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Angela's memories as she watches Iran 'history repeat itself'
A north Derbyshire woman who was forced to flee Iran during the revolution 30 years ago has spoken of watching "history repeat itself" in the wake of the country's disputed election results.
Angela Morgan left the capital Tehran in 1979 when, she says, "all hell was let loose" as Ayatollah Khomeini's rebel troops crushed the Shah's army.
She fled for her life after a bullet fired through her window landed on her pillow just moments after she had got out of bed.
Now, watching TV news footage of street clashes in Tehran following President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's controversial re-election, memories of 30 years ago have come flooding back.
She said: "It feels as though I was there. History is repeating itself. The same thing is happening, only now they're rebelling against the regime they wanted then."
Angela, who grew up in Eckington and now lives in Barlborough, went to Iran in 1974 while travelling the world with a friend after university.
She said they never intended to stay long but after being mugged on the first evening – losing her money and passport – needed to make some cash before moving on.
Angela ended up staying for five years, getting a job at the New Zealand Embassy and setting up home with her Iranian boyfriend.
She said: "Iran was extraordinarily beautiful. I lived there during the best period when ex-pats were welcomed by the Shah. I was quite happy for some time.
"But there were rumblings of unrest and you had to be careful what you said. People who were against the Shah would disappear, never to be seen again."
The Shah fled in January 1979 and two weeks later Ayatollah Khomeini returned to Tehran from Paris, where he had been in exile. The airport was closed and a curfew imposed.
Angela said: "They raided the armouries and drove tanks through the streets with teenagers on top firing guns willy nilly."
She became trapped in the war zone alone after the British Embassy and then the New Zealand Embassy pulled out.
Angela said the Revolutionary Guard broke into her home, smashed bottles of alcohol and pinned her against the wall with a rifle.
She said her life was spared because she spoke fluent French and managed to convince Khomeini's rebels that she was from Paris where their leader had spent much of his exile.
Angela managed to escape overland by buses and trains into Turkey and eventually flew back to Britain from Greece.
She said: "I was so lucky to get home and, needless to say, I have never been back. We have so much to be grateful for in this country and I have never forgotten that.
"People take for granted everything this country offers. We have freedom of speech and movement that people in Iran can't even imagine."
She said though the Shah was a despot, Iran had been making progress – especially for women – under his regime, adding: "They wanted to be westernised and educated but overnight they went back in their chador (full length covering)."
Angela said the revolution had merely replaced one dictatorship with another, adding: "They've gone back in time. Westernised Iranians want the life we have here and will never be happy living under that oppression.
"It's the 30 year memorial of the revolution, it's a critical time in their history and I'm sure it will change."
EXPERIENCE HELPED WITH TRAIG LOSS OF FIANCE
Angela Morgan said surviving the Iranian Revolution filled her with a gratitude for life that saw her through the tragic loss of her fiance 15 years ago.
When she returned to England, Angela worked as a producer at Central TV in Nottingham before settling down in Bolsover with Derbyshire police officer Det Cons Gary Freeman.
But tragically he was killed while on duty at the age of just 36 – two years after the birth of their son George, who is now 16.
She said: "He would just be retiring now and life would be very different. But we don't mope around, we keep very busy."
Angela said her experience of living through and surviving the war in Iran shaped her attitude to life.
She said: "Every day since then I've felt blessed and fortunate for everything I've got – to be alive, my good health, to have such a lovely son and family and friends."
Angela is now helping others who have lost loved ones in the police force through her voluntary work with charity UK COPS (Care of Police Survivors) and as a bereavement counsellor.
She said: "Life is full of sadness and danger but you have to stay upbeat and optimistic. UK COPS has opened up doors for me to meet many other people and survivors."
For more information visit www.ukcops.org or contact Angela on ar.morgan@btinternet.com
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Saturday 04 February 2012
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