An Iranian woman, known as “Blue Girl,” who set herself on fire to allegedly protest the jail sentence she received for attempting to watch a football game, also suffered from bipolar disorder, according to her family.
Sahar Khodayari, 29, passed away at a hospital in Tehran on Sept. 9, a week after setting herself ablaze in front of a court in the Iranian capital.
Khodayari faced charges for “appearing in public without a hijab” and “insulting officials” when she attempted to enter Tehran’s Azadi Stadium in March, according to Amnesty International.
The 29-year-old was hoping to watch an AFC Asian Cup match between her favorite team, Iran’s Esteghlal, and the United Arab Emirates’s Al Ain, when security guards discovered that she had dressed as a man.
Iranian authorities have banned women from entering stadiums for men’s games since the country’s Islamic Revolution in 1979, according to the Guardian.
However, because there are no written laws that explicitly place such a ban, Khodayari was instead charged for violating hijab laws, Al Jazeera noted.
Khodayari, who was released on bail after being detained for several days in March, was summoned to a Revolutionary Court in Tehran on Sept. 2 to face her charges.
After learning that she could spend up to six months in jail, she doused herself with petrol and set herself on fire outside the court.
Khodayari, who sustained burns across 90% of her body, relied on a respirator until her death on Monday night.
Speaking to Shahrvand, a pro-reform newspaper in Iran, her sister revealed that she suffered from bipolar disorder, the Associated Press noted.
On the other hand, her father, Heidar Ali Khodayari, described her condition as a “neurological disorder,” adding that she did not sacrifice herself for any cause.
“My daughter had a neurological disorder and that day she became very angry, insulting and fought with law enforcement officials,” Mr. Khodayari told Iranian news agency Mehr, according to Gulf News.
Khodayari, who wore a blue wig at the time of her disguise, was known as “Blue Girl” on social media, with users in and out of Iran paying tribute.
Open Stadiums, a local women’s advocacy group, pressured FIFA to take action.
Sahar Khabazi, the Blue girl,
passed away monday morning.If humiliation, detention and prison wasn’t enough for #FIFA to take action now one us burnt herself to show Iranian women want to watch football too.#دختر_آبی
— OpenStadiums (@openStadiums) September 10, 2019
FIFA should consider a severe punishment for the Iranian Football Federation#bluegirl #FifaStandUp4Sahar pic.twitter.com/aVsbnPmuvZ
— قلمفرسا (@ghalamfarsa) September 10, 2019
We Iranian expect #FifaStandUp4Sahar and hear our voice from all around world and pay attention 🙏🏻an innocent girl just died because of sex discrimination in Iran💔she just wanted to watch her favorite’s team match in stadium. #bluegirl #SaharKhodayari
— shabnam Shajarizadeh (@Shabnam_shj) September 11, 2019
The #bluegirl of Iran,
You’re alive…
Now a world’s hearts are beating for you
#FifaStandUp4Sahar pic.twitter.com/ENqdPXb6ma— جوانک (@javanak_) September 10, 2019
RIP Sahar Khodayari.
Her only crime was that she lived football. I hope the same people of Iran rise up against such draconian primitive laws. #BlueGirl
— Baran Pradhan (@BaranPradhan) September 10, 2019
2-Our sister, #SaharKhodayari , also known as #bluegirl, set herself on fire recently in protest of her trial for trying to enter a soccer stadium dressed like a man.
It’s the only way women in Iran can watch soccer. She died yesterday for a right we take for granted. pic.twitter.com/D5scpYDrqy
— Masih Alinejad 🏳️ (@AlinejadMasih) September 10, 2019
Iran should be banned for this. And men should stop going to the stadium. RIP #bluegirl 🙁
— CIVAM PATEL (@civampatel) September 10, 2019
@FIFAcom chiefs! If you do not immediately suspend the entire football of the Islamic Republic because of this great crime, you will be counted in the presence of humanity and history as a crime partner in these cases .#bluegirl #دختر_آبی#سحرخدایاری pic.twitter.com/JXsAnZEQMx
— ⓢみⓐԋɨⓝ (@mahdi87931745) September 10, 2019
A young woman, known as the #BlueGirl, set herself on fire after getting a jail sentence for trying to enter the football stadium. Iranian women call on @FIFAcom to demand that the Islamic Republic end the ban on female attendance in stadiums.@FIFAWorldCup
— Fereshteh Molavi (@fereshtehmol) September 10, 2019
It’s not right to ban women to watch football in stadiums!
A female football fan sets herself on fire in Iran after being sentenced to jail for trying to enter a stadium and watch a men’s football match. #omarmomani pic.twitter.com/NhcuSTN8Y7
— Omar Momani (@omomani) September 10, 2019
Female lawmaker Parvaneh Salahshouri honored Khodayari as “Iran’s Girl” and declared, “We are all responsible.”
او تنها #دختر_آبی نبود. سحر #دختر_ایران بود. در جایی که مردانش برای زنان تکلیف تعیین می‌کنند و ابتدایی‌ترین حقوق انسانی را از آن‌ها سلب می‌کنند، و زنانی که علیه زنان در این ظلم آشکار مردان را همراهی می‌کنند، همه ما در حبس و سوختن سحرهای این سرزمین مسئولیم.
— Parvaneh Salahshouri پروانه سلحشوری (@P_Salahshouri) September 10, 2019
According to Reuters, FIFA President Gianni Infantino sent a letter to the Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran (FFIRI) in June requesting a timeline that would result in women being able to buy tickets for World Cup qualifiers, which began on Sept. 5. It’s unclear whether the FFIRI has replied.
“We are aware of that tragedy and deeply regret it,” FIFA said about Khodayari’s death, according to CNN. “FIFA convey our condolences to the family and friends of Sahar and reiterate our calls on the Iranian authorities to ensure the freedom and safety of any women engaged in this legitimate fight to end the stadium ban for women in Iran.”
Feature Image via Mostafameraji (CC BY-SA 4.0)
