Three years after the death of Mahsa Amini, Iranian authorities are still preventing her family from holding a memorial service for the 22-year-old who died while in the custody of Tehran’s morality police for an alleged violation of the law on wearing a head cover.
A source close to the family told RFE/RL’s Radio Farda on September 16, the third anniversary of Amini’s death, that her father, Amjad Amini, was summoned by intelligence officials in Saghez, in Iran’s Kurdistan Province and warned not to take any action to mark the occassion.
Amateur videos posted online showed shops in Saghez closed on September 16 in what was described as a strike by local shopkeepers to mark the anniversary.
The source, who requested anonymity, said security forces have been stationed outside the family’s home in Saghez since September 14 and have been monitoring their movements.
According to the source, security forces also blocked access to Aichi Cemetery—where Amini is buried—to prevent visitors from reaching her grave. The family was barred from visiting the site as well.
Radio Farda sources added that authorities blocked access routes to the cemetery by releasing water from the Cheragh Weis Dam into the Saqqez riverbed.
Similar measures were taken last year on the second anniversary of Amini’s death, which had sparked nationwide protests across Iran. During those demonstrations, women removed their headscarves and many chanted slogans against the clerical establishment, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Authorities responded with a violent crackdown, killing more than 500 people and arresting more than 20,000.
Human Rights Watch said in a statement marking the anniversary that authorities have failed to conduct effective, impartial, and independent investigations into serious human rights violations and crimes under international law during and since the 2022 Women, Life, Freedom protests.
The rights group added that the third anniversary of the protests is “a stark reminder for concerned governments to pursue criminal accountability and other pathways for justice for victims and their families.”
“The victims and their families who suffered brutal violence at the hands of Iranian authorities have no prospects for justice, as those who should deliver redress are themselves implicated in violations and crimes and shield others responsible from accountability,” said Bahar Saba, senior Iran researcher at Human Rights Watch.
“Countries that can prosecute such cases should seek every opportunity to do so.”