Dozens of mourners in Iran defied security measures on Wednesday to gather at the grave of Mahsa Amini to mark 40 days since she died in police custody.
“Woman, life, freedom” and “death to the dictator” chanted dozens of men and women at the Aichi cemetery in Saqez, Amini's hometown in the western Kurdistan province, in videos shared online.
The 22-year-old Iranian of Kurdish origin died three days after being taken into custody by the notorious “morality police” on September 13 while visiting Tehran with her younger brother.
Since then, protests have flared across the country in the largest display of public anger at the government in at least three years.
Young women and schoolgirls have led the charge, removing and burning their headscarves and confronting security troops on the street.
The brutal crackdown by authorities, which has left at least 141 dead and hundreds detained and arrested, according to activists, has been condemned by nations around the world.
Wednesday marks 40 days since Amini's death and the end of the traditional mourning period in Iran.
Mourners headed to her grave to mark the occasion even though the security services had warned her family not to hold the ceremony, saying that otherwise “they should worry for their son's life”, according to activists.
It is unclear if Amini’s family took part. State news agency Irna published a statement it said was from them, saying that “considering the circumstances and in order to avoid any unfortunate problem, we will not hold a ceremony marking the 40th day”.
Activists said the statement was made under pressure.
Images shared by the Hengaw rights group showed the heavy presence overnight of security forces in Saqez. They reportedly shut off entrances to the city.
Despite that, dozens of people were seen streaming into the city in cars and on motorcycles, as well as on foot along roads and across open fields, in footage posted online by Hengaw.
“Kurdistan, Kurdistan, the graveyard of fascists,” a group of them were heard chanting, according to AFP news agency in another video shared by activists on Twitter.
“The cities of Sanandaj, Saqez, Divandarreh, Marivan and Kamyaran are on widespread strike” in Kurdistan province, Hengaw said on Twitter.
Security forces opened fire at mourners in Amini's Kurdish home town of Saqez on Wednesday, a witness said.
"Riot police shot mourners who gathered at the cemetery for Mahsa's memorial ceremony … dozens have been arrested," the witness said. Iranian authorities were not available to comment.
There were separate reports that oil refinery workers also walked out on Wednesday in a further blow to one of the country’s most crucial industries.
The rights group, which monitors rights violations in Kurdistan, said Iranian football stars Ali Daei and Hamed Lak had travelled to Saqez “to take part in the 40th-day funeral” and were staying at the Kurd Hotel.
But they “had been taken to the government guesthouse … under guard by the security forces”, Hengaw said.
Daei has previously run into trouble with authorities over his online support for the Amini protests.
Unverified footage posted by the Oslo-based group Iran Human Rights showed people gathering outside the Kurd Hotel in Saqqez “in their night protests”.
Hammihan newspaper later quoted Kurdistan governor Esmail Zarei Koosha as saying that Daei and other celebrities were in Tehran and that “everything is calm in Saqez”.
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France has organised a delegation of leading businesses to travel to Syria. The group was led by French shipping giant CMA CGM, which struck a 30-year contract in May with the Syrian government to develop and run Latakia port. Also present were water and waste management company Suez, defence multinational Thales, and Ellipse Group, which is currently looking into rehabilitating Syrian hospitals.
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
