-
Iranian homosexual 20-year-old man Alireza Fazeli Monfared was killed on suspicion of “honor killing.”
-
According to a voice memo obtained by an insider, he was a few days away from fleeing Iran due to the persecution of homophobia.
-
“International Day for Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia will take place on Monday, and we need to talk about this that day,” the activist said.
According to an Iranian human rights group, a 20-year-old Iranian man, Alireza Fazeli Monfared, was charged with “honor killings” by his family after learning that he was gay.
Montfared was murdered on May 4-just a few days after his half-parents learned about his sexuality, Iran’s LGBTQ network. 6Rang After a conversation between Montfared’s mother and her best friend, she told the insider.
He had sought a permanent exemption from Iran’s forced military service so that he could claim asylum elsewhere, Montfared said in several voice messages.
However, five days before he was due to leave Iran, his half-parents found documents for his military exemption detailing his sexuality. This prompted his relatives to take him to a remote village and shorten his life in the most brutal way, said Shadi Amin, secretary general of 6Rang.
The 20-year-old murder has sparked worldwide protests, including posting on social media. Demi Lovato.. However, Iranian human rights activists say it symbolizes the daily persecution faced by gay people in Iran.
Okan Sengun, secretary-general and co-founder of the LGBT Asylum Project, said: “International Day for Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia” will be held on Monday (May 17th). Make sure these laws change. That is the key. “
“I have been threatened by my father’s family.”
Monfared was a 20-year-old Arab Iranian from Ahvaz, the capital of Iran’s Khuzestan province.
He was the only child of his mother, but had half-brothers from his father’s previous marriage.
His family is wealthy and his Instagram page shows his love for designer fashion.
He also enjoyed the makeup experiment, but felt he couldn’t do it in public. “Pressure means you can’t do what you want in society,” he said in a voice recording sent to a friend and transferred to an insider. “For example, I want to wear a little makeup and walk around, but you know how Ahvaz is.”
His family was dissatisfied with the way he presented himself, said 6 Rang’s Executive Director. “The clothes he chooses with makeup are unusual for young men in Iran,” Amin said.
Family disapproval led to violent intimidation from relatives. “I have been threatened by my father’s family, murder, etc.,” he said in another recording. “My father was on their side.”
Montfared dreamed of fleeing Iran and starting a new life in Europe. “I’m wondering if I should go to Sweden or Norway,” he explained in one of the voice messages.
He fled to Turkey in mid-May, and when he got there, he planned to apply for asylum elsewhere, Amin said. “He wasn’t ready to continue this conflict with his family,” she added.
But to leave Iran, the young man had to first receive his military exemption.
Homosexuality is considered a psychological illness in Iran
on the other hand Homosexuality is forbidden in Iran The death penalty law allows gay men to abandon military service.
“People in special conditions are exempt, if they have a particular illness, limb defect, or other physical problem,” said Communication Director Jasmine Ramsey. Iran’s Human Rights Center, Told the insider.
“Homosexuality is also considered a psychological illness in Iran, and the military military committee can exempt homosexual services if it is considered homosexual after testing,” she added.
Amin said the Montfared exemption was on the verge of being approved and he was imminently planning to flee. But when his exemption document arrived, it was not Montfared who first opened the letter.
Amin continued, as relatives opened his email and read information confirming Montfared’s sexuality. “Their hatred of homosexuality was so great that I think they decided to kill him,” she added.
On May 4, Montfared made the final preparations for his departure. According to Amin, he went to a local store and tried to sell his cell phone.
Three male relatives (half-parent and two cousins) were waiting for him in a car outside the store. They told Montfared that his father needed to talk to him urgently and they would take him home.
Relatives then took the 20-year-old child to a rural village, Amin said. It was there that they allegedly killed him with a knife.
Later, Montfared’s mother was called by a relative and told to visit a place in a rural village. The next day she found a body holding her son’s head.
His distraught mother was later hospitalized in shock. Arrests have not yet taken place, according to some sources.
The insider asked the Iranian embassy in London for confirmation, but did not immediately respond.
“He was very lively”
The news of Montfared’s tragic death has sparked international protests.
Celebrities, including actress and singer Demi Lovato, share posts commemorating young men on social media.
Prominent Iranian activist Mashi Alinejad in exile in New York uses her Platform for 5 million Instagram followers To raise awareness about the killing.
She said the story was disastrous for her because Montfared was a fan and followed her on Instagram. “I went to see his page, and I found him very vibrant,” she told the insider. “Soon I posted on my social media about his death, and it became viral. I wish he had this kind of attention while he was alive.”
In response to her post, members of the LGBTQ community living in Iran sent her clips-secretly filmed-recording the difficulty of living in a country that opposes their existence. Iranians who send videos to Alinejad face up to 10 years in prison. Tehran’s Revolutionary Court Chief warned in July 2019..
Activists want the video to inform people about the lives of strange people in Iran. In Iran, the punishment for being gay ranges from 100 whips to the execution.
Homophobia is widespread in Iran, said Ramsey, communications director at Iran’s Human Rights Center.
“LGBTQ people need to hide their sexual identity if they want to avoid being discriminated against, mentally or physically harmed, or prosecuted. At the same time, they are prosecuted for revealing their identity. There is no way to remedy infringement or abuse because of the potential for it, “she said.
The day after the murder, LGBT Asylum project Okan Sengun said he had received many emails from gay Iranians who were traumatized by Monfared’s death. “‘I don’t want to be the next Alireza'”
Read the original article insider