Voices from Iran

The Revolutionary Court in Tehran recently sentenced a women’s rights activist to more than 2 years in prison and 10 lashes, for taking part in a peaceful demonstration.

It seems the government’s crackdown on equal rights campaigners is becoming increasingly harsh – but the women are refusing to be intimidated.

And one way they continue to express themselves is through the written word. Everywoman met three of Iran’s most successful female authors.

Women’s football

Since 1979, Iranian women have been banned from going to men’s football matches. But they do have their own national football team.

The next women’s World Cup is in Germany in 2011 and preparations for that are already well underway.

Everywoman joined the team as they prepared.

Iran Memorial

Roya and Ladan Boroumand, the co-founders of the OMID memorial website

Since the Revolution in 1979, thousands of people who oppose the regime have disappeared. It is claimed they have been tortured and even executed without trial.

One victim was Abdorrahman Boroumand, a lawyer apparently assassinated in Paris after joining a pro-democracy opposition party. His two daughters, Roya and Ladan, felt they had to do something. So they created a website as an online memorial to the victims of the regime.

They call the database OMID, which is the Farsi for ‘hope’.

Shappi Korshandi goes to Edinburgh

Shappi Khorsandi

And someone else who has particular memories of the revolution is stand-up comic Shappi Korshandi, whose father was a popular satirist in Iran. He was declared an enemy of Islam because he openly criticised the Ayatollah. Eventually he and his family had to run for their lives, and they settled in England.

Now Shappi uses her early experiences in a stand-up comedy routine – one of a growing band of Muslim comedians.

Everywoman went to see her show, provocatively titled Asylum Speaker.

Watch part one of this episode of Everywoman on YouTube

Watch part two of this episode of Everywoman on YouTube

This episode of Everywoman airs from Friday, January 11, 2007 at the following times GMT:

Friday: 1130, 2230
Saturday: 0830
Sunday: 0630
Monday: 0930, 1930
Tuesday: 0530
Wednesday: 0230, 0730
Friday: 0600   

---

To contact us click on ‘Send your feedback’ at the top of the page

Watch Al Jazeera English programmes on YouTube

Join our debates on the Your Views page