1437
Iranian chess player who removed hijab gets Spanish citizenship (www.reuters.com)
submitted 3 years ago by to c/world@lemmy.world
65 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

MADRID, July 26 (Reuters) - An Iranian chess player who moved to Spain in January after she competed without a hijab and had an arrest warrant issued against her at home has been granted Spanish citizenship, Spain said on Wednesday.

Sarasadat Khademalsharieh, better known as Sara Khadem, took part in the FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships held in Kazakhstan in late December without the headscarf that is mandatory under Iran's strict Islamic dress codes.

Laws enforcing mandatory hijab-wearing became a flashpoint during the unrest that swept Iran when a 22-year-old Iranian-Kurdish woman, Mahsa Amini, died in the custody of the morality police in mid-September.

The 26-year-old has told Reuters she had no regrets over her gesture in support of the protest movement against her country's clerical leadership.

Spain's official gazette said the cabinet approved granting Khadem citizenship on Tuesday "taking into account the special circumstances" of her case.

top 50 comments

sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] 209 points 3 years ago (2 children)

I guess she’s a Spanish chess player now. And that’s how brain drain works.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • hideshow 4 child comments
    •
  • [–] 110 points 3 years ago (2 children)

    A very gifted programmer I met from Iran had to do the same. Originally from Iran, he wanted to marry a girl from Myanmar. This was forbidden for some reason so they said "fuck it, let's go to where there is loads of tech jobs". I was working in the Netherlands at the time when I met them. He's now flourishing in the open source software space over there. Brain drain 100%.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 4 child comments
    •
  • [–] 9 points 3 years ago (4 children)

    Actually there is no problem to marry someone from a different country. The problem is you cannot marry with a non-muslim person, so he/she should accept Islam first. 😟😄 weird like many other rules! I don't know if other religions have such restrictions or not, I would be happy to hear if someone knows.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 4 child comments
    •
    load more comments (4 replies)
    • [–] 137 points 3 years ago (2 children)

    Imagine not being able to return 'home' because you took your hat off. 🤔

    I hope her friends and family wont catch any retribution for her 'escaping' shitty islamic justice

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • hideshow 4 child comments
    •
  • [–] 56 points 3 years ago (1 child)

    Imagine not being able to return ‘home’ because you took your hat off. 🤔

    I never quite realized just how pedestrian taking the hijab off is, yeah. Never really thought about it. It is quite literally just taking your hat or well, head-scarf, off. It's like when my great-grandma came in from the rain and took that plastic headband off she always wore to keep her hair dry.

    Ridiculous how backwards we as a species can be, and sadly often are. 😔

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
  • [–] 3 points 3 years ago (1 child)

    Is it too reductive to conclude this is just men wanting to be able to dictate what women should and shouldn't do? Anyone claiming otherwise, even women who "would gladly wear it" feels like Stockholm syndrome to me.

    Maybe I'm wrong to think this, but alas, I do.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
  • [–] [S] 13 points 3 years ago (2 children)

    Yeah the whole thing sucks just remember their are religious fanatics within all religions.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 4 child comments
    •
  • [–] 31 points 3 years ago (3 children)

    Fanatics and extremists exist regardless of religions. The latter just allows them to control people easier, and islam happens to be particularly good at that.

    Of course, most 'religious' people have enough common sense to not follow them to the T. When the government is religious though, like islam encourages, you have a big problem

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 5 child comments
    •
  • [–] 23 points 3 years ago (1 child)

    Fanatics and extremists exist regardless of religions. The latter just allows them to control people easier, and islam happens to be particularly good at that.

    This is more accurate.

    It's not that "fanatics exist in all religions", it's "fanatics exist", and religions just give them a cover that is depending on society difficult to challenge as in many places, a religion's influence on society and rules is quite normalized, completely ignoring how ridiculous this influence is.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
  • [–] 2 points 3 years ago

    it's "fanatics exist", and religions just give them a cover

    It isn't much of a leap to understanding that religions have always served the purpose of controlling people.

    When a leader has a tool that allows the people to think his pronouncements have the endorsement of a God, that leader is going to use that tool.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • [–] 12 points 3 years ago* (last edited 3 years ago) (1 child)

    Islam isn't better at it than other religions it just happens to be the major religions in the countries where those fanatics managed to seize the power. You can find similar examples with Christianism (Europe, USA), Judaism (Israel), Hinduism (India), Buddhism (Myanmar) and probably many more.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
  • [–] 11 points 3 years ago (1 child)

    Islam isn't better at it than other religions it just happens to be the major religions in the countries where those fanatics managed to seize the power

    That's no coincidence imo.

