE ARE NOT AFRAID."AND DESPITE THE SNOW, THE MUD, THE COLD, THEY SAT ON THE GROUND. THE KHOMEINISTS ATTACKED SOME WOMEN WITH STICKS. IN THE AFTERNOON, WE WITNESSED A COUNTERDEMONSTRATION OF ISLAMIC FANATICS, VERY THREATENING, SHOUTING "NOT WEARING THE VEIL IS COUNTER-REVOLUTIONARY"BUT THE FIRST MAJOR PROTEST OF IRANIAN WOMEN DID TAKE PLACE.AT 5 P.M., THE MEETING IS IN AN INDOOR STADIUM WITH ABOUT 3,000 WOMEN. TESTIMONIES OF SOLIDARITY FROM THE GUERRILLAS; FROM A HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT – WHO READS IT HERSELF – FROM A WOMAN IN A CHADOR (THERE ARE A FEW), WHOSE 4 CHILDREN WERE TORTURED AND KILLED BY THE SAVAK; FROM A PALESTINIAN ARAB WOMAN LIVING IN LEBANON WHO SAYS THAT THE OPPRESSION OF ARAB WOMEN IS THE SAME; FROM A GROUP OF WOMEN TEACHERS; FROM WOMEN FROM JAPAN, ITALY, JAPAN, CHINA, RUSSIA, CUBA, ENGLAND; WOMEN FROM THE MLF FROM PARIS; AND KATE MILLETT, WHOSE INTERVENTION IS MUCH APPRECIATED. AFTER EACH MESSAGE, THE WOMEN RESPOND IN CHORUS AND APPLAUD. THEY SAY THEY ARE LOOKING FOR AN OFFICE SPACE, AND PLAN TO PUBLISH A NEWSLETTER SOON. A POSTER AND TWO BROCHURES THEY JUST MADE ARE ON SALE. STRENGTH AND ENTHUSIASM OF THIS MEETING. DISCREET GUARD AT THE GATES (NO INCIDENTS). MEN, SYMPATHIZERS, ARE PRESENT. MARCH 8TH CONTINUES: MEETING FOR FRIDAY MORNING AT THE UNIVERSITY, AND ON SATURDAY FOR A SIT-IN: THE WOMEN WILL LEAVE THEIR WORKPLACE, THE HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS FROM THEIR SCHOOLS, AND WILL FORM A KIND OF BIG STAR THAT WILL MEET IN THE SQUARE OF THE MINISTRY OF JUSTICE.SINCE THEN, THE CUNNING KHOMEINI HAS DECLARED THAT "IT IS COUNTER-REVOLUTIONARY TO ATTACK WOMEN"; TODAY, HOWEVER, FANATICS ARE PREVENTING WOMEN FROM LEAVING THE UNIVERSITY TO DEMONSTRATE IN THE STREETS.AT THE UNIVERSITY, FLOATS AN AIR OF MAY-68, GROUPS OF WOMEN DISCUSS PASSIONATELY. IRANIAN WOMEN ARE ORGANIZING. THEY WILL ESTABLISH CONTACTS WITH THEIR SISTERS IN THE EAST. PRESENT HERE ARE WOMEN FROM THE MLF FROM PARIS, A CANADIAN WOMAN, KATE MILLETT, TO BRING THEIR STRENGTHS AND SOLIDARITY. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME IN A COUNTRY WHERE ISLAM DOMINATES, AND THEIR ARDOR IS GREAT. IT IS A PERIOD OF POLITICAL OPENNESS THAT ISLAM CAN BRING DOWN IN REACTION, BUT THAT WOMEN CAN TURN INTO A REVOLUTION.WHEN IRANIAN WOMEN BREAK THEIR CHAINS, IT IS WOMEN FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD WHO MOVE FORWARD WITH THEM.TONIGHT IN TEHRAN, WE ARE ALL LOOKING FORWARD TO TOMORROW PROTESTS, SATURDAY.LONG LIVE THE STRUGGLES OF IRANIAN WOMEN.LONG LIVE WOMEN'S DEMOCRACY.(END)
FIRST TIME IRANIAN WOMEN CELEBRATE INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY.THEY EMERGE FROM THE TERROR OF THE SHAH'S REGIME. MANY OF THEM HAVE JUST RETURNED TO IRAN AND HUMAN RIGHTS GROUPS ARE NOW MAINLY CONCERNED WITH WOMEN.LAST WEEK, 200 WOMEN WERE GATHERING TO PREPARE FOR MARCH 8TH, AND MEN CAME IN SAYING, "WE'RE NOT GOING TO LET YOU TALK. WE'RE NOT GOING TO LET YOU HOLD YOUR MEETING. »BECAUSE THE ISLAMIC REVOLUTION FOR WOMEN HERE MEANS:- NO DIVORCE- NO ABORTION, NO CONTRACEPTION- PROHIBITION OF ADULTERY (8 DAYS AGO, A WOMAN PUBLICLY FLOGGED 80 TIMES)- IN QOM, THE SACRED CITY, STONES ARE THROWN AT THE UNVEILED WOMEN, AND THEY SAY, "EITHER THE VEIL ON THE HEAD OR A BLOW TO THE HEAD."- WOMEN ARE NO LONGER ALLOWED TO WORK CERTAIN JOBS (JUDGES, ETC.)- ALL LAWS THAT PROTECTED ISLAM FROM THE LITERAL APPLICATION OF ISLAM (E.G., THE QUR'AN SAYS THAT A HUSBAND CAN BEAT HIS WIFE) HAVE BEEN ABOLISHED.
MARCH 8 – DAY OF BIRTHA MEETING AT 5 P.M. TO LAUNCH THE IRANIAN WOMEN'S LIBERATION MOVEMENT: THE FIRST MAJOR MEETING DECIDED BY WOMEN, AWAY FROM ANY ORGANIZATION. BUT THE COMMUNIST PARTY ORGANIZES ANOTHER MEETING WHERE THE ROLE OF WOMEN IN ALL REVOLUTIONS IS BEING PRAISED, BUT NO WOMEN CAN SPEAK, INSTEAD THEY ARE TOLD: "STAND BY YOUR MEN."THE MAOISTS, ON THE OTHER HAND, TRY TO DISCOURAGE WOMEN FROM ORGANIZING AMONG THEMSELVES, THEY SABOTAGE THEIR EFFORTS AND OREFER TO SEEK SUPPORT FROM OTHER PARTIES AND ORGANIZATIONS.ON THAT DAY, KHOMEINI CLAIMED: "MUSLIM WOMEN ARE NOT DOLLS. THEY MUST GO OUT VEILED AND NOT WEAR MAKEUP. WOMEN HAVE TO CHANGE THEIR BEHAVIOUR IN OFFICES, THEY CAN WORK, BUT THEY HAVE TO WEAR THE ISLAMIC VEIL. AND ALSO: "CURTAINS, ARMCHAIRS AND OTHER SIGNS OF LUXURY MUST GO." HE ALSO SAYS THAT MARCH 8 IS A SLOGAN OF THE WEST.SO IMMEDIATELY AND VERY SPONTANEOUSLY, THE WOMEN WENT OUT INTO THE STREETS: 10,000, 20,000... THEY SHOUTED: - "MARCH 8 IS NEITHER AN EASTERN NOR A WESTERN DAY, IT IS A GLOBAL DAY"- "AT THE DAWN OF THE REVOLUTION, WOMEN ARE FORGOTTEN"- "WE ARE IRANIAN WOMEN, WE WILL NOT REMAIN IN CHAINS"- "WITHOUT WOMEN'S LIBERATION, LIBERATION IS MEANINGLESS"- "INDEPENDENCE, FREEDOM, EQUAL RIGHTS"- "INSULTING AND MOLESTING WOMEN IS A CONSPIRACY OF THE SAVAK"- "WOMEN ARE STRUGGLING, AND THEIR STRUGGLES ARE VICTORIOUS"- "WE DON'T WANT THE MANDATORY VEIL"- “DEATH TO THE ISLAMIC GOVERNMENT”THE POLICE FIRED SHOTS INTO THE AIR AND TRIED TO PUSH THEM BACK. THE WOMEN SHOUTED, "WE ARE NOT AFRAID."AND DESPITE THE SNOW, THE MUD, THE COLD, THEY SAT ON THE GROUND. THE KHOMEINISTS ATTACKED SOME WOMEN WITH STICKS. IN THE AFTERNOON, WE WITNESSED A COUNTERDEMONSTRATION OF ISLAMIC FANATICS, VERY THREATENING, SHOUTING "NOT WEARING THE VEIL IS COUNTER-REVOLUTIONARY"BUT THE FIRST MAJOR PROTEST OF IRANIAN WOMEN DID TAKE PLACE.AT 5 P.M., THE MEETING IS IN AN INDOOR STADIUM WITH ABOUT 3,000 WOMEN. TESTIMONIES