David Mattin interviews Iranian author and Nobel Prize winner Shirin Ebadi about her new book, The Golden Cage: Three Brothers, Three Choices, One Destiny. One brother is a fierce monarchist, another a communist, and the youngest a devoted Muslim and follower of the ayatollah:
Each of these brothers follows a different ideology, and many Iranian families were split in this way. And as you see when you read the book, each brother finds a different fate. Of course, this isn't just the story of one family. In a microcosm, it's the story of the whole country.
Ebadi applies the moral of the story to the June 2009 protest:
My book shows that we must not allow ideology to become a prison that stops us from accepting anyone outside. Alongside ideology, you must also have liberal thinking. People must be free to choose a practical path. Fortunately, the Iranian people have reached political maturity. They now realise this.
The Dish 