“It’s absolutely a possibility,” Amiry-Moghaddam said. “In the 1980s they used to do it publicly, saying that it was protesting, but now the political cost of such executions is so high that they will charge them for something else.”
Sharing accurate information is one way to show solidarity with protesters in Iran. Nearly 350 demonstrators have been killed and over 15,000 have been arrested, according to HRANA. Activists fear what will happen to those currently detained. But just because an Instagram post fits our expectations or worldview, fact-checkers and activists note that it’s still important to only share correct information and direct efforts to halt human rights violations.
“Now is not the time to spread misinformation; it is time to work to prevent this from moving forward through every single diplomatic channel available,” warned Thompson, who also suggested that many of those in police custody were at risk of severe punishment and harsh sentences designed to break the movement. Thompson was concerned that having world leaders such as Trudeau sharing misleading posts distracted from reporting what was actually happening on the ground and endanger protesters.
Amiry-Moghaddam said people should follow human rights organizations such as Amnesty International for vetted information.
And the message of the protests, the biggest human rights movement in Iran’s history, is one that should be shared.
“We’re talking about people who have been treated as second-class citizens, either as a woman or as minorities,” Amiry-Moghaddam said. “And if they manage to bring about this change, its impact will go far beyond Iran’s borders. We are talking about, I would say, a revolution of dignity.”
Source: https://www.buzzfeed.com/adeonibada/iran-15000-misinformation-viral-post