OF SOLIDARITY FROM THE GUERRILLAS; FROM A HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT – WHO READS IT HERSELF – FROM A WOMAN IN A CHADOR (THERE ARE A FEW), WHOSE 4 CHILDREN WERE TORTURED AND KILLED BY THE SAVAK; FROM A PALESTINIAN ARAB WOMAN LIVING IN LEBANON WHO SAYS THAT THE OPPRESSION OF ARAB WOMEN IS THE SAME; FROM A GROUP OF WOMEN TEACHERS; FROM WOMEN FROM JAPAN, ITALY, JAPAN, CHINA, RUSSIA, CUBA, ENGLAND; WOMEN FROM THE MLF FROM PARIS; AND KATE MILLETT, WHOSE INTERVENTION IS MUCH APPRECIATED. AFTER EACH MESSAGE, THE WOMEN RESPOND IN CHORUS AND APPLAUD. THEY SAY THEY ARE LOOKING FOR AN OFFICE SPACE, AND PLAN TO PUBLISH A NEWSLETTER SOON. A POSTER AND TWO BROCHURES THEY JUST MADE ARE ON SALE. STRENGTH AND ENTHUSIASM OF THIS MEETING. DISCREET GUARD AT THE GATES (NO INCIDENTS). MEN, SYMPATHIZERS, ARE PRESENT. MARCH 8TH CONTINUES: MEETING FOR FRIDAY MORNING AT THE UNIVERSITY, AND ON SATURDAY FOR A SIT-IN: THE WOMEN WILL LEAVE THEIR WORKPLACE, THE HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS FROM THEIR SCHOOLS, AND WILL FORM A KIND OF BIG STAR THAT WILL MEET IN THE SQUARE OF THE MINISTRY OF JUSTICE.SINCE THEN, THE CUNNING KHOMEINI HAS DECLARED THAT "IT IS COUNTER-REVOLUTIONARY TO ATTACK WOMEN"; TODAY, HOWEVER, FANATICS ARE PREVENTING WOMEN FROM LEAVING THE UNIVERSITY TO DEMONSTRATE IN THE STREETS.AT THE UNIVERSITY, FLOATS AN AIR OF MAY-68, GROUPS OF WOMEN DISCUSS PASSIONATELY. IRANIAN WOMEN ARE ORGANIZING. THEY WILL ESTABLISH CONTACTS WITH THEIR SISTERS IN THE EAST. PRESENT HERE ARE WOMEN FROM THE MLF FROM PARIS, A CANADIAN WOMAN, KATE MILLETT, TO BRING THEIR STRENGTHS AND SOLIDARITY. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME IN A COUNTRY WHERE ISLAM DOMINATES, AND THEIR ARDOR IS GREAT. IT IS A PERIOD OF POLITICAL OPENNESS THAT ISLAM CAN BRING DOWN IN REACTION, BUT THAT WOMEN CAN TURN INTO A REVOLUTION.WHEN IRANIAN WOMEN BREAK THEIR CHAINS, IT IS WOMEN FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD WHO MOVE FORWARD WITH THEM.TONIGHT IN TEHRAN, WE ARE ALL LOOKING FORWARD TO TOMORROW PROTESTS, SATURDAY.LONG LIVE THE STRUGGLES OF IRANIAN WOMEN.LONG LIVE WOMEN'S DEMOCRACY.(END)
Telex n°2 from TEHRAN to PARIS, sent on March 11, 1979
"Freedom is not eastern nor western, it's international"
TELEX TO FRANCE (2)SATURDAY, MARCH 10 TEHRAN
IN TEHRAN, IRANIAN WOMEN CONTINUE THEIR STRUGGLES. WE HAVE STRONG FEELINGS, A GREAT EMOTION IN THE FACE OF THIS GROWING MOVEMENT. ON SATURDAY, IRANIAN WOMEN STAGED A SIT-IN IN FRONT OF THE MINISTRY OF JUSTICE. 5000 CHEERFUL, DETERMINED WOMEN, ELBOW TO ELBOW, SHOULDER TO SHOULDER, HOLDING SIGNS, ALMOST SINGING THEIR SLOGANS, IN A VERY RHYTHMIC WAY. LEAFLETS ARE CIRCULATING, BUT THERE ARE NEVER ENOUGH OF THEM.FIVE WOMEN TOOK TURNS ON THE PODIUM. A FEMALE SECRETARY, A NURSE, A TEACHER, A WOMAN WHO WORKS ON TV (WHERE NOW WOMEN CAN ONLY WORK IN CHILDREN'S PROGRAMS, AS LONG AS WE DON'T SEE THEM ON SCREEN.)ONE WOMAN SAID, "I DESCEND FROM THE (RELIGIOUS) IMAMS, BUT IF THEY CONTINUE TO ATTACK WOMEN, I WILL RENOUNCE ISLAM."A MARCH WAS PLANNED FOR FRIDAY, MARCH 16. ONE WOMAN SAYS IT'S TOO LATE, THAT BY THEN, FAR TOO MUCH CAN HAPPEN. THAT THEY HAVE TO DO IT ON MONDAY.THEY THEREFORE DECIDED TO MARCH ON MONDAY, MARCH 12, AT 9 A.M., FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF TEHRAN TO FREEDOM SQUARE.
SUNDAY 11THEY PUT UP POSTERS ALL OVER THE CITY. DISTRIBUTE LEAFLETS TO ANNOUNCE THE DEMONSTRATION. MANY WERE HARASSED: POSTERS TAKEN OFF IMMEDIATELY, LEAFLETS TORN UP. SOME WOMEN WERE ARRESTED BY MEMBERS OF KHOMEINI COMMITTEES, INTERROGATED AND RELEASED AFTER A FEW HOURS.AS A RESULT, SOME IRANIAN WOMEN WERE UNABLE TO ATTEND THE PRESS CONFERENCE. SOME OF THEM WENT TO A MEETING TODAY WITH MEMBERS OF THE MINISTRY OF JUSTICE, AN APPOINTMENT OBTAINED DURING YESTERDAY'S SIT-IN IN FRONT OF THE MINISTRY.
THIS EVENING, A MEMBER OF THE GOVERNMENT ANNOUNCED THE REPEAL OF THE OBLIGATION TO WEAR THE CHADOR IN THE MINISTRIES.
WOMEN HAVE ASKED THE DEFENCE GOVERNMENT (FOR PERMISSION) FOR MONDAY'S DEMONSTRATION. CORDONS OF ARMED KHOMEINI MILITIAMEN ARE A NECESSITY.
A WOMAN FROM THE WOMEN'S RIGHTS COMMITTEE (MADE UP OF WOMEN ONLY, MOSTLY HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS) TOLD US WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM AT SATURDAY'S DEMONSTRATION: 500 OF THEM LEFT FROM THEIR HIGH SCHOOLS TO GO TO THE UNIVERSITY. THERE WERE WOMEN (NURSES, WOMEN WORKING IN MINISTRIES) WITH WHOM THEY CONTINUED TO WALK. WHEN THEY LEFT THE UNIVERSITY, THERE WERE 8 TO 10,000 PEOPLE. THEY TOOK SHAH REZA AVENUE. ON THE BANNERS: "FREE NURSERIES FOR ALL. EQUAL PAY, EQUAL WORK. FOR AN INDEPENDENT AND MILITANT WOMEN'S ORGANIZATION"AT THE HAFEZ BRIDGE, THERE WERE 3 TO 400 EXTREMIST CLERICS WHO SAID: "WE ARE SUPPORTERS OF BAKHTIAR, OF THE SHAH"; "WE DON'T WANT WOMEN TO TAKE TO THE STREETS NAKED." THEY WERE SHOUTING PROFANITY, OBSCENITIES, "FUCK." SUDDENLY THERE WAS A VIOLENT FIGHT; THEY TORE DOWN ALL THE BANNERS. WE WERE 10,000 WOMEN," SHE SAID, WHEN AT THE HAFEZ BRIDGE, A GROUP OF EXTREMIST CLERICS ATTACKED THEM, SHOUTING, "THE FIGHT WAS VIOLENT, THEY WERE BEATEN, THEY TORE DOWN THEIR BANNERS, AND THE DEMONSTRATION WAS DISPERSED." THERE WERE ALSO MEN WHO DEFENDED US AGAINST RELIGIOUS EXTREMISTS. THEY STOOD GUARD.WOMEN SAT IN THE STREET AND SHOUTED, "FREEDOM IS NEITHER EASTERN NOR WESTERN BUT INTERNATIONAL." "TO STAND UP FOR YOUR RIGHTS, WOMEN ON THE STREETS, JOIN US."
