90 Iranian Journalists Call For Release of Detained Colleagues

journalism is not a crime: 

90Iranian journalists call on the Iranian authorities to immediately release four journalists, who were arrested by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards in early November.The four journalists, Isa Saharkhiz, Ehsan Mazandarani, Afarin Chitsaz, and Saman Safarzaei, were detained in what appears to be a new crackdown on press freedom ahead of the country’s parliamentary elections next year. They are allegedly accused of being members of an “infiltration network” colluding with hostile Western governments, but have not yet been tried in court.

“We, the undersigned journalists, believe that arresting these four journalists is an attack on press freedom, and we demand their immediate release,“ starts the petition signed by 90 Iranian journalists on December 2, 2015.

“The four journalists were arrested on trumped-up and baseless charges of collaborating with foreign media, even though President Hassan Rouhani has publicly voiced his objection to the arrests.”

According to the petition, the detention of the four journalists is a violation of international human rights agreements as well as Iran’s constitution, which guarantees freedom of expression for all Iranian citizens including journalists. 

“According to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, freedom of expression is an inalienable right of all human beings. Anyone accused of a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty in a fair trial,” the petition says, and ends:

“The detention of these journalists is illegal and a violation of their legal rights. The responsible authorities must take action and release the imprisoned journalists.”

Signed by:

1- Ehsan Mehrabi 

2- Ahmad Rafat

3- Ardavan Roozbeh

4- Ershad Alikhani

5- Omid Keshtkar

6- Oimd Memarian

7- Amir Kalhor

8- Amir Hossein Motaghi

9- Amir Hossein Mosala

10- Arash Bahmani

11- Arash Azizi

12- Aida Ghajar

13- Behdad Bordbar

14- Bahram Rafiei

15- Behrouz Samadi

16- Bijan SafSari

17- Bijan Farhoudi

18- Tara Bonyad

19- Touka Neyestani

20- Javad Montazeri

21- Hossein NoushAzar

22- Hamid Eslami

23- Hanif Mazrouei

24- Delbar Tavakoli

25- Rasoul Asghari

26- Reza Haji Hosseini

27- Reza Haghighat Nejad

28- Rouholah Sepand Arand

29- Rouzbeh Mir Ebrahimi

30- Roya Maleki

31- Reyhaneh Mazaheri

32- Sara Damavand

33- Saghi Leghai

34- Sam Sarabi

35- Soroush Farhadian

36- Sama Babai

37- Solmaz Ikdar

38- Siamak Bagheri

39- Shadi Shafie

40- Shahed Alavi

41- Shabnam Azar

42- Shokoufeh Azar

43- Shahram Rafizadeh

44- Shirin Family

45- Ali Asghar Ramezanpour

46- Ali Anisi Tehrani

47- Ali Kheradpir

48- Ali Mahtadi

49- Alireza Taheri

50- Fatemeh Fanaian

51- Fatemeh Karimkhan

52- Faraj Sarkouhi

53- Farzaneh Bazrpour

54- Farzin Golpad

55- Farshid Faryabi

56- Fariborz Soroush

57- Farid Haeri Nejad

58- Firoozeh Akbarian

59- Kambiz Ghafouri

60- Kamyar Behrang

61- Lida Ayaz

62- Lida Hosseini Nejad

63- Maziar Bahari

64- Mani Tehrani

65- Mahrokh Gholamhosseinpour

66- Mojtaba Najafi

67- Majid Saidi

68- Mohamad Aghazadeh

69- Mohammad Tangestani

70- Morteza Kazemian

71- Mojgan Ghafari SHirvan

72- Masoud Behnoud

73- Masoud Safiri

74- Mansoureh Farahani

75- Moloud Hajizadeh

76- Mehdi Tajik

77- Mehdi Mohseni

78- Mehrdad Hoajati

79- Mitra Khalatbari

80- Minou Badie

81- Nazanin Khosravani

82- Nahid Kheirani

83- Naimeh Doustdar

84- Noushabeh Amiri

85- Nik Ahang Kowsar

86- Niloufar Rostami

87- Nima Rad

88- Niyusha Saremi

89- Homayoun Kheiri

90- Yousef Azizi BaniTaraf

‪‎VardagsVåld‬! Asylsökande dog under #våldsam utvisning från Arlanda flygplats

http://www.aftonbladet.se/nyheter/article20488156.ab


http://www.friatidningen.se/artikel/117017


http://www.dn.se/sthlm/man-dog-vid-utvisning-pa-arlanda/

Sanktioner sliter isär det iranska samhället

I sitt tal till nationen, natten till onsdagen, lovade USA:s president Barack Obama att lägga in sitt veto om kongressen driver igenom utökade sanktioner mot Iran. Sådana sanktioner skulle ”garantera att diplomatin misslyckas”, sade Obama. De redan hårda sanktionerna skapar splittring mellan olika samhällsgrupper i Iran.

SvD/ Perspektiv 

Förhandlingarna om Irans kärnteknikprogram har varit svåra och fruktlösa och i slutet av november sköts tidsfristen fram till den 30 juni. Målet är nu att nå en politisk överenskommelse senast den 1 mars.

