Interviewed by the Italian ANSA news agency after speaking in Sorrento Monday, Ebadi said, ‘’The Arab Spring began in Iran, but it was repressed with violence.’’
She said, ‘’In 2009, many citizens were murdered, and many more incarcerated. Because of this violence, the street protests were interrupted. But the situation in Iran remains like a volcano, likely to explode at any moment.’’
Ebadi expressed hope the Arab Spring might have a positive effect on her own country as well. “If the uprisings in North Africa were to have positive outcomes resulting in democracy, this would be reflected positively in Iran,’’ Ebadi said. ‘’But what is happening right now in Syria is a civil war, and this could slow down the democratization process.’’
Ebadi called on the new leaderships of Egypt and Tunisia not to repeat Iran’s errors, but to keep state and religion separate, following the Turkish model.
‘’It is natural for Muslims to prefer political Islam,’’ Ebadi said. ‘’But electing Islamic parties does not necessarily mean that religion and the state are one and the same. We must separate the two, as in Turkey.’’
The new political elites, Ebadi said, would do well to take note of the Iranian experience. “If they are intelligent, they will compare Iran and Turkey. In 1997, the economic condition of Iran was better and more evolved than Turkey’s, but now the roles are reversed. I hope the North African revolutionaries will avoid Iran’s mistake.’’
In Egypt, the vice presidential nominations of a Coptic Christian and a woman indicate that the country will follow the Turkish model, Ebadi said.
She went on to criticize the West, which is ‘’more focused on its own economic interests than on human rights in Arab countries.”
She said, “I am against military intervention because usually it slows down the democratization process. Instead of intervening militarily, the West should have prevented the various dictators from hoarding their wealth in foreign banks. Europe could have preemptively prevented them from slaughtering their own people.”
Ebadi said, “Syria is a red line for the Iranian regime, which will defend Assad tooth and nail…. The Syrian President is a puppet in Iranian hands.’’