PHOENIX, ARIZONA: Pakistani Nobel laureate and education rights activist, Malala Yousafzai, said on Wednesday that the situation for women and girls in conservative Iran had become “unbearable,” adding that while she could not “imagine the situation” they are facing these days, she would continue to support their movement for basic human rights.
Iran has been gripped by months of protests — which officials describe as “riots” — since the death of a 22-year-old woman Mahasa Amini in police custody. Amini died under mysterious circumstances in police custody after she was arrested for an alleged breach of the country’s dress code for women.
As of December 2022, Iranian courts have sentenced 400 people to jail for up to 10 years over their involvement in protests sparked by Amini’s death. The regime has also drawn widespread international condemnation after executing two men in connection with the unrest.
Yousufzai, while speaking at the Arizona Speaker Series in Phoenix event this week, said it was scary to picture women in a situation where they are even killed for wearing a loose headscarf on their head.
“We cannot even imagine the situation women and girls are facing, it is unbearable,” the Pakistani Nobel peace prize winner said.
“[Unfortunately], that is the reality of women right now in Iran. I want to tell our sisters in Iran that we stand with you, we’re supporting you and your movement for your freedom, for your basic human rights.”
Last year, the education activist said the women and girls taking to the streets of Iran to demand freedom and safety were “already changing the world with their courage.”
At the Phoenix event, she also spoke about the women in Afghanistan who have been banned from attending schools and workplaces by the Taliban administration, saying that the situation is “tough” for them.
“I think it is tough for women in Afghanistan. It is tough for women around the world because we are seeing something similar happening in many places where a group of men or institutions or governments are interfering in women’s lives and telling them what to wear, how to speak, how to dress,” she said.
“The Taliban have not just banned sports for women and girls, they’ve actively intimidated and harassed those who once played sports,” she added.
