Iran: Ebrahim Raisi is dead but oppression lives on

Iran's Ebrahim Raisi was a year away from the end of his first presidential term when he died on May 20. Raisi, his Foreign Minister Hussein Amirabdollahian, and six other people — including two pilots — lost their lives when the helicopter transporting them went down near the Azerbaijani border.

Raisi "died as a martyr serving his country," said Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. State media outlets showed images and videos aimed to underline Raisi's popularity during his commemoration. According to the head of Iran's state broadcaster, millions of people had rushed to Tehran to attend the ceremony honoring the late president.

Mandatory grief in Iran

"In a country where there are no real polls and free elections, they are forced to seek legitimacy in crowds around coffins," exiled Iranian journalist Mohammad Javed Akbarin commented in an online post. The right to free assembly, according to Akbarin, is not guaranteed to all Iran's citizens.

Indeed, after Raisi's death was confirmed, Iran's judiciary warned that "any acts of protest which jeopardize national security and hurt the emotions of grievers will be punished."

The case of reporter Manizheh Moazen shows this is no idle threat. After Raisi's death, she reposted a tweet emphasizing the president's role in the mass executions of political prisoners in the 1980s.

"Due to my reaction to the death of Ebrahim Riasi, the judiciary has opened a case against me," she wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

A career built on blood

"Raisi never regretted his actions," Iranian writer and activist Shadi Amin told DW. The activist, currently based in Germany, focuses on helping people from Iran's LGBTQ+ community and other minority groups. 

"For over 40 years, Raisi has always been playing an important role in implementing the policies of the Islamic Republic, predominantly in suppressing the civilian population," she added.

Raisi was 63 years old when he died. He started building his career early, joining the judiciary as a young cleric immediately after the 1979 Islamic Revolution, and quickly making his way into the so-called death commission responsible for killing thousands of political prisoners. He then continued his career as a judge, becoming chief justice in 2019, and eventually president in 2021.

In an interview following the 2021 election, Raisi defended his record in Iran's judiciary.

"If a judge, a prosecutor or a lawyer defend the people's security, they should be praised for it," he told reporters, commenting on the mass killings in the 1980s.

EU condolences 'big disappointment'

As president, Raisi played a key role in suppressing the protests against the Iranian regime that kept flaring up across the country, most recently after the death of Jina Mahsa Amini in September 2022.

"He called for the implementation of misogynic law including the mandatory headscarves for women," according to  Shadi Amin.

At the same time, Shadi Amin points out that Iran's religious leaders have the last word on practically any topic in the country.

"In recent years, there have been enough people who, like Raisi, have been brought in this system and are ready to act against the civilian population in harsh and brutal ways," said Amin. "The only thing I regret are the condolences coming from the European Union and international organizations for a mass murder such as him. This is a big disappointment for Iranian women and its population."