Scores of protesters gathered opposite the gates of the Iranian embassy in Dublin this afternoon, in a show of solidarity with pro-democracy demonstrators who have taken to the streets in Iran.
Irish and Iranian groups from across the political spectrum joined together to express their discontent over the mistreatment of supporters of defeated Iranian presidential candidate Mirhossein Mousavi.
Representatives of the Free Iran Group, human rights advocacy group Front Line and the Socialist Workers Party mixed with concerned citizens in a demonstration where the overarching theme was solidarity with the Iranian people.
Several protesters wore black ribbon as a sign of mourning for the estimated eight people who have died protesting the contentious results of last week’s Iranian presidential election. Others carried placards and graphic posters depicting the excessive force used against demonstrators in Iran.
“Stop killing youth” read one placard. Another depicted incumbent president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad dressed in Nazi uniform with “Ahmadinejad is not our President” written above. Most however, simply read “solidarity” in Persian.
Following an emotional rendition of the Ey Iran, a popular protest anthem emblematic of pre-Islamic Revolution Iran, protesters chanted “Down with the mullahs, we don’t want Ayatollahs” across the embassy walls.
“We are hear to show our solidarity and support for the Iranian people,” said Laleh Tarighi of the Free Iran Group.
“We are demonstrating for all the people who have been killed and arrested protesting against the election result,” she said.
Amal Roche has been living in Ireland for the past 25 years, having left her home country due to the worsening of civil liberties following the Iranian Revolution. She was moved to join the gathering having seen images of protesters being shot and beaten on the streets of Iranian cities.
“We are in the 21st century now and we have to move on from this; that could be my son on the ground,” she said.
Several people joined the demonstration to highlight the plight of Iranian Christians, who face discrimination and harassment in the Islamic Republic.
Members of FrontLine held aloft a poster demanding the release of human rights lawyer Abdolfattah Soltani, who was arrested on June 16th at his practice in Tehran.
Prior to his arrest, Mr Soltani had called on the Iranian government to recount all of the votes cast in last Friday’s election.
“The [Iranian] government is using the protests as an excuse to round up any human rights defenders,” said Jim Loughran of FrontLine.