Saeed Bashirtash (Persian: سعید بشیرتاش; born 26 December 1965) is an Iranian politician, dentist and implant surgeon who lives in Brussels, Belgium. He is an activist in opposition to the Islamic Republic of Iran system of government. He leads the 7 Aban Front, a political group opposing the government.[1]
In 1996, he took became the chief organizer of The Youth Organization of the Party of the Iranian Nation (Persian: سازمان جوانان حزب ملت ایران), a group of activists within the Party of the Iranian Nation, working closely with his close friends, Parvaneh Eskandari, and Dariush Forouhar, the founder of the Party of the Iranian Nation. Forouhar and Eskandari were victims of the 1988–98 chain murders of Iran.
Early life
Saeed Bashirtsah was born in Tehran in 1965. After the Iranian revolution, when he turned 19, he moved to Belgium to pursue a degree in dentistry. After returning to Iran, he focused on his work as a political activist with the Youth Organization of the Party of the Iranian Nation, while allegedly he continued his dental practice, pro bono, in the poorer neighbourhoods of Iran.
Life in exile
After escaping to Belgium through Turkey, Bashirtash began working independently of the Party of the Iranian Nation to overthrow the Government of Iran. He wrote numerous articles for the opposition, and took to public speaking, most notably RoubeRou (Manoto),[2] RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty,[3] and Voice of America. In 2018, he founded Shahrivar (شهریور), a Persian-language political and theoretical quarterly journal of the Iranian diaspora, which publishes contributions from Iranian scholars, intellectuals, and analysts across Europe and North America. The journal, issued from Brussels, serves as a platform for secular and liberal political thought within the Iranian diaspora community.[4]
In October 2022, at the height of the Women, Life, Freedom Movement, Saeed Bashirtash organized a meeting of dozens of prominent Iranian opposition activists in Brussels, during which he founded the 7 Aban Front. He has led the group ever since. Composed of pro-democracy and nationalist activists, the 7 Aban Front firmly opposes any religious interference in politics.[5][6][7]
In addition to his political activism, Saeed also operates three dental clinics in Belgium with his wife Darya Safai.
According to De Morgen, an investigation into a possible scandal involving Bashirtash and his wife Darya Safai was requested by Belgium Secretary of State for Asylum Sammy Mahdi. The Belgian federal prosecutor's office found no evidence of criminal offences.[8]
Political views
Bashirtash claims the continuation of the current order of governance in Iran is a threat to Iran as a nation-state and the political stability of the region.
He states that a "progressive" revolution against the Government of Iran by the Iranian people, and building a secular democracy, will guarantee the separation of religion and state, as well as equal rights for all Iranian citizens.
Further reading
- Lopen tegen de wind (Running against the Wind) (October, 2015), a book by Darya Safai
- Ben ik betaald voor humanitaire visa? Ongelofelijk dat ik die vraag zelfs moet beantwoorden (March, 2021), an interview by Montasser AlDe'emeh and Sam Ooghe.[9]