Iran Feature: The Week in Civil Society, from Women's Activism to Harsh Sentences to Cyberspace (Arseh Sevom)

One of the video testimonies in "Women Speak Out Against War"

See also Iran Video Document: Tehran's Larijani to UN "We Are a Benchmark for Human Rights"

---

Arseh Sevom, the non-government organisation promoting civil society in Iran, presents its weekly review of developments in the country:

A New Year Greeted with Empty Pockets, Joy, and Trepidation

The celebration of Iranian New Year (Norooz), which falls at the moment of the Spring Equinox (5:14 am UTC or GMT, March 20), has managed to survive every political regime and every change of religion. It remains autonomous of state control and an example of “the configuration in which society stands apart from the state.” Its continuing celebration in Iran represents a requisite of a civil society.

The fast approaching new year is causing a mixture of apprehension and excitement. This will be a difficult Norooz for many suffering from the bad economic situation in Iran where a combination of run-away inflation, poor economic management, and sanctions are really taking their toll.

Click to read more ...

Iran 1st-Hand: "People Here Are Boiling, But Don't Make A Sound" (Spindle)

Photo: ReutersReza rented a small storefront on a pedestrian mall along the route to a popular shrine in Tehran's working-class southern fringe. He hawks T-shirts, souvenirs, incense and, with the Iranian New Year approaching, fireworks. He says business conditions are "rubbish." He sells little.

Chicken and beef have almost doubled in price in the past few weeks, he says. His family has all but stopped eating those. His wife buys chicken livers. They're cheaper.

He has tried raising prices in his own store. Playing cards just went to 1,500 rials from 1,000—or to about seven cents, from five cents. Sales fell. "People just don't have the money," he says.

Click to read more ...