LEAFLET FROM THE COMMITTEE FOR THE DEFENSE OF WOMEN'S RIGHTS TO SISTER ACTIVISTS AND BROTHER ACTIVISTS: ON THURSDAY, MARCH 8, TENS OF THOUSANDS OF IRANIAN WOMEN ACTIVISTS STAGED A LARGE DEMONSTRATION TO DEFEND THEMSELVES FROM THE WEEK'S ATTACKS ON WOMEN'S PRIMARY RIGHTS; DURING THESE DEMONSTRATIONS AND THE VARIOUS MEETINGS, THEY HAVE MADE THEIR VOICES RESOUND ALL OVER THE WORLD THAT THEY WANT EQUALITY AND FREEDOM.THE SLOGAN "FREEDOM" AND "EQUALITY" HAS FOR THE FIRST TIME SHAKEN THE STREETS OF TEHRAN. THAT DAY WAS A HISTORIC DAY AND THE BEGINNING OF THE IRANIAN WOMEN'S MOVEMENT ON THE PATH TO FREEDOM AND EQUALITY.WHAT TAKES US TO THE STREETS IS OUR OWN RIGHT TO SAY HOW WE CAN DRESS. AND NEITHER THE STATE, NOR THE RELIGIOUS AUTHORITIES, NOR ANYONE ELSE CAN DECIDE FOR US.THE FORCED REMOVAL OF THE VEIL BY REZA SHAH AT GUN POINT WAS UNACCEPTABLE. IMPOSING THE VEIL ON US AGAIN, IS UNACCEPTABLE.BUT THE VEIL IS NOT THE ONLY PROBLEM. IN THE LAST FEW WEEKS, INSTEAD OF ADVANCING THE REVOLUTION AND SATISFYING THE DEMANDS OF THE WORKING PEOPLES, THERE HAS BEEN A SYSTEMATIC ATTACK ON OUR RIGHTS. WE HAVE HEARD THAT WOMEN ARE WEAK AND CANNOT BE JUDGES. INSTEAD, THERE CAME ONLY ATTACKS ON WOMEN'S RIGHTS.WHILE THE DECISION TO HAVE A CHILD OR NOT IS UP TO WOMEN, IT IS THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH THAT DECIDES WHETHER IT IS IN LINE WITH ISLAM OR NOT. PROTESTING AGAINST WHAT IS IMPOSED ON US IS HOW OUR MOVEMENT BEGINS.A YEAR OF MASS MOVEMENT AGAINST OUR DICTATORSHIP HAS TAUGHT US SOMETHING: HOW TO ORGANIZE, TO BE UNITED, TO FIGHT. WE DIDN'T MAKE THE REVOLUTION SO THAT THEY WOULD DECIDE FOR US. WE MADE THIS REVOLUTION TO CHANGE THE STRUCTURES OF THIS SOCIETY.WE ARE FIGHTING FOR EQUAL PAY FOR EQUAL WORK, FOR FREE CHILDCARE FOR ALL. AND OTHER PUBLIC SERVICES THAT FREE WOMEN FROM HOUSEWORK.WE WANT THE REPEAL OF ALL SEXIST LAWS, ALL LAWS THAT ARE A BARRIER TO WOMEN'S PARTICIPATION IN ALL POLITICAL MOVEMENTS, GOVERNMENTS, SOCIAL MOVEMENTS.WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE IS TO CONTINUE TO HOLD MEETINGS IN ALL CORNERS OF THE CITY AND IRAN. LOCAL WOMEN'S RIGHTS COMMITTEES MUST BE ORGANIZED EVERYWHERE IN HIGH SCHOOLS, UNIVERSITIES, PUBLIC SERVICES, HOSPITALS, FACTORIES, VILLAGES.LIBERTY, EQUALITY, WHICH IS OUR RIGHT.STAYING IN THE HOUSE IS HUMILIATING FOR US.WOMEN'S FREEDOM, FREEDOM OF SOCIETY.(END OF LEAFLET)
IN TEHRAN, IRANIAN WOMEN CONTINUE THEIR STRUGGLES. WE HAVE STRONG FEELINGS, A GREAT EMOTION IN THE FACE OF THIS GROWING MOVEMENT. ON SATURDAY, IRANIAN WOMEN STAGED A SIT-IN IN FRONT OF THE MINISTRY OF JUSTICE. 5000 CHEERFUL, DETERMINED WOMEN, ELBOW TO ELBOW, SHOULDER TO SHOULDER, HOLDING SIGNS, ALMOST SINGING THEIR SLOGANS, IN A VERY RHYTHMIC WAY. LEAFLETS ARE CIRCULATING, BUT THERE ARE NEVER ENOUGH OF THEM.FIVE WOMEN TOOK TURNS ON THE PODIUM. A FEMALE SECRETARY, A NURSE, A TEACHER, A WOMAN WHO WORKS ON TV (WHERE NOW WOMEN CAN ONLY WORK IN CHILDREN'S PROGRAMS, AS LONG AS WE DON'T SEE THEM ON SCREEN.)ONE WOMAN SAID, "I DESCEND FROM THE (RELIGIOUS) IMAMS, BUT IF THEY CONTINUE TO ATTACK WOMEN, I WILL RENOUNCE ISLAM."A MARCH WAS PLANNED FOR FRIDAY, MARCH 16. ONE WOMAN SAYS IT'S TOO LATE, THAT BY THEN, FAR TOO MUCH CAN HAPPEN. THAT THEY HAVE TO DO IT ON MONDAY.THEY THEREFORE DECIDED TO MARCH ON MONDAY, MARCH 12, AT 9 A.M., FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF TEHRAN TO FREEDOM SQUARE.
SUNDAY 11THEY PUT UP POSTERS ALL OVER THE CITY. DISTRIBUTE LEAFLETS TO ANNOUNCE THE DEMONSTRATION. MANY WERE HARASSED: POSTERS TAKEN OFF IMMEDIATELY, LEAFLETS TORN UP. SOME WOMEN WERE ARRESTED BY MEMBERS OF KHOMEINI COMMITTEES, INTERROGATED AND RELEASED AFTER A FEW HOURS.AS A RESULT, SOME IRANIAN WOMEN WERE UNABLE TO ATTEND THE PRESS CONFERENCE. SOME OF THEM WENT TO A MEETING TODAY WITH MEMBERS OF THE MINISTRY OF JUSTICE, AN APPOINTMENT OBTAINED DURING YESTERDAY'S SIT-IN IN FRONT OF THE MINISTRY.
THIS EVENING, A MEMBER OF THE GOVERNMENT ANNOUNCED THE REPEAL OF THE OBLIGATION TO WEAR THE CHADOR IN THE MINISTRIES.
WOMEN HAVE ASKED THE DEFENCE GOVERNMENT (FOR PERMISSION) FOR MONDAY'S DEMONSTRATION. CORDONS OF ARMED KHOMEINI MILITIAMEN ARE A NECESSITY.
A WOMAN FROM THE WOMEN'S RIGHTS COMMITTEE (MADE UP OF WOMEN ONLY, MOSTLY HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS) TOLD US WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM AT SATURDAY'S DEMONSTRATION: 500 OF THEM LEFT FROM THEIR HIGH SCHOOLS TO GO TO THE UNIVERSITY. THERE WERE WOMEN (NURSES, WOMEN WORKING IN MINISTRIES) WITH WHOM THEY CONTINUED TO WALK. WHEN THEY LEFT THE UNIVERSITY, THERE WERE 8 TO 10,000 PEOPLE. THEY TOOK SHAH REZA AVENUE. ON THE BANNERS: "FREE NURSERIES FOR ALL. EQUAL PAY, EQUAL WORK. FOR AN INDEPENDENT AND MILITANT WOMEN'S ORGANIZATION"AT THE HAFEZ BRIDGE, THERE WERE 3 TO 400 EXTREMIST CLERICS WHO SAID: "WE ARE SUPPORTERS OF BAKHTIAR, OF THE SHAH"; "WE DON'T WANT WOMEN TO TAKE TO THE STREETS NAKED." THEY WERE SHOUTING PROFANITY, OBSCENITIES, "FUCK." SUDDENLY THERE WAS A VIOLENT FIGHT; THEY TORE DOWN ALL THE BANNERS. WE WERE 10,000 WOMEN," SHE SAID, WHEN AT THE HAFEZ BRIDGE, A GROUP OF EXTREMIST CLERICS ATTACKED THEM, SHOUTING, "THE FIGHT WAS VIOLENT, THEY WERE BEATEN, THEY TORE DOWN THEIR BANNERS, AND THE DEMONSTRATION WAS DISPERSED." THERE WERE ALSO MEN WHO DEFENDED US AGAINST RELIGIOUS EXTREMISTS. THEY STOOD GUARD.WOMEN SAT IN THE STREET AND SHOUTED, "FREEDOM IS NEITHER EASTERN NOR WESTERN BUT INTERNATIONAL." "TO STAND UP FOR YOUR RIGHTS, WOMEN ON THE STREETS, JOIN US."
LEAFLET FROM THE COMMITTEE FOR THE DEFENSE OF WOMEN'S RIGHTS TO SISTER ACTIVISTS AND BROTHER ACTIVISTS: ON THURSDAY, MARCH 8, TENS OF THOUSANDS OF IRANIAN WOMEN ACTIVISTS STAGED A LARGE DEMONSTRATION TO DEFEND THEMSELVES FROM THE WEEK'S ATTACKS ON WOMEN'S PRIMARY RIGHTS; DURING THESE DEMONSTRATIONS AND THE VARIOUS MEETINGS, THEY HAVE MADE THEIR VOICES RESOUND ALL OVER THE WORLD THAT THEY WANT EQUALITY AND FREEDOM.THE SLOGAN "FREEDOM" AND "EQUALITY" HAS FOR THE FIRST TIME SHAKEN THE STREETS OF TEHRAN. THAT DAY WAS A HISTORIC DAY AND THE BEGINNING OF THE IRANIAN WOMEN'S MOVEMENT ON THE PATH TO FREEDOM AND EQUALITY.WHAT TAKES US TO THE STREETS IS OUR OWN RIGHT TO SAY HOW WE CAN DRESS. AND NEITHER THE STATE, NOR THE RELIGIOUS AUTHORITIES, NOR ANYONE ELSE CAN DECIDE FOR US.THE FORCED REMOVAL OF THE VEIL BY REZA SHAH AT GUN POINT WAS UNACCEPTABLE. IMPOSING THE VEIL ON US AGAIN, IS UNACCEPTABLE.BUT THE VEIL IS NOT THE ONLY PROBLEM. IN THE LAST FEW WEEKS, INSTEAD OF ADVANCING THE REVOLUTION AND SATISFYING THE DEMANDS OF THE WORKING PEOPLES, THERE HAS BEEN A SYSTEMATIC ATTACK ON OUR RIGHTS. WE HAVE HEARD THAT WOMEN ARE WEAK AND CANNOT BE JUDGES. INSTEAD, THERE CAME ONLY ATTACKS ON WOMEN'S RIGHTS.WHILE THE DECISION TO HAVE A CHILD OR NOT IS UP TO WOMEN, IT IS THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH THAT DECIDES WHETHER IT IS IN LINE WITH ISLAM OR NOT. PROTESTING AGAINST WHAT IS IMPOSED ON US IS HOW OUR MOVEMENT BEGINS.A YEAR OF MASS MOVEMENT AGAINST OUR DICTATORSHIP HAS TAUGHT US SOMETHING: HOW TO ORGANIZE, TO BE UNITED, TO FIGHT. WE DIDN'T MAKE THE REVOLUTION SO THAT THEY WOULD DECIDE FOR US. WE MADE THIS REVOLUTION TO CHANGE THE STRUCTURES OF THIS SOCIETY.WE ARE FIGHTING FOR EQUAL PAY FOR EQUAL WORK, FOR FREE CHILDCARE FOR ALL. AND OTHER PUBLIC SERVICES THAT FREE WOMEN FROM HOUSEWORK.WE WANT THE REPEAL OF ALL SEXIST LAWS, ALL LAWS THAT ARE A BARRIER TO WOMEN'S PARTICIPATION IN ALL POLITICAL MOVEMENTS, GOVERNMENTS, SOCIAL MOVEMENTS.WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE IS TO CONTINUE TO HOLD MEETINGS IN ALL CORNERS OF THE CITY AND IRAN. LOCAL WOMEN'S RIGHTS COMMITTEES MUST BE ORGANIZED EVERYWHERE IN HIGH SCHOOLS, UNIVERSITIES, PUBLIC SERVICES, HOSPITALS, FACTORIES, VILLAGES.LIBERTY, EQUALITY, WHICH IS OUR RIGHT.STAYING IN THE HOUSE IS HUMILIATING FOR US.WOMEN'S FREEDOM, FREEDOM OF SOCIETY.(END OF LEAFLET)
It's the first time in Iran we hear, "Down with Khomeini, he is a dictator" and women are saying so.
