2023
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Iranian parliament members suggest that if the Taliban continues to restrict women’s education, Iran’s universities can assist them. However, they also suggest that the availability of education should be balanced with existing resources and conditions, and private universities could be a viable option for women’s education. In Iran, the government has been promoting the privatization of education for years. While Taliban deny education to women in Afghanistan, the Islamic Republic of Iran may permit them to receive study visas and attend private schools and colleges, as long as they can afford it.
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The return of the Taliban to power in Afghanistan has been a disaster for the country’s people, particularly women. For instance, restrictions on women’s education and work have been imposed, leading to the closure of high schools and universities for women. There have been protests against these restrictions at some universities, and some male students have refused to take classes or avoided exams because of the them.
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As the upcoming presidential election draws near, political parties are making a variety of promises on how to handle the refugee crisis. Unfortunately, one of the topics dominating election news is the potential deportation of refugees back to their home countries in order to stem the flow of movement across borders.
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The brutal reality of refugee camps in Greece has been exposed by the EODY workers’ union, who have issued a damning statement about the conditions faced by asylum seekers. According to the union, the government is turning Reception and Identification Centers into real prisons, complete with double NATO-style military fencing, card and fingerprint entry gates, and surveillance systems. Asylum seekers are being forced to live in these structures, with their freedom severely restricted, even though they have committed no crime.
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In recent years, Greece has seen a reconfiguration of its migrant concentration camps, with new camps being erected on islands and existing camps being converted into “closed controlled centers” surrounded by walls. These military-style camps are part of a broader racist-colonial system operating within Greece and throughout Europe.
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The head of the Judicial Commission of the Islamic Council of Iran has announced an alarming development: non-compliance with the hijab will soon result in an SMS warning, followed by fines and the blocking of the offender’s national ID card, rendering them unable to access social services until the imposed fine is paid. This plan is being unveiled at a time when reports from Iran indicate that many women have been emboldened to shed the mandatory hijab, particularly following widespread protests.
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Amidst the turmoil of Iran’s economic crisis, the government’s recent move to raise the minimum wage has been met with skepticism by independent labor organizations. As the poverty line in the country reaches nearly 8 million tomans (fluctuating between 150 and 155 euros) per month, and the poverty index surpasses 50%, the minimum wage has been increased to just a little over 5 million tomans (between 100 and 105 euros) per month.
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More than half of humanity now resides in cities. By 2050, this number is expected to double, creating an unprecedented level of urban growth. Will these cities be places of justice and equality, where prosperity and quality of life are available to all? Or will the urban future be one in which cities benefit the global 1 percent at the expense of the many, where growth and opportunity are coupled with exclusion and repression? The rising level of urban unrest worldwide may be a sign of the direction in which cities are moving.
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The devastating invasion of Iraq by the United States was an egregious act of violence that cannot be understated. The comparison to the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II is apt, for in both cases, innocent lives were taken in the name of punishing supposed war criminals. Yet, the real criminals of war were not brought to justice but rather the people of Iraq were made to suffer.
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In 2016, the European Union (EU) and Turkey reached a deal known as the EU-Turkey Statement, aimed at managing the large influx of refugees and migrants arriving in Europe from conflict zones in the Middle East and North Africa. Under the agreement, Turkey agreed to take back all refugees and migrants who arrived in Greece illegally, while the EU pledged to provide Turkey with financial assistance and visa liberalization for Turkish citizens.
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The new Immigration bill. What a fascinating piece of work. It’s like watching a magician perform a sleight-of-hand trick, distracting us with one hand while the other is doing something entirely different. In this case, the government is proposing to overhaul the legal framework governing immigration in Greece, while simultaneously erecting insurmountable barriers to the protection of the rights of immigrants who have been living in the country for years.
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Yuliya, a Ukrainian expat, recently had a challenging encounter with some Greek leftists. We met last summer and had interesting conversation and sharing thoughts about the global left. We shared this point that it is crucial for the left to recognize the complexities of political situations in countries like Russia, Ukraine, and Iran, and not fall into the trap of blindly supporting regimes that claim to be anti-imperialist. The left must acknowledge that there can be authoritarian and oppressive regimes that are not aligned with the West.