Donya Rad, a cinema activist and opponent of mandatory hijab, says the blocking of her SIM card has disrupted her access to numerous daily services and now prevents her from renewing her car insurance under her own name.
In a post on Instagram, Rad wrote that under new regulations, renewing car insurance is contingent upon registering one's residence in the "Real Estate and Housing System." Completing this process requires receiving a verification code via SMS, an option unavailable to her due to her blocked SIM card.
At the beginning of her post, referencing broader repression in Iran, Rad wrote: "In a land where we might wake up every morning to the news of executions and where nothing is more vital than human life, one feels ashamed to speak of ongoing, smaller everyday injustices."
Nevertheless, Rad emphasized that these seemingly minor restrictions must not be normalized, and citizens have the right to feel "angry and protest" against them. According to the artist, "cutting off a SIM card" acts as a punishment administered prior to formal charges and without the opportunity for defense. She noted that citizens first face SIM card blockages and their fallout, and only afterward must navigate various institutions to discover the rationale behind the decision.
