Green protesters sit in defiance

Thousands of Iranians staged a silent and peaceful anti-government protest in Tehran on yesterday's anniversary of the disputed presidential election a year ago, witnesses told The National.

Thousands of Iranians, defying regime threats, staged a silent and peaceful anti-government protest in Tehran on yesterday's anniversary of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's disputed re-election a year ago, witnesses told The National. "There were many women, some veiled in black, and many men, people of all ages," one Tehran resident said.

The opposition's leadership, fearing bloodshed, had called off mass protests. But the jittery regime, took no chances, flexing its muscle in Tehran and other cities. Thousands of riot police and Basij militiamen, some patrolling on motorcycles, flooded the teeming capital's main squares as helicopters clattered overhead. There were even masked swat squads. One witness, who has proven consistently reliable in the past, said that there were at least 100,000 protestors. His remarkable estimate could not be immediately confirmed independently: journalists in Iran are forbidden from covering demonstrations whose real scale often emerges only later on internet postings.

"There was little chanting but once in a while you could hear 'down with the dictator'," he said. Security forces beat some with batons to break up gatherings. At least 21 people had been arrested so far in Tehran, according to Enduring America, a blog on US foreign policy with expert Iran coverage. There were reports that protesting students in several universities had been locked in and beaten by security forces who also used tear gas.

Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karrubi, the opposition green movement's two main leaders who challenged Mr Ahmadinejad for the presidency, on Thursday called off anniversary protests because they feared for the lives of "defenceless and innocent people". They will have been bolstered by yesterday's show of defiance. "This can well be considered a success for the opposition," said an analyst in Tehran who spoke on condition of anonymity. "They [the protestors] managed to make the government admit its fear and weakness by bringing so many forces to the streets," he said. "And by remaining silent, most of the time, they managed to suffer the least beatings and arrests - so far."

Earlier yesterday, Mr Mousavi, whom millions of Iranians believe was the real winner of the elections, vowed to continue the struggle against the government and last year's disputed polls, which Mr Ahmadinejad won by what many consider an unlikely landslide. The opposition "may put off its presence in one arena", but "it will persevere" through other peaceful means, he said in a clear attempt to boost the morale of the dispirited "green" movement.

His statement was a tacit acknowledgment that no matter how courageous, people cannot be expected to keep taking to the streets, risking broken bones, arrest and possible death sentences, without seeing concrete political results. Yet they did. And the green movement sounded jubilant in cyberspace last night. "This could well have turned into a million-strong rally if it had not been cancelled or if there had been permission to march," the analyst in Tehran said.

The regime has a firm and proven grip on the levers of repression and has repeatedly claimed to have crushed what it portrays as western-backed "sedition". It has quelled peaceful dissent on the streets in recent months by using violence, mass arrests, televised show trials and long jail terms. The authorities had warned of severe consequences for anyone who took to the streets - even though opposition groups had promised protests would be peaceful and silent, with no speeches.

"If the sedition movement creates a security crisis, we will confront them with full force," warned Reza Farzaneh, a senior commander of the elite Revolutionary Guards, which spearheaded last summer's post-election crackdown in which dozens were killed. After security forces snuffed out the last protest in February, Mr Karrubi expressed confidence that the opposition would easily win in a fair and open duel of rallies between the green movement and government supporters. Mr Mousavi at the time blasted the government as a dictatorial "cult".

The main reason the protests were called off yesterday was because organisers had discovered that regime-inspired provocateurs planned to inflict violence and damage public property and then blame it on the green movement, opposition websites reported. Mr Mousavi, a former prime minister with impeccable revolutionary credentials, said spreading the word about the nature of Iran's ruling establishment was the most potent weapon for the opposition now.

"We need to spread awareness, this is what they fear," he proclaimed in a statement carried by his website, Kaleme.com. "This is their vulnerable point. If we can spread awareness, there will be a huge popular force behind the demand for change." Demonstrations need not be the only way to protest, he added, urging Iranians to distribute films, photos, video clips and cell phone footage of what is really happening in their country.

"We have to expand social networks, websites, these are our best means?This is our army against their military force." Last year's post-election public uprising, the biggest since the Islamic republic came to power in 1979, was symbolised by a mobile phone video of Neda Agha Soltan, a 27-year-old graduate student, bleeding to death from a gunshot wound as she was on her way to a protest. Mr Mousavi and Mr Karrubi view the green movement as a grassroots initiative pursuing the original ideals of the 1979 Islamic revolution, including free elections, freedom of expression and respect for human rights.

They are trying to force an intransigent regime to bend while keeping onside a growing number of young followers who believe the system is beyond reform. [e-mail]