It has been about five years since Farima Habashizadehasl, whose stage name is Justina, fled to Sweden. Every day she thinks about the situation of women in Iran.
– We have hot weather in the summer in Iran and as a woman you have to wear a hijab. I always think about how brave the Iranian women are. They always talk about why we have to wear these clothes, even if we didn’t choose it, says rapper Justina.
The regime in Iran puts a lot of pressure on women
The regime has put a lot of pressure on Iran’s women after last year’s demonstrations in the country, she believes. The protests started after 22-year-old Mahsa Zhina Amini was arrested for not wearing a hijab and died in the custody of the morality police.
Protesters were injured, killed and sentenced to death.
– Now the regime gives the morality police permission to stop women without a hijab and also to fire them, arrest them and call the police. When Iranian women go outside their homes, the risks and dangers increase. But the women cannot be stopped, they cannot go back to what was past, says Justina.
“We cannot continue to be silenced”
Justina’s family and friends still live in Iran and she says that even though they are afraid of the moral police, they get strength from each other.
– When I talked to my mother, she said: “What can they do if all women walked without a hijab on the street. Can they arrest us? No of course not.” After last year, a lot has changed in my country, I can see that when I talk to my family. We can’t just stop fighting for our rights now and continue to be silenced, says Justina.
Hear Justina tell about her worst experience with the moral police in the clip above. Don’t miss the Foreign Office’s latest episode Slöjpolisen’s comeback in SVT Play.