    I see all religions as negative, but Islam is the only one I can personally attest to, being an ex muslim. It's cult-y and tends to bring out the worst in people, more so than most religions from what I've seen.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
  • [–] 1 point 3 years ago (1 child)

    Your personal experience is not a good argument.

    Here's a recent exemple of Hindu fanatics attacking Muslims: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2020_Delhi_riots and another from Christian fanatics attacking the institutions of the USA https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_6_United_States_Capitol_attack

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
  • [–] 5 points 3 years ago* (last edited 3 years ago) (1 child)

    Let's not compare atrocities committed by religions; islam's would be never-ending if we did, as your comment also suggested.

    I will add though that buddism's continued oppression of muslims in Myanmar is sickening, in addition to your examples

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
  • [–] 1 point 3 years ago (2 children)

    Let’s not compare atrocities committed by religions

    Isn't it what you do when singling out Islam ?

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 4 child comments
    •
    • load more comments (1 reply)
  • [–] 6 points 3 years ago (1 child)

    The problem is when a government is captured by religion.

    There is nothing quite so bad as religious types getting power based purelly on being religious types.

    I suspect that, because it's the most fanatical power-hungry types (Moralism is really just a way of justifying the forcing of others to your will) who both have the most motivation to seek positions were they can have free rain to really go on powertrips on other people, and display more overtly the very religiosity that is the whole reason for a government whose power is based on religion.

    Certainly those who feel no need to impose their will on others and who can even *gasp* see some actions as overzealous, don't have anywhere the same drive, zealotry and backstabbing instincts to climb up the ladder in such power structures.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
    • [–] 73 points 3 years ago (1 child)

    When this story appeared last year, my first thought was:"Well, I hope she plans on never going back to Iran"

    Glad to see she is safe.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
    • [+] 70 points 3 years ago* (last edited 3 years ago) (2 children)
    [deleted]
  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • hideshow 4 child comments
    •
  • [–] 19 points 3 years ago (1 child)

    While I agree strongly with the latter statement I have a lot of reservations with the former. I am incredibly happy for her. But this decision as has been the case most of the time in the past decade with the exception of Ukrainian refugees is a decision on an individual level instead of an institutional one. There are a lot of people who are either asylum seekers, people with asylum or quota refugees with similar situations and danger levels. Making individual decisions leaves them behind and only aids one person. Basically, it is good PR with limited results increasing already existent inequality among refugees in Spain.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
  • [–] 2 points 3 years ago

    Spain is a fairly difficult country to get into if you want the law to treat you in equal terms as any other citizen, if you belong to the wrong nationality. Latin Americans are often received with open arms, while Africans usually end up working below minimum salary without legal protections due to the lack of means to regularize their situation and the fear of getting deported.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
    • [+] 36 points 3 years ago (1 child)
    [removed by mod]
  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
    • [–] 25 points 3 years ago

    4D move by Spain; even better than Bb5, aka the "Spanish opening" or Ruy Lopez.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
    •
    [–] 5 points 3 years ago

    Well, good. Hope things are smooth sailing from here!

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
    •
    [–] 4 points 3 years ago

    Hooray for Spain for the second time today. The other "hooray" was for standing against far-right movements.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
    •
    [–] 3 points 3 years ago (10 children)

    And another person who couldv'e helped Iran move past its issues leaves.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • hideshow 14 child comments
    •
  • [–] 18 points 3 years ago* (last edited 3 years ago) (2 children)

    I would say it's the other way around.

    The way to "help" Iran is for more people to leave. Significantly more, basically anybody with two brain cells to rub together. Leave only the most assinine idiots behind and then they can run their own country into the ground hardcore but they no longer affect anyone with it as everyone else has left.

    Basically, Iran has to cease to exist in its current form. By burning itself out. This is incidentally the same way we could move past idiotic religious believes in the first place.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 4 child comments
    •
  • [–] 5 points 3 years ago

    I would say that what you say makes sense but it doesn't really work super well in practice. I'll give the best example. North Korea. We have choked them on food, energy, medicine etc. For going on 70 years now. They are still a cancerous blight on the world. With nukes. Sure I guess the argument could be made that they stay inside north Korea and keep to themselves though.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • [–] 3 points 3 years ago

    If the Irani government already intends to arrest her, her only avenue to "help Iran" was taking up arms. I think everyone here has enough brain cells to understand why you can't shame any random person for just not making that choice.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
    • load more comments (6 replies)
    [+] 1 point 3 years ago
    [deleted]
  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
    •
    load more comments
    view more: next ›