Living In Hell: A True Odyssey of a Woman's Struggle in Islamic Iran Against Personal and Political Forces [Anglais] [Relié]

Somewhere inside this ungainly behemoth of a memoir lies an absorbing account of a middle-class girl's life in Iran. Yet only the most patient reader will follow the travails of Omid (a pseudonym meaning "lost soul") from conception into middle age. After five introductions that each repeat approximately the same point (women are ill treated in Iran), Omid launches into extensive backgrounds on both sets of grandparents; her shrewd, bigamous businessman father (whom she hates); her mother (on whom she blows hot and cold); and her brothers (her feelings range from dislike to hatred). Omid appears to be a contentious person as well as a grievance collector, and her clashes with family, friends, teachers and, later, when she emigrates to Canada, employers, seem more personal than political. The protracted detailing of grudges becomes so numbing that when genuine iniquity occurs—she claims to have been raped and briefly kidnapped—a reader's reaction is somewhat muted. In the 150-page Canadian section toward the end, Omid quarrels incessantly with her brothers (who also emigrate), becomes anorexic, has plastic surgery and is diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Iran would seem to be the least of her worries. (June)
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Ghazal Omid: An Iranian Woman's Plight for Personal & Political Freedom

A young Iranian woman, Ghazal Omid, has written a courageous and powerful book entitled "Living in Hell: A True Odyssey of a Woman's Struggle in Islamic Iran Against Personal and Political Forces" (488 pp., Park Avenue Publisher). As Loretta Napoleoni has written in her forward, "Omid's terrifying life story encapsulates all the extraordinary elements of growing up in a far-away land of which Westerners know very little". Indeed, Omid masterfully highlights through her nightmarish personal tale not only the continued violence against women in her country, but also provides a valuable account of the historical events of Iran before and after the rise of Ayatollah Khomeini. She gives a first hand account of the dysfunctional nature of Iranian society that has been transformed by those she defines as "mindless fanatics who have taken the Iranian people as fools for the past 26 years and who", according to Omid, "are waiting to do the same with the rest of the world". Although Omid now lives in Canada, the publication of her book has made her a target of numerous death threats and her website livinginhell.com has become a technical battleground that is continually hacked by those who oppose her and her criticisms. When probed about these events, Omid laughs nervously and says, "I'm not surprised", adding "what do you expect from those who don't tolerate dissent"? What are the main criticisms of those who oppose you and what you've written? "Most of the criticism comes from people living in Islamic societies. They criticize me for writing about my own personal life - the fact that I've written about being raped by own brother and about growing up in a culture where I had no way of speaking up. They call me a whore and keep saying that I'm nothing but an opportunist. Despite being hassled by my compatriots and other Muslims, I must say that non-Muslims and non-Iranians have been very supportive". You are very critical of the mullahs in Iran, but not of Islam? In your opinion, is it possible to separate religion from politics in the Islamic Republic of Iran? "I'm not critical of Islam, but it's very difficult to separate the two in Iran. I'm not only criticizing Islam, but any religion that is exploited by its practitioners. I say that I believe in God, but only the God that created me and not the God that these mullahs have created for me and tied to a political agenda. I draw a specific line between religion and power". How crucial are women's rights to any serious transformation of the current regime? "They are very important, but you have to remember that women in Iran have been manipulated for so many years that they often don't see themselves as a force anymore - although they are. If any change is to occur in Iran it is in the hands of women. I'm trying to encourage them that it is their right to demand greater rights. I have a saying that I often use that nobody would put your right on a golden plate and offer it to you. If it's yours - you have to rightfully demand it. It is crucial that Iranian women stand up and say you know what, we're fed up with you, we're a force and we're going to kick you out, but they haven't gotten that far yet. It doesn't help that they are often brought down and treated as dirt. I've seen girls being married off at age nine. These girls grow up to become nothing and all they know is to serve men. I wonder how a future generation of women can be independent and free thinking individuals who could stand up to the regime when they're conditioned in this way. Unfortunately, this practice continues to be encouraged by the regime". Amy K. Rosenthal NOTE: An Italian version of this article appeared in the Italian newspaper, Il Foglio, on 1 November 2005.

Ghazal's book offers a rare and insightful look of Iran, a land that is usually viewed via the political prism of its leadership and rarely from the point of view of its people. The author offers a compelling story of a girl and a young woman living in a land that is best described by the name she chooses for her ontology. And indeed, "Hell" is a difficult word for a homeland. But while reading the tale it becomes apparent that "Hell" is not a description given to the beautiful land of Iran but rather, to the political reality that engulfed the country and, with it, the life of a young girl.

Ghazal begins her story in Abadan, a picturesque city located minutes from the Iraqi border where she grew up as the youngest of eight siblings. As a child, Ghazal experienced the life before the revolution - life of relative freedom in where friendships with Jews were permitted and where reading the bible was not considered an unforgivable sin. These times and her inquisitive personality created a girl that would forfeit her need to reflect upon and question her surroundings) - something that means only trouble in post-revolutionary Iran.

Her story is a personal one of an inquisitive girl who is trying to follow her mind and her heart and that of a country busy with revolution and war that has little room for any form of dissent.

The book recounts the life before the revolution and the events that have led to the rise of Kohmeni. It offers an insider's view of the revolution, the US embassy hostage crisis and the war.

Having studied Islam for 17 years and following a struggle wither own faith, the author knows Islamic law. Her studies, documented in the second portion of the book, address many important questions and misconceptions about Islam. Her research affords some insight into why Muslim countries seem to be prone to terrorism and examines the link between poverty, ignorance and terrorism

Living In Hell is also a book dedicated to the oppression of women. Omid's personal experience s a woman who experienced abuse , is , unfortunately, not unique in countries like Egypt, Turkey, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Kyrgyz and other Middle East countries where traditional male dominated societies still practice barbaric "honor" killings

Ghazal Omid calls herself "A Rebel With A Cause" because her work have became one deeply associated with the cause of freedom in Iran, with human rights and with the life of many Iranian prisoners for whom Ghazal is one of the only voices of hope. "Living in Hell" was written also for these brave men and woman - since it shows that difficult and even impossible journey of struggle can end with freedom and hope.

Nir Boms is the Vice President of the Center for Freedom in the Middle East