Residents of Kurdish Town in Iran Angry Over Mysterious Murders
07:41 - 30 April 2012
BOKAN, Iranian Kurdistan -- Public anger continues over the abduction and killing of a 17-year-old girl in the Kurdish town of Bokan in western Iranian Kurdistan.
Sumayeh Faizullapur, a high school student, was kidnapped while returning from school and killed after being raped. Her lifeless body was recovered one week later near a park in Bokan.
Rudaw has learned that Faizullapur’s father, one of her sisters and two brother-in-laws have been detained by the Bokan intelligence branch.
Bokan residents demand that those behind Faizullapur’s murder be brought to justice. They say several instances of abduction and rape targeting students have occurred since the Kurdish New Year last March.
Ijlal Qawami, spokesperson for Kurdistan’s Human Rights Organization, told Rudaw that so far 10 students in Bokan have been kidnapped and raped “by an unknown group.”
Shokufeh Qubadi, member of Iran’s Women’s Union for Democracy, alleges the kidnappers are known and “are government employees.”
She describes the kidnappings as a “new method by the government to intimidate and silence people.”
On April 16, students and teachers in Bokan’s elementary, secondary and high schools organized a strike and refused to attend classes to protest the attacks.
Many Bokan residents have threatened to close their stores and the traditional bazaar if city officials fail to respond to demands to bring the perpetrators of the attacks to justice.
On April 20, around 2,000 women from Bokan took part in a rally demanding justice for families of the victims. They met with the city’s mayor who promised to take action, but failure of local authorities to do so has led to new protests.
Many parts of Iranian Kurdistan are under tight security due to the decades-long history of Kurdish dissent toward the government in Tehran. Kurds, who constitute Iran’s third largest ethnic group after Persians and Azeri Turks, complain of routine discrimination and underdevelopment of their areas as a result of neglect by the Iranian government.
Limo Bayazidzadeh, a member of the Kurdistan Women’s Union in Iran, told Rudaw that a large number of security forces have been dispatched to Bokan. The forces, she said, have “prevented any form of protest of demonstration.” So far, 15 demonstrators have been detained by security forces.
“The government is trying to demolish the morale of Kurdish youth through these abductions and to isolate them. That is why it strongly supports such crimes,” said Bayazidzadeh.
Source: Rudaw
Photo: Rudaw
Sumayeh Faizullapur, a high school student, was kidnapped while returning from school and killed after being raped. Her lifeless body was recovered one week later near a park in Bokan.
Rudaw has learned that Faizullapur’s father, one of her sisters and two brother-in-laws have been detained by the Bokan intelligence branch.
Bokan residents demand that those behind Faizullapur’s murder be brought to justice. They say several instances of abduction and rape targeting students have occurred since the Kurdish New Year last March.
Ijlal Qawami, spokesperson for Kurdistan’s Human Rights Organization, told Rudaw that so far 10 students in Bokan have been kidnapped and raped “by an unknown group.”
Shokufeh Qubadi, member of Iran’s Women’s Union for Democracy, alleges the kidnappers are known and “are government employees.”
She describes the kidnappings as a “new method by the government to intimidate and silence people.”
On April 16, students and teachers in Bokan’s elementary, secondary and high schools organized a strike and refused to attend classes to protest the attacks.
Many Bokan residents have threatened to close their stores and the traditional bazaar if city officials fail to respond to demands to bring the perpetrators of the attacks to justice.
On April 20, around 2,000 women from Bokan took part in a rally demanding justice for families of the victims. They met with the city’s mayor who promised to take action, but failure of local authorities to do so has led to new protests.
Many parts of Iranian Kurdistan are under tight security due to the decades-long history of Kurdish dissent toward the government in Tehran. Kurds, who constitute Iran’s third largest ethnic group after Persians and Azeri Turks, complain of routine discrimination and underdevelopment of their areas as a result of neglect by the Iranian government.
Limo Bayazidzadeh, a member of the Kurdistan Women’s Union in Iran, told Rudaw that a large number of security forces have been dispatched to Bokan. The forces, she said, have “prevented any form of protest of demonstration.” So far, 15 demonstrators have been detained by security forces.
“The government is trying to demolish the morale of Kurdish youth through these abductions and to isolate them. That is why it strongly supports such crimes,” said Bayazidzadeh.
Source: Rudaw
Photo: Rudaw