Det är för att inte sabotera de komplexa samtalen som Obama nu motsätter sig nya sanktioner från den republikanskt dominerade kongressen även om han var tydlig med att USA fortfarande är berett att ta till vapen för att stoppa Iran från att skaffa kärnvapen. Obamas inställning fick direkt kritik av republikaner som kallade den ett sätt att ”belöna iranierna med mer tid”.

Men sanktionerna är redan nu mycket omfattande mot Iran, i praktiken de tyngsta som riktats mot ett land i FN:s historia. Enligt sanktionerna är alla vapen- eller försvarstekniska avtal med Iran strikt förbjudna. De ekonomiskt tyngsta sanktionerna är riktade mot oljeindustrin och centralbanken vilket har handikappat Irans ekonomi från 2011. 

Det finns fyra parallella sanktioner mot Iran utfärdade av olika parter: FN:s säkerhetsråd, EU, USA:s kongress och USA:s regering. Alla misstänker att Irans nukleära aktiviteter har militära syften.

De amerikanska sanktionerna utgår från logiken: ”Är du inte med oss så är du med fienden.” Alla världens företag tvingas välja vilken marknad de vill verka på: den amerikanska eller den iranska. De företag som vill sluta avtal på mer än 20 miljon dollar med Iran, tvingas lämna USA-marknaden.

Naturligtvis kommer det ta mycket lång tid för den iranska ekonomin att komma tillbaka till samma BNP-nivåer som före sanktionerna. Man kan särskilt peka ut tre särskilda skadliga effekter som söndrar det iranska samhället.

1. Militären styr ekonomin. En av de värsta konsekvenserna av sanktionerna är den ökade militära interventionen i den iranska ekonomin. Iranska Revolutionsgardet (Sepah) har tagit över flera sektorer som tidigare var privata med hänvisning till det ekonomiska nödläget. Sepah är inblandat i nästan alla ekonomiska aktiviteter: oljeprojekt, bankväsende, export och import, telekommunikation samt i infrastrukturprojekt som väg- och bostadsbyggande och utbyggnad av kollektivtrafiken.

I Iran kallar reformvännerna nu Sepah hånfullt för ”Rantkhar”. Det betyder att de kan lukta pengar på långt håll och eftersom de har särskild access till känslig informationen kan de lätt förstå vilka projekt som är mest vinstgivande.

De internationella sanktionerna har alltså varit till god hjälp för Sepah att lägga ekonomiska konkurrenter bakom sig. Hamid Tehranfar, Irans centralbank har sagt att det finns 7 000 finansiella enheter i Irans ekonomi som inte betalar skatt. Sepah står bakom de flesta av dem och står uppskattningsvis för 30-40 procent av Irans svarta ekonomi.

2. Negativa sociala konsekvenser. Från att sanktionerna infördes och började slå mot ekonomin har det varit tydligt att både Sepah och Vezarate Etela'at - som är Irans säkerhetsdepartement - begränsat medborgarnas sociala aktiviteter och frihet.

När nyheter om den försämrade ekonomiska situationen utvidgades med ökad rapportering i tidningarna även om korruption och skenande inflation reagerade myndigheterna. Sepah och säkerhetspolisen har därför gripit en mängd journalister, stängt flera tidningar och infört nya censuråtgärder för att hindra medierna från att rapportera om den ekonomiska katastrofen. Även musikkonserter har begränsats och flera nya filmer tillåts inte att visa med hänvisning till nödläget. Sådana repressiva åtgärder föder olyckliga spiraler, mer kapital flyr landet och fler välutbildade människor utvandrar. Enligt Abas Millani, iransk professor på Stanford-universitetet, har antalet iranier som emigrerat ökat med 300 gånger varav många tillhör landets bäst utbildade.

3. De ekonomiska klasskillnaderna ökar. Enligt statistik från Irans centralbank krympte landets ekonomi mellan 2012-2014. Enligt en färsk centralbanksrapport saknar 24 procent av iranierna ett riktigt jobb eller har två eller tre olika småjobb för att kunna försörja sina familjer.

Enligt Transparency Internationals korruptionsindex ligger Iran på 144, vilket betyder att landet är systematiskt korrupt. Nyligen medgav regeringen att man har belägg för att tiotals miljarder dollar i oljeintäkter har överförts till 63 individers konton. Pengarna har på hemliga och privata vägar slussats ur landet eftersom Irans centralbankskonton är blockerade. Pengarna går inte att spåra enligt regeringen eftersom konton är registrerade i falska namn och finns i andra länder.

Samtidigt förbrukar iranierna 30 procent mindre matvaror efter sanktionernas införande. Minskningen inkluderar även brödförbrukningen som är central i iranska kostvanor och för många familjers överlevnad. Kontrasterna blir därför enorma. I norra Teheran finns Sepah-anknutna företagare, som på olika sätt lyckas slå mynt av eller kringgå sanktionerna, och som kan köra Porschar värda flera miljoner svenska kronor. I södra delen av huvudstaden bor vanliga familjer som inte har kunnat äta kött på flera månader.

