For past two nights, thousands of Iranian Canadians and their supporters have gathered in downtown Vancouver to draw attention to the plight of the people of Iran.

In the wake of the disputed June 12 presidential election, the demonstrators plan to hold the silent candlelight vigils for nine more consecutive nights.

“Our demand is that the security forces stop the harsh treatment of protestors inside Iran,” Maziar Seirafi, an Iranian Canadian who has helped organize the vigils, told the Straight. “We are just trying to give voice to the people of Iran, we are not trying to set agendas for them.”

Iranians who protested after officials announced results that handed a reelection victory to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad have faced violent repression from state security forces. Phone and Internet services have been disrupted in the country.

According to various reports, seven protesters were killed at a rally on June 15, and an unconfirmed number of students have been killed in a crackdown on university campuses.

The evening vigils at the Vancouver Art Gallery follow a June 14 demonstration outside the Vancouver Convention Centre.

Silent Scream for Iran is the organization behind these events. The nonpartisan group is supporting neither the incumbent hard-liner Ahmadinejad or the U.S.-backed reformist candidate Mir-Hossein Mousavi, a former prime minister.

“This is about the Iranian protestors on the streets of Iran,” Seirafi said. “It’s not about the political views of Iranian people in Vancouver.”

The vigils will take place nightly from 9:30 to 10 p.m. until June 26.