TELEX N°2 TO FRANCE (2nd part)
PRESS CONFERENCE – SUNDAY, MARCH 11
KATE MILLETT, US AND ONLY ONE IRANIAN WOMAN, KATEH VAFADARI OF THE COMMITTEE FOR THE DEFENSE OF WOMEN'S RIGHTS.THE AGGRESSIVE AMERICAN JOURNALISTS WILL TRY TO GET KATEH AND KATE TO SAY THAT THE AYATOLLAH IS A "MALE CHAUVINIST", THAT WOMEN HAD MORE FREEDOM UNDER THE SHAH, WHICH IS USUAL.REPORTER: IS THE AYATOLLAH AN OBSTACLE TO WOMEN'S LIBERATION?KATEH: I DON'T SEE ANYTHING THAT CAN BE AN OBSTACLE IF WOMEN STAND UP AND FIGHT, AND THAT'S WHAT'S HAPPENING TODAY.
JOURNALISTS PLEAD FOR THE SHAH.KATEH: WE DIDN'T HAVE ANYTHING UNDER THE OLD REGIME. WE DIDN'T HAVE THE FREEDOM TO COME HERE AND DO A PRESS CONFERENCE. WE HAD NO RIGHTS.
SYLVINA: IT WAS VIOLENT TO FORCE WOMEN TO REVEAL THEMSELVES, AND TO FOLLOW WESTERN, AMERICAN FASHION.
KATEH: WE HAD 4,000 FEMALE POLITICAL PRISONERS UNDER THE SHAH, WHICH IS NOT... TODAY, WE ARE STARTING FROM SCRATCH. THE SHAH'S FATHER FORCED THE WOMEN TO TAKE OFF THEIR CHADOR. IT MEANS THAT ANYONE WHO DIDN'T WEAR A CHADOR WAS BEATEN BY THE POLICE... THE LAW OF DIVORCE UNDER THE SHAH WAS NOTHING (THE MAN HAD TO HAVE THE CONSENT OF THE WOMAN). THE MAN HAD ONLY TO THREATEN HIS WIFE WITH A DAGGER, SAYING, "I WANT TO MARRY ANOTHER WOMAN."
KHOMEINI'S GOVERNMENT HAS NOT YET MADE LAWS FOR WOMEN. THAT'S WHY WE'RE FIGHTING. THE IRANIAN WOMEN WHO MADE THE REVOLUTION DO NOT EXPECT LAWS FROM ANYONE. WE PROTEST TO SAY WHAT WE WANT.IF WOMEN DON'T WANT TO WEAR THE CHADOR, NO ONE WILL BE ABLE TO FORCE THEM TO...THE LAWS IN THIS COUNTRY WERE ALL LAWS OF AN ISLAMIC GOVERNMENT UNDER THE SHAH.
KATE MILLETT'S INTERVENTION:THE WOMEN'S MOVEMENT IS INTERNATIONAL... AND LIKE MANY OF YOU, YOU'RE ASKING WHY I'M HERE. I WORKED AGAINST THE SHAH FOR SEVERAL YEARS IN THE U.S.A. WITH THE CAIFI (COMMITTEE FOR ARTISTIC AND INTELLECTUAL FREEDOM IN IRAN). WE HAVE HELPED TO CHANGE THE PUBLIC IMAGE OF THE SHAH IN THE US, WHICH WAS VERY GOOD A FEW YEARS AGO... WE TALKED A LOT ABOUT TORTURE.I NEVER THOUGHT I'D COME TO IRAN UNTIL THAT WONDERFUL DAY WHEN THE SHAH LEFT... THIS COMMITTEE, WHICH HAS THEREFORE DEALT WITH HUMAN RIGHTS, HAS NOW BEGUN TO DEAL WITH WOMEN'S RIGHTS. I WAS INVITED TO SPEAK AT THE MEETING ON MARCH 8, INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY.US (DES FEMMES EN MOUVEMENTS): TODAY, IRANIAN WOMEN ARE SHAKING THE MONOTHEISTIC EDIFICE OF EAST AND WEST... MONOTHEISM IS THE GREATEST HENCHMAN OF PATRIARCHY. IN THE WEST, THE POPE WANTS TO BAN ABORTION. AND DURING THE LAST WAR HE HAD SIGNED AN ALLIANCE WITH HITLER.
WE CAME TO IRAN TO BRING OUR STRENGTH TO THE WOMEN HERE AND TO GIVE US STRENGTH. WHEN IRANIAN WOMEN BREAK THEIR CHAINS, WOMEN FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD MOVE FORWARD WITH THEM.
IN FRANCE, WITH IRANIAN WOMEN ON THE GROUND WE ORGANIZE A SOLIDARITY, WOMEN IN ITALY AND MANY COUNTRIES TOO.WE DISTRIBUTED ANTOINETTE'S MESSAGE FOR MARCH 8 TO JOURNALISTS.
IMPORTANCE OF THE PRESS CONFERENCE: ON THE EVE OF THE VERY LARGE DEMONSTRATION, THAT THE FOREIGN PRESS TALKS ABOUT THE WOMEN AND COMES TO THE DEMONSTRATION, ALSO FORCING THE LOCAL PRESS TO FOLLOW IT.
IN IRAN, IT IS THE FIRST TIME THAT WE HEAR IN THE STREET: "DOWN WITH KHOMEINI, AND IT IS WOMEN WHO SAY SO."
TODAY, KHOMEINI HAS HAD ANOTHER AYATOLLAH, 'TALEGHANI', SPEAK ON RADIO AND TELEVISION, WHO IS REPUTED TO BE A LITTLE MORE LEFT-WING (HE SPOKE IN IRANIAN AND ARABIC, THE LANGUAGE OF THE CLERICS). A SWERVING, "RECUPERATIVE" DISCOURSE, EXPLAINING THAT IT IS NOT A QUESTION OF PREVENTING WOMEN FROM BEING INTELLECTUALS, BUT SAYING THAT THEY ARE ON A PATH WHERE THEY RISK BECOMING DOLLS. "WE HAVE TO GO BACK TO THE ORIGINS"; "COVERING ONESELF IS AN EASTERN CUSTOM. EVEN INDIRA GANDHI COVERS HERSELF. OF COURSE, THE CHADOR IS NOT MANDATORY EVERYWHERE. IT'S BETTER TO AT LEAST KEEP THE SCARF ON. WOMEN MUST ACCEPT KHOMEINI'S ADVICE AS THAT OF A DEVOTED FATHER. »
THE AYATOLLAHS SAY, "COVER YOURSELVES."COVERING UP FOR WOMEN MEANS: 1/ STAYING AT HOME – A FORM OF PERMANENT CURFEW FOR WOMEN (TO PREVENT FIGHTING, THE SHAH'S DICTATORSHIP DECREED CURFEWS, ON THE DAY OF THE INSURRECTION PEOPLE ALL CAME OUT BY THE THOUSANDS)2/ WEAR THE CHADOR: LONG BLACK CLOTH THAT COVERS FROM HEAD TO TOE, SHOULD NOT LET THE HAIR SHOW AT ALL AND SHOULD BE BROUGHT BACK TO THE MOUTH. IT'S VERY HEAVY (IT HURTS MY HEAD).WE SEE WOMEN WITH CHILDREN IN THEIR ARMS, WHO HOLD IT PINCHED IN THEIR MOUTH BECAUSE HE SLIPS ALL THE TIME. IT PREVENTS ANY MOVEMENT. IT PREVENTS YOU FROM WORKING, RUNNING, TALKING. IT'S HEAVY AND PULLS EVERYTHING DOWN. IT IS A GUARANTEE OF "DIGNITY, PURITY, HONESTY."IT'S REMINISCENT OF CHINESE WOMEN'S BANDAGED FEET. 3/ THE HEADSCARF: A LIGHTER VERSION TIED AROUND THE NECK, WHICH HIDES THE HAIR (HAIR IS TABOO AS IN CATHOLIC CHURCHES).ONE OF US WAS TOLD BY AN IRANIAN THAT HAIR IN THE OPEN BECOMES RADIOACTIVE.A FEMALE DIPLOMAT WHO WAS DEMONSTRATING THIS SUNDAY MORNING WITH A HUNDRED OTHER WOMEN IN FRONT OF THE MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS TELLS US OF THE CHADOR:"THE MUSLIM RELIGION HAS NEVER FORCED WOMEN TO WEAR THE VEIL, THIS HAS BEEN A CREATION FOR 400 YEARS, SINCE THE SAFRIT DYNASTY, THAT HAS BEEN IMPOSED ON US. I'VE NEVER WORN A CHADOR OR A VEIL BUT I WEAR THIS SCARF ON PURPOSE TO PROVE TO MEN THAT THAT'S NOT THE POINT AT ALL. I DON'T CARE ABOUT THE CLOTHES I WEAR. WHAT WE WANT IS WOMEN'S RIGHTS. »ASKING WOMEN TO WORK IN CHADORS IS LIKE SENDING THEM HOME. (IN TEHRAN, 50 PERCENT OF WOMEN WORK OUTSIDE THEIR HOME.)FOR EXAMPLE, HOW CAN YOU BE A NURSE IN A CHADOR?EXCEPTION FOR FLIGHT ATTENDANTS: ON MARCH 10, ACCORDING TO AN INSTRUCTION SENT TO THE MANAGEMENT OF IRAN AIR BY THE CENTRAL COMMITTEE OF THE ISLAMIC REVOLUTION, FLIGHT ATTENDANTS ARE NOT BOUND BY THE GUIDELINES CONCERNING THE WEARING OF THE VEIL FOR CUSTOMER REASONS. DIGNITY. FREE JOB. FREE SHOPPING.
