A Saskatchewan-based lawyer originally from Iran says the country’s future must be shaped through law and independent institutions and internal reform, not through foreign military intervention or concentrating power in the hands of any single leader.
SHM, who asked to be identified only by initials due to safety concerns, said the country is experiencing profound grief following recent unrest.
“I prefer to start by admitting a nation in mourning before everything,” she said. “Across the country, actually, we are experiencing a deep and collective grief.”
She said the government bears responsibility for protecting citizens regardless of competing narratives surrounding the protests.
“I personally believe that the fundamental responsibility of this lies with the state, because the government is responsible for protecting lives, properties, and citizens,” SHM said. “The government should be held accountable.”
SHM said the crackdown has also extended to members of the legal profession, including colleagues she personally knows who have been detained for defending protesters. She said lawyers representing clients involved in demonstrations have themselves become targets of arrests.
“So many of my colleagues now they are under arrest for representing clients who were engaged in protests; among them, Shima Guoshe is one of my colleagues, and she has been under arrest for more than 30 days for representing clients who were engaged in protests or were writing for people who were taking active roles,” she said.
SHM, who practiced law in Iran for seven years before moving to Canada, said concerns about the country’s future extended beyond opposition to the current leadership.
“There are some group of Iranian people, many million, I believe that they are against the current government, but at the same time they do not support these movements of Pahlavi,” she said.
She referred to Reza Pahlavi, the son of Iran’s former monarch, who has positioned himself as an alternative political figure.
“He is saying, ‘Technically, it is okay during the transitory period; I will take the power, and then I’ll try to stabilize the country, and then I will facilitate the democratic process in Iran,'” SHM said.
But she questioned whether concentrated power could lead to democracy.
“I personally have a very big question: how is it possible for a person to seize the power in the Middle East and to just give it back after getting all the power on his head?” she questioned. “Historically, it is not possible.”
She warned that replacing one form of authoritarian leadership with another could repeat past mistakes.
“If the power is seized in one hand, we will definitely divert from the democratic path,” SHM said.
She said Iran’s political struggle is rooted in a deeper demand for democratic rights and equality.
“Our eagerness to have democracy is more powerful than just overthrowing this current government,” she said. “Democracy is our problem, and the reason why we are not getting along with this government is the issue of democracy and equality.”
SHM also warned strongly against foreign military intervention, saying it would harm civilians and undermine political reform and legal stability.
“Military intervention is an evil,” she said. “Military attack will demolish the country into ashes. The infrastructure will be destroyed, and the people would be the person who paid the price.”
She pointed to past conflicts in the region as cautionary examples.
“Look at the experience of Iraq. Look at the experience of Afghanistan,” SHM said. “Are they experiencing a democratic country now? No, the answer is no.”
She said a meaningful democratic change should come from within Iranian society.
“A considerable percentage of people of Iran, they are opposed to any kind of foreign intervention,” she said. “They strongly believe that any solution to reach democracy should start within Iran, not from outside Iran.”
SHM said she believes geopolitical and economic interests play a major role in foreign involvement in the region, particularly given Iran’s energy resources and strategic position.
“I personally believe that Iran’s oil is really important for the US. And for a long period of time, Iran was selling its oil at a very low cost to China,” she said. “They have been there for oil for so many years, and whenever they are engaged in the Middle East, oil is the most important key factor.”
SHM said Iran’s future should be shaped through democratic institutions rather than relying on individual leaders.
“We should not trust anybody, anybody,” she said. “We should actually think of a structure, an organization, and a structure.”
SHM said Iran has previously experienced constitutional government, pointing to the country’s early efforts to limit centralized authority through law. She said Iran’s legal tradition includes more than a century of attempts to establish accountability and restrict unchecked political power.
“We had the constitution of 1906. We had the experience of limiting the power. We had the experience of democracy,” she said.
She said meaningful political change takes time and must develop naturally.
“This change must happen naturally,” SHM said. “A matter of political change is a matter that should happen in a context of time.”
She also said many Iranians now believe religion and state authority should remain separate.
I believe people in Iran are not religious by any means, and a majority of people, maybe I should put it this way, they strongly believe that their religion and the political matters should go their own ways, and people are not defending any government that is affected by religious values,” she said.
Despite the uncertainty, she said many Iranians remain committed to democratic ideals.
“If you are asking me about an ideal political world in which Iranian people could live, I would say a free liberal country would actually meet their eagerness,” she said.
She said Iran’s modern history offers a clear warning about concentrating power in any single leader, regardless of ideology.
“Forty years ago, Iranians experienced the concentration of power in the hands of one person. Whether it was Ayatollah Khomeini or Pahlavi, the concentration of power in one hand is dangerous,” she said.
