An open letter to Ms. Micheline Calmy-Rey the Foreign Minister of
Switzerland
Your Excellency
Dear Ms. Micheline
Calmy-Rey
I am an Iranian woman in
exile in Switzerland , honored to be a SP member, and I was very proud of your
social accomplishments.
It has been about 22
years that I have not been able to visit Iran . I had to leave my country like
millions of my compatriots. I was disfranchised by the fundamental right to
choose my clothing and not follow the state clothing code. This totalitarian
code deprives Iranian women from many other rights such as: right to travel
freely, work freely, get divorce, have child custody, dance, sing opera,
exercise all sports and take part in the Olympics, and swim in the sea freely.
Consequently a sexual apartheid is the resultant in which the Iranian woman's
value as a human being is half that of a man.
Women have struggled for
a century for freedom of clothing; all lost in the last 30 years with sustained
imprisonment, suffered tortures and have lost their lives too.
Dear Micheline Calmy-Rey
I'd like to bring to your
attention that contrary to your expression and your statement on the April 3,
2008 in (Eröffnung der Züricher Gleichstellungskongress im Volkshaus in Zürich),
it was not just only a thin piece of cloth on your hair, but it was an affront
to all attempts and challenges of a regime by women in Iran and other countries
in the region to achieve freedom of clothing and maintain their achievements.
What you have covered
your hair with, is the symbol of humiliation and violation of Iranian women's
rights by men and a patriarchal regime in Iran . Patriarchy is the systematic
domination of women by men. Religious patriarchy is the systematic exclusion of
women from roles of religious authority, often based on the presupposition that
God is male. This is the symbol of a misogynic, barbaric regime of terrorist
Mullahs in Iran which do not meet the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and
there is a big gap between the regime of Mullahs and the secular regime of
Switzerland . Consequently the Mullah's regime in Iran is vigorously against the
free, democratic and progressive regime which promotes the dignity of human
rights and the civil society and rule of law.
Dear Micheline Calmy-Ray
The Mullah's regime
employs many different tricks to avoid being isolated and is very happy to sign
the economic agreements without any consequences imposed by your government and
others. They would be very glad of looting the wealth of Iranians, while the
people, the genuine owners of those resources are deprived of sharing the
proceeds of these agreements.
Dear Micheline Calmy-Ray
Unfortunately your deed
is very upsetting and at the same time it breaks many Iranian hearts. On the
one hand you make a deal with a fanatic, misogynic and terrorist regime of Iran
and on the other, for this economical agreement you mock the painful struggle of
Iranian women for their minimum rights. You paid dearly to the symbol of
despotic, fascist, reactionary, Middle-Aged, corrupt and criminal regime of
Mullahs by the appeasement of wearing the head scarf.
The regime of stoning to
death, amputating hands and legs of its dissidents, and hanging them publicly
deserves no legitimacy. The vast majority of Iranians have boycotted the recent
parliamentary election (nomination) in Iran .
As a women's rights
defender, I have a deep respect for you, and I did not expect that you would
have a dialog with a former executioner like Ahmadi Nezhad. Those who are
fighting for democracy and freedom expect the European policy makers to boycott
politically the so-called Islamic Republic of Iran in order to diminish the
suffering people of Iran who want to replace the present inhumane regime of
thugs with a democratic government.
I hope to see your high
solidarity with Iranian people, especially the women who have been taken hostage
for nearly 30 years by criminals reigning in Iran . IRI regime should be
brought to justice with charges of crimes against humanity.
Respectfully yours,
Dr. Zahra Erfani
Zurich, / Switzerland
