The Neda Video and the New Iranian Revolution

How important is the "Neda video" in the current Iranian movement toward revolution and reform?

The day after a brutal crackdown on protesters wearing green (the color of the reformist party led by Mir Hossein Mousavi) in the streets of Iran by the Basij, a government-sanctioned paramilitary civilian militia known for its ruthlessness, the streets were relatively quiet. News services reported that the daily commerce seemed to be rather normal. So what happened to the revolution that had hundreds of thousands in the streets of Tehran Saturday? Where were all the iReporters and Tweeters (those who use Twitter) that risked their lives Saturday to get messages and videos out of Iran?

Waiting, experts are saying.

There seems to be a consensus that the best course of action for protesters is to wait for rush hour so that demonstrators can blend in with regular traffic and commerce in Tehran, making them less of a target for the Basij or any other government policing forces that might be employed to stop the unrest. It is expected that those that were out in great numbers Saturday will do the same Sunday, filling the streets with the sounds of political discontent and open rebellion against an oppressive regime that many people in Iran feel stole their democracy in the recent national election. And as darkness falls on Iran, even more demonstrators will resume their street protests.

But what of the Neda video?

The Neda video has galvanized the world, shrinking the week of protest demonstrations in Iran into one moment, one senseless act of violence that sheds light on the brutal nature of the Iranian government. It has become the symbol of a freedom movement, a resistance to the oppressive religious regime and the suppressive interference of a fundamentalist government into the lives of the people it supposedly represents.

The Neda video first appear on the internet soon after the 16-year-old girl was shot. It was later determined that the young woman's name was Neda, a name that means, appropriately enough, "divine message/voice." One story claims she was an innocent bystander watching the protesters from the sidewalk with her father. Another story maintains she was part of the demonstration. It is believed she was shot by a Basiji militia gunman from a nearby rooftop. The video soon became the most watched video on YouTube and soon went viral on the internet.

The world was outraged.

The graphic brutality of the slaying played out on computers, cellphones, and televisions (via CNN and other news services who ran the video) around the word. Twitter, which has been integral in getting information out of Iran and assisting protesters organize, picked up on the growing sentiment. The hashtag .neda was created and millions of tweets were sent offering support and advice to the demonstrators. Condolences from around the world have been sent to the young woman's family.

Neda has become a rallying cry of the Mousavi supporters who seek a recount or a re-vote with regard to the national election. More importantly, the Neda video has given the popular unrest in Iran a face. It has kindled a fire in the people of Iran not to allow their hopes for true democratic freedom to die. And the video has garnered support from around the world.

The importance of the Neda video is that it has given the new revolution in Iran a martyr, a symbol of hopeful innocence crushed, a symbol around which resistance can rally. Neda's death has achieved a symbolic importance that the death of even Mir Hossein Mousavi in his political positioning would never have accomplished.

Many of the comments on Twitter and other social networking websites claim that Neda will be remembered and did not die in vain. Whether or not that is true remains to be seen in the days ahead. There is little doubt that the Iranian government will do what it deems necessary to maintain the status quo, for nothing changes so slowly as an institution geared to self-perpetuation. There will no doubt be harsher government crackdowns, more brutal methods to quell the popular uprisings.

But continued resistance can bring abut change and true democratic reform. Continued popular pressure on the powers that be in Iran could lead to sweeping measures to restructure existing government institutions and produce a more open society. As with any successful movement, it is persistence that will win the day. And some of that persistence will be paid with in blood.

Such is the nature of revolution, even those that are relatively peaceful.

Ultimately, Neda represents all that could have been. And what might still be, if only the Iranian people are willing to stand and fight for it. Thus far, the people of Iran seem more than willing.

In Iran revolution has a new name.

It's name in Neda...

******

Sources:

CNN Television

Fox News Television

Twitter.com