Is Iran really like Orwell’s 1984? Here are 4 similarities

A new report says life for Christians in Iran is harder than ever. Ben Cohen says their horrific treatment at the hands of the Morality Police reminds him of George Orwell’s famous dystopian novel

On 16 September 2022, 22-year-old Iranian woman Mahsa Amini died in a Tehran hospital. Iran’s Morality Police had arrested her for wearing her hijab incorrectly. The official version of events was that she died of a heart attack in custody. Witnesses to her detention suggest she died from a brutal beating by police – a finding echoed by a UN factfinding mission into the death.

I’m sure you will have seen footage of thousands taking to the streets in protest – it started within hours of her death. It’s hard to gauge the total number that demonstrated, but an estimated 20,000 were detained and over 550 killed – in part due to security forces firing live rounds of ammunition at the protestors.

Along with several media commentators, I wondered if Iran’s theocratic totalitarian government could survive the public outcry. Yet, 18 months later, they are still very much in place, their vice-like grip on power even tighter and more ruthless.