Hundreds of people made their way to the Halifax waterfront on Saturday, marking another protest against the Iranian regime, while supporting the people of Iran.
Nazanin Afshin-Jam MacKay, an Iranian activist and author, spoke at the Halifax event.
“We’re all here hand-in-hand in a human chain, in co-ordination with cities across the world to stand in solidarity with people in Iran, for people who are fighting for their life, for freedom and democracy,” said Afshin-Jam.
The protest in Halifax is part of a global movement, as the families of the victims of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 lent their voices to the worldwide calls for revolution in Iran. In Canada, the “human chain” protests were also held in Vancouver, Edmonton, Toronto and Ottawa.
This comes after weeks of protests in Iran, following the death of Mahsa Amini. The 22-year-old Kurdish-Iranian woman died after falling into a coma while in the custody of Iran’s “morality police,” detained for not wearing her hijab properly. Her death has caused many to take to the streets, as citizens call for democracy and an overthrow of the government.
To add to the rage against Amini’s death, families of those killed when Iran‘s military shot down Flight 752 in January 2020 are joining in to demand the Canadian government take a harder line against the regime.
Protestor Reza Rahimi in Halifax has a strong connection to the “human chain” movement. Their mother-in-law was on board Flight 752.
“We still cannot find peace,” said Rahimi.
“We want freedom, we want to let people choose their religion, choose what to wear, choose what song to listen to, we don’t want to be forced.”
Afshin-Jam agreed.
“With the death of Mahsa Amini, it was the spark that got a lot of people to understand the brutality that’s happening inside Iran,” Afshin-Jam said.
“I want people to understand the repression that people are facing in Iran and to come out in support of their voice,” she said.
“I want them to tell their members of parliament that this is important to them.”
Earlier this month, Canada imposed a slate of sanctions against Iran and a long list of Iranian officials.
At a Halifax rally in solidarity with Iran last weekend, Canada’s Minister of Immigration and Citizenship Sean Fraser said the government will do anything it can “to hold the regime accountable,” and will ensure the safety of those who are speaking against it in Canada.
— With files from Heidi Lee, Karla Renic and The Canadian Press.
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