MASKS: VEIL, CURTAINS, MAKE-UP.A WOMAN WHO WORKS AT AIR FRANCE: THIS MORNING, A COLLEAGUE ASKED ME: "WHERE IS YOUR SCARF?" I SAY, "I DON'T BELIEVE IN THAT."THEN HE ACCUSED ME OF BEING A ROYALIST. I SAID, "LOOK, THEY'RE TWO DIFFERENT THINGS. IF I DON'T BELIEVE IN THE VEIL, IT DOESN'T MEAN I WANT THE OLD REGIME OF THE SHAH. »
THEY ALSO TRY OTHER WAYS: "YOU DON'T HAVE TO WEAR MAKEUP; YOU DON'T HAVE TO WEAR NICE CLOTHES."THIS MORNING THEY SAID TO ME, "IF YOU BELIEVE IN WORKERS, YOU MUST BE LIKE THEM. I SAID, "I AGREE, THEY CAN WEAR MAKEUP LIKE ME, WHY NOT?" THEY SAY, "THE SHAH HAS MADE DOLLS OUT OF ALL WOMEN."IT'S CRAZY, RIDICULOUS.WE DON'T WANT TO GO BACK. NEVER.(END)
KATE MILLETT, US AND ONLY ONE IRANIAN WOMAN, KATEH VAFADARI OF THE COMMITTEE FOR THE DEFENSE OF WOMEN'S RIGHTS.THE AGGRESSIVE AMERICAN JOURNALISTS WILL TRY TO GET KATEH AND KATE TO SAY THAT THE AYATOLLAH IS A "MALE CHAUVINIST", THAT WOMEN HAD MORE FREEDOM UNDER THE SHAH, WHICH IS USUAL.REPORTER: IS THE AYATOLLAH AN OBSTACLE TO WOMEN'S LIBERATION?KATEH: I DON'T SEE ANYTHING THAT CAN BE AN OBSTACLE IF WOMEN STAND UP AND FIGHT, AND THAT'S WHAT'S HAPPENING TODAY.
JOURNALISTS PLEAD FOR THE SHAH.KATEH: WE DIDN'T HAVE ANYTHING UNDER THE OLD REGIME. WE DIDN'T HAVE THE FREEDOM TO COME HERE AND DO A PRESS CONFERENCE. WE HAD NO RIGHTS.
SYLVINA: IT WAS VIOLENT TO FORCE WOMEN TO REVEAL THEMSELVES, AND TO FOLLOW WESTERN, AMERICAN FASHION.
KATEH: WE HAD 4,000 FEMALE POLITICAL PRISONERS UNDER THE SHAH, WHICH IS NOT... TODAY, WE ARE STARTING FROM SCRATCH. THE SHAH'S FATHER FORCED THE WOMEN TO TAKE OFF THEIR CHADOR. IT MEANS THAT ANYONE WHO DIDN'T WEAR A CHADOR WAS BEATEN BY THE POLICE... THE LAW OF DIVORCE UNDER THE SHAH WAS NOTHING (THE MAN HAD TO HAVE THE CONSENT OF THE WOMAN). THE MAN HAD ONLY TO THREATEN HIS WIFE WITH A DAGGER, SAYING, "I WANT TO MARRY ANOTHER WOMAN."
KHOMEINI'S GOVERNMENT HAS NOT YET MADE LAWS FOR WOMEN. THAT'S WHY WE'RE FIGHTING. THE IRANIAN WOMEN WHO MADE THE REVOLUTION DO NOT EXPECT LAWS FROM ANYONE. WE PROTEST TO SAY WHAT WE WANT.IF WOMEN DON'T WANT TO WEAR THE CHADOR, NO ONE WILL BE ABLE TO FORCE THEM TO...THE LAWS IN THIS COUNTRY WERE ALL LAWS OF AN ISLAMIC GOVERNMENT UNDER THE SHAH.
KATE MILLETT'S INTERVENTION:THE WOMEN'S MOVEMENT IS INTERNATIONAL... AND LIKE MANY OF YOU, YOU'RE ASKING WHY I'M HERE. I WORKED AGAINST THE SHAH FOR SEVERAL YEARS IN THE U.S.A. WITH THE CAIFI (COMMITTEE FOR ARTISTIC AND INTELLECTUAL FREEDOM IN IRAN). WE HAVE HELPED TO CHANGE THE PUBLIC IMAGE OF THE SHAH IN THE US, WHICH WAS VERY GOOD A FEW YEARS AGO... WE TALKED A LOT ABOUT TORTURE.I NEVER THOUGHT I'D COME TO IRAN UNTIL THAT WONDERFUL DAY WHEN THE SHAH LEFT... THIS COMMITTEE, WHICH HAS THEREFORE DEALT WITH HUMAN RIGHTS, HAS NOW BEGUN TO DEAL WITH WOMEN'S RIGHTS. I WAS INVITED TO SPEAK AT THE MEETING ON MARCH 8, INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY.US (DES FEMMES EN MOUVEMENTS): TODAY, IRANIAN WOMEN ARE SHAKING THE MONOTHEISTIC EDIFICE OF EAST AND WEST... MONOTHEISM IS THE GREATEST HENCHMAN OF PATRIARCHY. IN THE WEST, THE POPE WANTS TO BAN ABORTION. AND DURING THE LAST WAR HE HAD SIGNED AN ALLIANCE WITH HITLER.
WE CAME TO IRAN TO BRING OUR STRENGTH TO THE WOMEN HERE AND TO GIVE US STRENGTH. WHEN IRANIAN WOMEN BREAK THEIR CHAINS, WOMEN FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD MOVE FORWARD WITH THEM.
IN FRANCE, WITH IRANIAN WOMEN ON THE GROUND WE ORGANIZE A SOLIDARITY, WOMEN IN ITALY AND MANY COUNTRIES TOO.WE DISTRIBUTED ANTOINETTE'S MESSAGE FOR MARCH 8 TO JOURNALISTS.
IMPORTANCE OF THE PRESS CONFERENCE: ON THE EVE OF THE VERY LARGE DEMONSTRATION, THAT THE FOREIGN PRESS TALKS ABOUT THE WOMEN AND COMES TO THE DEMONSTRATION, ALSO FORCING THE LOCAL PRESS TO FOLLOW IT.
IN IRAN, IT IS THE FIRST TIME THAT WE HEAR IN THE STREET: "DOWN WITH KHOMEINI, AND IT IS WOMEN WHO SAY SO."
TODAY, KHOMEINI HAS HAD ANOTHER AYATOLLAH, 'TALEGHANI', SPEAK ON RADIO AND TELEVISION, WHO IS REPUTED TO BE A LITTLE MORE LEFT-WING (HE SPOKE IN IRANIAN AND ARABIC, THE LANGUAGE OF THE CLERICS). A SWERVING, "RECUPERATIVE" DISCOURSE, EXPLAINING THAT IT IS NOT A QUESTION OF PREVENTING WOMEN FROM BEING INTELLECTUALS, BUT SAYING THAT THEY ARE ON A PATH WHERE THEY RISK BECOMING DOLLS. "WE HAVE TO GO BACK TO THE ORIGINS"; "COVERING ONESELF IS AN EASTERN CUSTOM. EVEN INDIRA GANDHI COVERS HERSELF. OF COURSE, THE CHADOR IS NOT MANDATORY EVERYWHERE. IT'S BETTER TO AT LEAST KEEP THE SCARF ON. WOMEN MUST ACCEPT KHOMEINI'S ADVICE AS THAT OF A DEVOTED FATHER. »
THE AYATOLLAHS SAY, "COVER YOURSELVES."COVERING UP FOR WOMEN MEANS: 1/ STAYING AT HOME – A FORM OF PERMANENT CURFEW FOR WOMEN (TO PREVENT FIGHTING, THE SHAH'S DICTATORSHIP DECREED CURFEWS, ON THE DAY OF THE INSURRECTION PEOPLE ALL CAME OUT BY THE THOUSANDS)2/ WEAR THE CHADOR: LONG BLACK CLOTH THAT COVERS FROM HEAD TO TOE, SHOULD NOT LET THE HAIR SHOW AT ALL AND SHOULD BE BROUGHT BACK TO THE MOUTH. IT'S VERY HEAVY (IT HURTS MY HEAD).WE SEE WOMEN WITH CHILDREN IN THEIR ARMS, WHO HOLD IT PINCHED IN THEIR MOUTH BECAUSE HE SLIPS ALL THE TIME. IT PREVENTS ANY MOVEMENT. IT PREVENTS YOU FROM WORKING, RUNNING, TALKING. IT'S HEAVY AND PULLS EVERYTHING DOWN. IT IS A GUARANTEE OF "DIGNITY, PURITY, HONESTY."IT'S REMINISCENT OF CHINESE WOMEN'S BANDAGED FEET. 3/ THE HEADSCARF: A LIGHTER VERSION TIED AROUND THE NECK, WHICH HIDES THE HAIR (HAIR IS TABOO AS IN CATHOLIC CHURCHES).ONE OF US WAS TOLD BY AN IRANIAN THAT HAIR IN THE OPEN BECOMES RADIOACTIVE.A FEMALE DIPLOMAT WHO WAS DEMONSTRATING THIS SUNDAY MORNING WITH A HUNDRED OTHER WOMEN IN FRONT OF THE MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS TELLS US OF THE CHADOR:"THE MUSLIM RELIGION HAS NEVER FORCED WOMEN TO WEAR THE VEIL, THIS HAS BEEN A CREATION FOR 400 YEARS, SINCE THE SAFRIT DYNASTY, THAT HAS BEEN IMPOSED ON US. I'VE NEVER WORN A CHADOR OR A VEIL BUT I WEAR THIS SCARF ON PURPOSE TO PROVE TO MEN THAT THAT'S NOT THE POINT AT ALL. I DON'T CARE ABOUT THE CLOTHES I WEAR. WHAT WE WANT IS WOMEN'S RIGHTS. »ASKING WOMEN TO WORK IN CHADORS IS LIKE SENDING THEM HOME. (IN TEHRAN, 50 PERCENT OF WOMEN WORK OUTSIDE THEIR HOME.)FOR EXAMPLE, HOW CAN YOU BE A NURSE IN A CHADOR?EXCEPTION FOR FLIGHT ATTENDANTS: ON MARCH 10, ACCORDING TO AN INSTRUCTION SENT TO THE MANAGEMENT OF IRAN AIR BY THE CENTRAL COMMITTEE OF THE ISLAMIC REVOLUTION, FLIGHT ATTENDANTS ARE NOT BOUND BY THE GUIDELINES CONCERNING THE WEARING OF THE VEIL FOR CUSTOMER REASONS. DIGNITY. FREE JOB. FREE SHOPPING.
