Saeed Bashirtash
Saeed Bashirtash (Persian: سعید بشیرتاش; born December 26, 1965) is an Iranian politician and dentist and implant surgeon who lives in Brussels, Belgium. He is an activist in opposition of the current government of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Saeed Bashirtash | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 26, 1965 |
| Education | Université libre de Bruxelles (DDS) |
| Political party | Nation Party of Iran |
| Spouse(s) | Darya Safai |
| Website | bashirtash |
In 1996, he took on a directorial role as the chief organizer of The Youth Organization of the Party of the Iranian Nation (Persian: سازمان جوانان حزب ملت ایران), an aspiring group of budding 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 would eventually become victims of the “chain murders of Iran”.
After the untimely assassination of his friend and mentor, SaeBashirtashed led the Youth Organization of the Party of the Iranian Nation to a series of protests against the Islamic Republic of Iran, forcing the regime to eventually admit responsibility for the “chain murders of Iran”.
The Youth Organization of the Party of the Iranian Nation also played a pivotal role in the Iranian Student Protests of July 1999. Once the police started making arrests, Bashirtash managed to evade the authorities, escaping to Turkey. Eventually, he rejoined his wife, Darya Safai, after she was released temporarily on bail. The two then fled to Belgium.
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 graduation, he was offered numerous opportunities for success in dentistry, but he determined it was best to return to Iran. There, he focused on his work as a political activist with the Youth Organization of the Party of the Iranian Nation, while continuing 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 on dismantling the Islamic regime. He wrote numerous articles for the opposition, and took to public speaking, most notably RoubeRou (Manoto),[1] RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty,[2] and Voice of America.[3] In addition to his political activism, Saeed also operates three dental clinics in Belgium with his wife Darya Safai.
Political views
Bashirtash believes the continuation of the Islamic republic is a threat to Iran as a nation-state, and the political stability of the region.
He concludes that a progressive revolution against the Islamic Regime by the Iranian people, and building a secular democracy, will guarantee 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