Violence, Policewomen & Football · Global Voices
Fred Petrossian

According to the media and several blogs police in Iran have beaten and arrested tens of people after a group of women activists tried to hold a demonstration asking for greater legal rights in a square of the capital Tehran on Monday 12 June. Several bloggers have reported about this event and taken photos of the demonstration.
Pictures say more than words
Mansour Nasiri, a Tehran-based photo blogger, has taken several photos of the protest and police women (identifiable by their brown headscarfs). The blogger explains that the rally demanded equal rights for women. According to Nasiri the female police officers beat many of the women  protesters.
The policewomen, identifiable by their brown headscarfs and the truncheons they are holding, are seen on the left of the picture. Nasiri explains that, as well as asking for equal rights, the women were calling for the ullification of a polygamy law that allows Iranian men to have four wives at the same time.
Kosoof another photo blogger has published excellent photos from the repressed peaceful protest. The blogger says :
“I feel pain…a lot…not for the photos that you are looking at…but for what I saw and there is no photo of that (Persian).”
We are human beings with no rights!
Sharbighese says she was scared and had an exam to prepare but she decided to join the demonstration. She says the number of cops were more than people who dared to shout slogans such as “we are human beings but we have no rights” or “we want the abolition of anti women's laws” (Persian). The police could not control the crowd, many people watch us but afraid of supporting movement…
Repression & policewomen
Lady Sun writes about the information that she got through yahoo messenger from a friend in Tehran. She reports:
“One of my friends who was in an office near Hafte Tir square ( protest place) told me in yahoo messenger that there were a lot of policewomen with teargas. They had also red sprays to put on women, so that they would be recognized in case of escaping. She also said that the event was badly organized and not a single location in the big square was selected from before. So people were scattered in different parts of the square. She said some people were taken to jail and some people were taken to hospitals”
and in a later addition she says
* Update 2: Pain, pain, pain, disgust, violence, cruelty, barbarity, fundamentalism…
Nobody knows exactly how many people are arrested. Some are disappeared, some have voluntarily disappeared; no accurate news. My friends’ bodies ache because of being beaten up, but their hearts ache more. Their hearts ache, but
While the main focus of attention inside Iran was on the demonstration many eyes were also outside the country – and of course it was the football world cup which occupied their attention.
Iran lost its first match to Mexico: 3 to 1. Iranian bloggers as usual try to analyse the match and find the guilty ones for this defeat!
Where are supporters ?
Legofish says German TV did not show Iranian supporters in stadium, except a sleepy man, even when Iran scored a goal. The blogger says may be the Iranian government asked them not to show them (Persian). The blogger says according that according to his friends in Germany there are not many Iranians around to watch Iranian national team matches.
A Defensive Game
Parsa says our team wanted to take one point out of the match and played a defensive game. The blogger adds it was a heavy loss and our team is a fragile one with a lot of difficulties in its defence (Persian).
Good coach but not great one!
NickAhang, Canada based blogger & cartoonist, says our coach, Branco, is a good but not great one. The bloggers like many other Iranians have criticised Ali Daei, the Iranian captain, as being too old to play. The blogger adds if he wanted to honour Daei  (37 years old player) he could make him his assistant. NickAhang addsAli Daei is  a great player but he is only a part of national team (Persian).
What is the real disaster?
But some defeats are more significant than others. Abbas Maroufi, Germany based writer & blogger, says our defeat in football is not the real disaster. He writes that beating up women by the police women is the real disaster (Persian).