MASKS: VEIL, CURTAINS, MAKE-UP.A WOMAN WHO WORKS AT AIR FRANCE: THIS MORNING, A COLLEAGUE ASKED ME: "WHERE IS YOUR SCARF?" I SAY, "I DON'T BELIEVE IN THAT."THEN HE ACCUSED ME OF BEING A ROYALIST. I SAID, "LOOK, THEY'RE TWO DIFFERENT THINGS. IF I DON'T BELIEVE IN THE VEIL, IT DOESN'T MEAN I WANT THE OLD REGIME OF THE SHAH. »
THEY ALSO TRY OTHER WAYS: "YOU DON'T HAVE TO WEAR MAKEUP; YOU DON'T HAVE TO WEAR NICE CLOTHES."THIS MORNING THEY SAID TO ME, "IF YOU BELIEVE IN WORKERS, YOU MUST BE LIKE THEM. I SAID, "I AGREE, THEY CAN WEAR MAKEUP LIKE ME, WHY NOT?" THEY SAY, "THE SHAH HAS MADE DOLLS OUT OF ALL WOMEN."IT'S CRAZY, RIDICULOUS.WE DON'T WANT TO GO BACK. NEVER.(END)
Telex n°3 from TEHRAN to PARIS sent on March 12, 1979
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20.000 Iraniennes dans la rue, de l'université de Téhéran jusqu'au square de la Liberté
TELEX TO FRANCE (3)MONDAY, MARCH 12 TEHRAN
AFTER A RALLY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF TEHRAN AND DESPITE DEMOBILIZATION ATTEMPTS FROM VARIOUS GROUPS, AT LEAST 20,000 WOMEN MARCHED TO FREEDOM SQUARE, CHEERFULLY, VALIANTLY, CHANTING SLOGANS. THE SLOGANS WERE REPEATED AFTER A WOMAN VOICED THEM LOUD. THE DEMONSTRATIONS OF THE LAST FEW DAYS HAVE ALLOWED THIS ONE TO TAKE PLACE IN A PEACEFUL MANNER. ALL IT TAKES IS FOR A WOMAN TO COME UP WITH THE IDEA OF A SIT-IN TOMORROW (TUESDAY) IN FRONT OF THE TELEVISION, FOR THE MEETING TO CIRCULATE FROM MOUTH TO MOUTH THROUGHOUT THE DEMONSTRATION.THE REPEAL OF THE CHADOR BAN AND THE INTERVENTION OF A MEMBER OF THE GOVERNMENT ON TELEVISION LAST NIGHT WAS AN ATTEMPT AT DEMOBILIZATION. BUT WOMEN WANTED TO BE IN THE STREETS TODAY: "TCHOULUR BOULOUK", "TCHOULUR BOULOUK" (WE ARE MANY).
THEIR SLOGANS:"IT'S NOT THE PROBLEM OF THE VEIL THAT'S IMPORTANT, IT'S FREEDOM.""WOMEN MUST FREE THEMSELVES FROM SLAVERY, I SAY IT AT EVERY MOMENT, I SAY IT UNDER TORTURE: DEATH OR FREEDOM.""WHEN THEY SEND WOMEN BACK, THEY SEND EVERYONE ELSE BACK.""WE WANT, MEN AND WOMEN, TO FIGHT AGAINST ALL FORMS OF IMPERIALISM.""WE ARE NOT JUST ADVOCATING FOR OUR CAUSE BUT FOR A REAL DEMOCRACY.""UNTIL WOMEN SUCCEED, THE STRUGGLE WILL CONTINUE.""WE ARE FIGHTING DICTATORSHIP IN ALL ITS FORMS""HEY FEDAYEEN.""WE, IRANIAN WOMEN, WILL NOT REMAIN IN CHAINS."
ALONG THE WAY, PROTESTERS AND HOSPITAL NURSES EXCHANGED SLOGANS OF SYMPATHY.
IT WAS A JOYFUL, VERY DETERMINED, SUNNY AND POWERFUL EVENT.
THE APPOINTMENT IN FRONT OF THE TV WAS DECIDED BECAUSE FOR THE PAST WEEK, THE MOVEMENT HAS BEEN COMPLETELY CENSORED BY RADIO AND TV.LONG LIVE THE WOMEN'S STRUGGLE.P.S. DETAILED TELEX FOLLOWS. KISSES.(END)
AFTER A RALLY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF TEHRAN AND DESPITE DEMOBILIZATION ATTEMPTS FROM VARIOUS GROUPS, AT LEAST 20,000 WOMEN MARCHED TO FREEDOM SQUARE, CHEERFULLY, VALIANTLY, CHANTING SLOGANS. THE SLOGANS WERE REPEATED AFTER A WOMAN VOICED THEM LOUD. THE DEMONSTRATIONS OF THE LAST FEW DAYS HAVE ALLOWED THIS ONE TO TAKE PLACE IN A PEACEFUL MANNER. ALL IT TAKES IS FOR A WOMAN TO COME UP WITH THE IDEA OF A SIT-IN TOMORROW (TUESDAY) IN FRONT OF THE TELEVISION, FOR THE MEETING TO CIRCULATE FROM MOUTH TO MOUTH THROUGHOUT THE DEMONSTRATION.THE REPEAL OF THE CHADOR BAN AND THE INTERVENTION OF A MEMBER OF THE GOVERNMENT ON TELEVISION LAST NIGHT WAS AN ATTEMPT AT DEMOBILIZATION. BUT WOMEN WANTED TO BE IN THE STREETS TODAY: "TCHOULUR BOULOUK", "TCHOULUR BOULOUK" (WE ARE MANY).
THEIR SLOGANS:"IT'S NOT THE PROBLEM OF THE VEIL THAT'S IMPORTANT, IT'S FREEDOM.""WOMEN MUST FREE THEMSELVES FROM SLAVERY, I SAY IT AT EVERY MOMENT, I SAY IT UNDER TORTURE: DEATH OR FREEDOM.""WHEN THEY SEND WOMEN BACK, THEY SEND EVERYONE ELSE BACK.""WE WANT, MEN AND WOMEN, TO FIGHT AGAINST ALL FORMS OF IMPERIALISM.""WE ARE NOT JUST ADVOCATING FOR OUR CAUSE BUT FOR A REAL DEMOCRACY.""UNTIL WOMEN SUCCEED, THE STRUGGLE WILL CONTINUE.""WE ARE FIGHTING DICTATORSHIP IN ALL ITS FORMS""HEY FEDAYEEN.""WE, IRANIAN WOMEN, WILL NOT REMAIN IN CHAINS."
ALONG THE WAY, PROTESTERS AND HOSPITAL NURSES EXCHANGED SLOGANS OF SYMPATHY.
IT WAS A JOYFUL, VERY DETERMINED, SUNNY AND POWERFUL EVENT.
THE APPOINTMENT IN FRONT OF THE TV WAS DECIDED BECAUSE FOR THE PAST WEEK, THE MOVEMENT HAS BEEN COMPLETELY CENSORED BY RADIO AND TV.LONG LIVE THE WOMEN'S STRUGGLE.P.S. DETAILED TELEX FOLLOWS. KISSES.(END)
Telex n°4 from TEHRAN to PARIS sent on March 13, 1979
Tehran, March 12, 1979: The day Iranian women, marched for their rights and against the mandatory veil.
Thousands of enthusiastic women gathered at the University and then marched towards Liberty Square
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TELEX TO FRANCE (4)SUNDAY, MARCH 13 TEHRAN
QUESTION TO KATE MILLETT: "WHAT ARE YOUR STRONGEST IMPRESSIONS?"K.M.: THERE ARE TWO THINGS: THE FERVOUR AND THE COURAGE OF WOMEN. I HAVE NEVER SEEN WOMEN ORGANIZING SO QUICKLY AND IN SUCH LARGE NUMBERS. THERE ARE 10, 15,000 WOMEN IN THESE DEMONSTRATIONS. IN THE U.S., IT WOULD TAKE YEARS TO COME TOGETHER LIKE THAT. IT WOULD TAKE MONEY, YOU WOULD HAVE TO WRITE TO PEOPLE, IT WOULD NEED PUBLICITY. HERE, SOMEONE HOLDS UP A SIGN WITH "SIT-IN ON TV", "TOMORROW AT THE MINISTRY OF JUSTICE", AND EVERYONE GOES. BECAUSE THESE WOMEN WERE NOT ONLY REPRESSED FOR A VERY LONG TIME, BUT IT WAS ALSO WOMEN WHO MADE THE REVOLUTION. THEY WERE IN THE STREETS, THEY HAVE FRIENDS WHO HAVE DIED, THEY KNEW THAT THEY THEMSELVES COULD BE KILLED BY THE SHAH AND HIS TROOPS. THEY ARE THE ONES WHO HAD THE COURAGE TO GO OUT IN FRONT OF THE TANKS, THE COURAGE TO RISE UP. IT'S PHENOMENAL BECAUSE IN HUNGARY AND CZECHOSLOVAKIA THEY TRIED, BUT THEY WERE REPRESSED.WHEN YOU THINK OF SOUTH AMERICA, ALL THESE DICTATORSHIPS... THESE WOMEN HAD SUCH COURAGE IN THE FACE OF TANKS, THEY KNEW THEY COULD BE KILLED, WE HAD TO KEEP GOING ANYWAY. AND MANY WOMEN HAVE TOLD ME THAT FOR THEIR RIGHTS, THEY CAN BE KILLED, IT DOESN'T MATTER, THE STRUGGLE MUST CONTINUE. I'VE NEVER HEARD FEMINISTS SPEAK LIKE THAT. AND I'VE NEVER SEEN IT IN THE WEST. IT IS BECAUSE THERE ARE HORDES OF MEN WHOSE ONLY PURPOSE IN LIFE IS TO THREATEN US, TO ATTACK US. THREE WOMEN WERE INJURED BY KNIVES. THAT'S WHAT FRENCH TELEVISION SAID, WE DON'T KNOW HERE BECAUSE OF CENSORSHIP.
THE BIG MARCH ON MONDAY, MARCH 12
ALL MORNING ON THE CAMPUS LAWNS, A LARGE NUMBER OF WOMEN, THOUSANDS SHOUT THEIR DETERMINATION TO MARCH, SALUTE EACH WOMAN WHO INTERVENES IN FAVOR OF THE DEMONSTRATION AND BOO ALL THOSE WHO WANT TO DEMOBILIZE, SAYING THAT THERE ARE NOT ENOUGH OF US (RISK OF ATTACKS). LABORIOUS MORNING. WOMEN FINALLY OVERCOME THE CALL-OFF, WITH THE ARRIVAL OF MORE AND MORE OF THEM ON CAMPUS. THEY FEEL VERY STRONGLY HERE THAT THEY NEED TO BE VERY NUMEROUS. WHEN THE DEMONSTRATION CAME OUT OF THE GATES OF THE UNIVERSITY, I SAW A GROUP OF VERY YOUNG HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS HAPPILY HOPPING IN RHYTHM. MANY OF THEM 12 OR 13 YEARS OLD, AND THEY SAID TO ME: "COME WITH US." RHYTHMIC, WARLIKE, ORGANIZED AMONG THEMSELVES, SOMETHING OF THE PEOPLES IN STRUGGLE WHERE CHILDREN ARE ALREADY FIGHTING, BUT HERE, IT’ ONLY GIRLS. THE WOMEN SMILE AT US. WE CAN TALK TO EACH OF THEM. IT WAS THE DAY WE TALKED WITH THE MOST WOMEN THROUGHOUT THE MARCH. MOMENTS OF EMOTION. WE LET YOURSELVES BE FILLED WITH EMOTION. TEARS COME. MOMENTS OF INTENSE WORK, DISCUSSION, FILMING, RECORDING. EMOTION TO BE TOGETHER, TO FEEL THEIR STRENGTH AND THEIR GREAT EXPERIENCE OF STRUGGLE. AND MOMENTS OF MORE ANALYTICAL ATTENTION AS YOU FIND OUT WHO YOU'RE TALKING TO. IN THE DEMONSTRATION, WE WERE IN A WOMEN'S PLACE, A LIBERATED SPACE. THIS WAS POSSIBLE BECAUSE THERE ARE SECURITY CORDONS ON EACH SIDE, ONE OF WOMEN AND ONE OF MEN ON THE OUTSIDE. WE FELT PROTECTED FROM THE DANGER BY THE STRENGTH AND THE LOVE THAT EXISTED BETWEEN WOMEN.THE MEN WHO MADE THE SECURITY CORDON: FEDAYEEN (UNARMED), BROTHERS AND HUSBANDS TOO, WERE DISCREET WITH US, BUT WERE HARASSED WITH INSULTS, CALLED NAMES BY THE MEN WHO CAME TO ATTACK US. THEY DID NOT RESPOND TO ANY PROVOCATION, AS WE KNOW HOW TO DO. THESE MEN BROUGHT LARGE BUCKETS OF WATER BECAUSE WE WERE DYING OF THIRST.WE FILMED THE PROTEST FROM THE OUTSIDE FOR A LONG TIME AND FELT THE NEED TO JOIN ALL THESE WOMEN. VERY STRONG FEELING OF BEING TOGETHER BETWEEN WOMEN. THE MARCH GATHERS MANY WOMEN. GREAT VIOLENCE IN THEIR DETERMINATION. NO HYSTERIA. IT IS THE RELIGIOUS FANATICS WHO ARE HYSTERICAL AND CAN'T STAND THE QUIETNESS OF WOMEN.WHAT IS SCARY IN A DEMONSTRATION IN FRANCE IS THE POLICE. HERE, THERE ARE ONLY MEN ON THE STREET. IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THOSE WHO ARE BROUGHT BY BUS BY THE FAR RIGHT AND THE SAVAK WHO IS STILL THERE AND THE PASSERS-BY WHO JOIN THEM. ALL THE OCCUPANTS OF THE STREET ARE FELT AS A THREAT, EVEN IF THERE ARE SOME AMONG THEM WHO WOULD MAKE GESTURES TO DEFEND US.TOWARDS THE END OF THE DEMONSTRATION, THE PRESSURE TIGHTENED AROUND US, UNTIL WE WERE COMPLETELY SURROUNDED IN FREEDOM SQUARE. SYMBOLICALLY, THEY PREVENTED THE WOMEN FROM REACHING THE SQUARE.A SLOGAN: ATTACKS ON WOMEN ARE ATTACKS ON THE REVOLUTION.AN ENVOY OF AYATOLLAH TALEGHANI ASKED THE WOMEN TO DISPERSE AT ONE POINT DURING THE DEMONSTRATION.BREAKING NEWS: WOMEN'S DEMONSTRATIONS IN TABRIZ, ISFAHAN AND SANANDAJ IN KURDISTAN.A MAN WHO CAME TO ATTACK THE DEMONSTRATION: "UNDER THE SHAH, WOMEN WERE IN THEIR APARTMENTS."TODAY, SOMEONE TOLD US THAT PEASANT WOMEN DON'T WEAR THE CHADOR, THAT IT'S A VERY PETTY-BOURGEOIS THING. IT SEEMS THAT THE CURRENT ISLAMIC "RE-EDUCATION" IS VERY PETTY-BOURGEOIS IN ITS PRESENT VALUES.
TUESDAY 13, 9 A.M.A SIT-IN TOOK PLACE IN FRONT OF THE TELEVISION TO FIGHT AGAINST THE CENSORSHIP OF THE PRESS AND THE MEASURES TAKEN AGAINST WOMEN WORKING THERE (SEE TELEX OF MONDAY 12).THIS APPOINTMENT WAS CIRCULATED IN YESTERDAY'S DEMONSTRATION.BUT IN THE MEANTIME, THERE WAS THE PROVOCATION ON THE EVENING OF MONDAY 12TH, WHEN IT IS SAID THAT SEVERAL SUPPOSEDLY ARMED WOMEN FIRED SHOTS IN THE AIR IN FRONT OF THE TV. IN RESPONSE, THE TV DIRECTOR ALLEGEDLY CIRCULATED THREATS TO DISCOURAGE THE NEXT DAY'S SIT-IN AND PREVENT IT. FACED WITH THESE EVENTS, THE COMMITTEE FOR WOMEN'S RIGHTS REFUSED TO GO, SAYING THAT THERE WERE TOO MANY RISKS AND REFUSING TO ALLOW IT TO BE TOO FREQUENT. (SEE TEXT)FOUR TO FIVE HUNDRED WOMEN WERE THERE AT THIS MORNING SIT-IN.FOCUS GROUPS ALL OVER THE PLACE, MIXED, AND THEN THE WOMEN GATHER AND SIT DOWN. THERE ARE ALSO WOMEN WITH CHADORS, HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS WITH SIGNS (SEE INTERVIEWS) ARRIVING, NURSES. WE TALKED A LOT WITH WOMEN AND WE FILMED.THE KHOMEINISTS SEEK A FACE-TO-FACE CONFRONTATION BY SHOUTING SLOGANS. KHOMEINI BUSES ARRIVE. ARMED MEN ARE PRESENT. WOMEN WHO REFUSE THE FACE TO FACE TURN THEIR BACKS ON THEM. CONFRONTED WITH THE MEN'S VIOLENCE, WOMEN DISPERSED. MANY WERE FOLLOWED AND THREATENED.FEELINGS DURING THESE DEMONSTRATIONS: SPONTANEOUSLY AND IN A SITUATION, WOMEN COLLECTIVELY BEHAVE IN A VERY POLITICAL WAY. LOTS OF LOVE BETWEEN THEM.(END OF TELEX N°4)
QUESTION TO KATE MILLETT: "WHAT ARE YOUR STRONGEST IMPRESSIONS?"K.M.: THERE ARE TWO THINGS: THE FERVOUR AND THE COURAGE OF WOMEN. I HAVE NEVER SEEN WOMEN ORGANIZING SO QUICKLY AND IN SUCH LARGE NUMBERS. THERE ARE 10, 15,000 WOMEN IN THESE DEMONSTRATIONS. IN THE U.S., IT WOULD TAKE YEARS TO COME TOGETHER LIKE THAT. IT WOULD TAKE MONEY, YOU WOULD HAVE TO WRITE TO PEOPLE, IT WOULD NEED PUBLICITY. HERE, SOMEONE HOLDS UP A SIGN WITH "SIT-IN ON TV", "TOMORROW AT THE MINISTRY OF JUSTICE", AND EVERYONE GOES. BECAUSE THESE WOMEN WERE NOT ONLY REPRESSED FOR A VERY LONG TIME, BUT IT WAS ALSO WOMEN WHO MADE THE REVOLUTION. THEY WERE IN THE STREETS, THEY HAVE FRIENDS WHO HAVE DIED, THEY KNEW THAT THEY THEMSELVES COULD BE KILLED BY THE SHAH AND HIS TROOPS. THEY ARE THE ONES WHO HAD THE COURAGE TO GO OUT IN FRONT OF THE TANKS, THE COURAGE TO RISE UP. IT'S PHENOMENAL BECAUSE IN HUNGARY AND CZECHOSLOVAKIA THEY TRIED, BUT THEY WERE REPRESSED.WHEN YOU THINK OF SOUTH AMERICA, ALL THESE DICTATORSHIPS... THESE WOMEN HAD SUCH COURAGE IN THE FACE OF TANKS, THEY KNEW THEY COULD BE KILLED, WE HAD TO KEEP GOING ANYWAY. AND MANY WOMEN HAVE TOLD ME THAT FOR THEIR RIGHTS, THEY CAN BE KILLED, IT DOESN'T MATTER, THE STRUGGLE MUST CONTINUE. I'VE NEVER HEARD FEMINISTS SPEAK LIKE THAT. AND I'VE NEVER SEEN IT IN THE WEST. IT IS BECAUSE THERE ARE HORDES OF MEN WHOSE ONLY PURPOSE IN LIFE IS TO THREATEN US, TO ATTACK US. THREE WOMEN WERE INJURED BY KNIVES. THAT'S WHAT FRENCH TELEVISION SAID, WE DON'T KNOW HERE BECAUSE OF CENSORSHIP.
THE BIG MARCH ON MONDAY, MARCH 12
ALL MORNING ON THE CAMPUS LAWNS, A LARGE NUMBER OF WOMEN, THOUSANDS SHOUT THEIR DETERMINATION TO MARCH, SALUTE EACH WOMAN WHO INTERVENES IN FAVOR OF THE DEMONSTRATION AND BOO ALL THOSE WHO WANT TO DEMOBILIZE, SAYING THAT THERE ARE NOT ENOUGH OF US (RISK OF ATTACKS). LABORIOUS MORNING. WOMEN FINALLY OVERCOME THE CALL-OFF, WITH THE ARRIVAL OF MORE AND MORE OF THEM ON CAMPUS. THEY FEEL VERY STRONGLY HERE THAT THEY NEED TO BE VERY NUMEROUS. WHEN THE DEMONSTRATION CAME OUT OF THE GATES OF THE UNIVERSITY, I SAW A GROUP OF VERY YOUNG HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS HAPPILY HOPPING IN RHYTHM. MANY OF THEM 12 OR 13 YEARS OLD, AND THEY SAID TO ME: "COME WITH US." RHYTHMIC, WARLIKE, ORGANIZED AMONG THEMSELVES, SOMETHING OF THE PEOPLES IN STRUGGLE WHERE CHILDREN ARE ALREADY FIGHTING, BUT HERE, IT’ ONLY GIRLS. THE WOMEN SMILE AT US. WE CAN TALK TO EACH OF THEM. IT WAS THE DAY WE TALKED WITH THE MOST WOMEN THROUGHOUT THE MARCH. MOMENTS OF EMOTION. WE LET YOURSELVES BE FILLED WITH EMOTION. TEARS COME. MOMENTS OF INTENSE WORK, DISCUSSION, FILMING, RECORDING. EMOTION TO BE TOGETHER, TO FEEL THEIR STRENGTH AND THEIR GREAT EXPERIENCE OF STRUGGLE. AND MOMENTS OF MORE ANALYTICAL ATTENTION AS YOU FIND OUT WHO YOU'RE TALKING TO. IN THE DEMONSTRATION, WE WERE IN A WOMEN'S PLACE, A LIBERATED SPACE. THIS WAS POSSIBLE BECAUSE THERE ARE SECURITY CORDONS ON EACH SIDE, ONE OF WOMEN AND ONE OF MEN ON THE OUTSIDE. WE FELT PROTECTED FROM THE DANGER BY THE STRENGTH AND THE LOVE THAT EXISTED BETWEEN WOMEN.THE MEN WHO MADE THE SECURITY CORDON: FEDAYEEN (UNARMED), BROTHERS AND HUSBANDS TOO, WERE DISCREET WITH US, BUT WERE HARASSED WITH INSULTS, CALLED NAMES BY THE MEN WHO CAME TO ATTACK US. THEY DID NOT RESPOND TO ANY PROVOCATION, AS WE KNOW HOW TO DO. THESE MEN BROUGHT LARGE BUCKETS OF WATER BECAUSE WE WERE DYING OF THIRST.WE FILMED THE PROTEST FROM THE OUTSIDE FOR A LONG TIME AND FELT THE NEED TO JOIN ALL THESE WOMEN. VERY STRONG FEELING OF BEING TOGETHER BETWEEN WOMEN. THE MARCH GATHERS MANY WOMEN. GREAT VIOLENCE IN THEIR DETERMINATION. NO HYSTERIA. IT IS THE RELIGIOUS FANATICS WHO ARE HYSTERICAL AND CAN'T STAND THE QUIETNESS OF WOMEN.WHAT IS SCARY IN A DEMONSTRATION IN FRANCE IS THE POLICE. HERE, THERE ARE ONLY MEN ON THE STREET. IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THOSE WHO ARE BROUGHT BY BUS BY THE FAR RIGHT AND THE SAVAK WHO IS STILL THERE AND THE PASSERS-BY WHO JOIN THEM. ALL THE OCCUPANTS OF THE STREET ARE FELT AS A THREAT, EVEN IF THERE ARE SOME AMONG THEM WHO WOULD MAKE GESTURES TO DEFEND US.TOWARDS THE END OF THE DEMONSTRATION, THE PRESSURE TIGHTENED AROUND US, UNTIL WE WERE COMPLETELY SURROUNDED IN FREEDOM SQUARE. SYMBOLICALLY, THEY PREVENTED THE WOMEN FROM REACHING THE SQUARE.A SLOGAN: ATTACKS ON WOMEN ARE ATTACKS ON THE REVOLUTION.AN ENVOY OF AYATOLLAH TALEGHANI ASKED THE WOMEN TO DISPERSE AT ONE POINT DURING THE DEMONSTRATION.BREAKING NEWS: WOMEN'S DEMONSTRATIONS IN TABRIZ, ISFAHAN AND SANANDAJ IN KURDISTAN.A MAN WHO CAME TO ATTACK THE DEMONSTRATION: "UNDER THE SHAH, WOMEN WERE IN THEIR APARTMENTS."TODAY, SOMEONE TOLD US THAT PEASANT WOMEN DON'T WEAR THE CHADOR, THAT IT'S A VERY PETTY-BOURGEOIS THING. IT SEEMS THAT THE CURRENT ISLAMIC "RE-EDUCATION" IS VERY PETTY-BOURGEOIS IN ITS PRESENT VALUES.
TUESDAY 13, 9 A.M.A SIT-IN TOOK PLACE IN FRONT OF THE TELEVISION TO FIGHT AGAINST THE CENSORSHIP OF THE PRESS AND THE MEASURES TAKEN AGAINST WOMEN WORKING THERE (SEE TELEX OF MONDAY 12).THIS APPOINTMENT WAS CIRCULATED IN YESTERDAY'S DEMONSTRATION.BUT IN THE MEANTIME, THERE WAS THE PROVOCATION ON THE EVENING OF MONDAY 12TH, WHEN IT IS SAID THAT SEVERAL SUPPOSEDLY ARMED WOMEN FIRED SHOTS IN THE AIR IN FRONT OF THE TV. IN RESPONSE, THE TV DIRECTOR ALLEGEDLY CIRCULATED THREATS TO DISCOURAGE THE NEXT DAY'S SIT-IN AND PREVENT IT. FACED WITH THESE EVENTS, THE COMMITTEE FOR WOMEN'S RIGHTS REFUSED TO GO, SAYING THAT THERE WERE TOO MANY RISKS AND REFUSING TO ALLOW IT TO BE TOO FREQUENT. (SEE TEXT)FOUR TO FIVE HUNDRED WOMEN WERE THERE AT THIS MORNING SIT-IN.FOCUS GROUPS ALL OVER THE PLACE, MIXED, AND THEN THE WOMEN GATHER AND SIT DOWN. THERE ARE ALSO WOMEN WITH CHADORS, HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS WITH SIGNS (SEE INTERVIEWS) ARRIVING, NURSES. WE TALKED A LOT WITH WOMEN AND WE FILMED.THE KHOMEINISTS SEEK A FACE-TO-FACE CONFRONTATION BY SHOUTING SLOGANS. KHOMEINI BUSES ARRIVE. ARMED MEN ARE PRESENT. WOMEN WHO REFUSE THE FACE TO FACE TURN THEIR BACKS ON THEM. CONFRONTED WITH THE MEN'S VIOLENCE, WOMEN DISPERSED. MANY WERE FOLLOWED AND THREATENED.FEELINGS DURING THESE DEMONSTRATIONS: SPONTANEOUSLY AND IN A SITUATION, WOMEN COLLECTIVELY BEHAVE IN A VERY POLITICAL WAY. LOTS OF LOVE BETWEEN THEM.(END OF TELEX N°4)