Att inkomstklyftorna vuxit dramatiskt bevisas av att det i dag finns iranska sajter som marknadsför bilar för två miljoner kronor och takvåningar som säljs för 50 miljoner. Sådana kontraster skapar stora sociala spänningar och de kommer att finnas kvar oavsett vad som händer med sanktionerna.

بیانیه جمعی از روزنامه نگاران در اعتراض به توقیف رسانه‌ها

شیوه غیرقانونی توقیف و تعطیلی زنجیره‌ای مطبوعات را در ایران پایانی نیست! در یک ماه اخیر شاهد توقیف روزنامه‌های «مردم امروز» و «روزان» به بهانه‌های گوناگون بودیم . توقیف نشریات حق رسانه ها و جامعه را بر گردش آزاد اطلاعات ، اخبار و افکار گوناگون و حق مردم را برای دانستن پایمال کرده و امنیت شغلی و استقلال حرفه‌ای روزنامه‌نگاران را به خطر می‌اندازد. توقیف مطبوعات از انباشت دانش و تجربه جلوگیری کرده و این فرصت را از روزنامه نگاران و مطبوعات می‌گیرد تا به تدریج مخاطبان را به رسانه ها جلب کنند.

ما روزنامه‌نگاران توقیف رسانه ها را محکوم کرده و خواهان فضایی هستیم که رسانه ها با اطمینان به کار خود ادامه داده و شور و نشاط به تحریریه مطبوعات بازگردد تا رسانه‌های کشور ما بتوانند کارکردهای حرفه ای خود را در انتقال خبرها و اطلاعات و افکار به جامعه تحقق بخشند.

اسامی امضا‌کنندگان:
1- علیزاده منصوری٬ مریم
2- آذر٬ شبنم
3- آذر٬ شکوفه
4- آقازاده٫ محمد
5- آموسا، مریم
6- آیینی٬ فرزانه
7- ابراهیمی٬ احسان
8- ابراهیم‌زاده٬ حمید
9- ابوالفتاحی٬ حسین
10- احمدی٬ محسن
11- اسفندیاری٬ مهتاب
12- اسلامی‌راد٬ حمید
13- اصغری٬ رسول
14- اعتضادالسلطنه٬ نوژان
15- اعظمی٬ فرشاد
16- افتخاری٬ آزاده
17- افشار‌نیک٬ مهدی
18- اقتصادنیا٬ ساناز
19- الوندی٬ پدرام
20- امیرآبادیان٬ نزهت
21- امیری٬ نوشابه
22- امیری٬ مریم
23- انصاری‌راد٬ رضا
24- اکبرین٬ محمدجواد
25- ایاز٬ لیدا
26- ایکدر٬ سولماز
27- بابایی، سما
28- باقی٬ مریم
29- بدیعی٬ مینو
30- بذرپور٬ فرزانه
31- برآبادی٬ سعید
32- بردبار٬ بهداد
33- بنیاد٬ تارا
34- بهرنگ٬ کامیار
35- بهمنی٬ آرش
36- بهنام٬ علیرضا
37- بهکام٬ سپیده
38- بهکام٬ نگین
39- بهنود٬ مسعود
40- بیاتی٬ سحر
41- تاجیک٬ مهدی
42- تنگستانی٬ محمد
43- تهرانی٬ مانی
44- توکلی٬ دلبر
45- جامی٬ مهدی
46- جانی‌پور٬ حمید
47- جمال‌پور٬ فاطمه
48- جهان‌بین٬ شیدا
49- چوپانکاره، زهرا
50- حائری‌نژاد٫ فرید
51- حاجی‌حسینی٬ رضا
52- حاجی‌زاده٫ مولود
53- حسینی٬ مجتبی
54- حسینی‌نژاد٬ لیدا
55- حقیقت‌نژاد٬ رضا
56- حیدریان٬ جواد
57- خسروانی٬ نازنین
58- خطیبی٬ فرناز
59- خلجی٬ مصطفی
60- خلقی٬ عاطفه
61- خلعتبری٬ میترا
62- خوارزمی٬ مهراوه
63- خیری٬ همایون
64- دماوندیان٬ سارا
65- دهقی٬ فرحناز
66- دوستدار٬ نعیمه
67- راد٬ نیما
68- رافت٬ احمد
69- ربانی٬ ویدا
70- رحیمی٬ طاهره٬
71- رضایی٬ نسرین
72- رفیعی٬ بهرام
73- رفیعی٬ رضا
74- رفیع‌زاده٬ شهرام
75- رمضانپور٬ علی‌اصغر
76- رهبر٬ محمد
77- روحانی٬ صادق
78- روشنی٬ سارا
79- ریاحی٬ طاهره
80- زارع‌کهن٬ نفیسه
81- سبوکی٬ افشین
82- سحرخیز٬ عیسی
83- سراب‌پور٬ سونیتا
84- سربخشیان٬ حسن
85- سروش٬ فریبرز
86- سرکوهی٬ فرج
87- سعادتی٬ لیلا
88- سلامی٬ لادن
89- سوری٫ پوریا
90- سیار‌سریع٬ آیدین
91- شعبانی٬ شبنم
92- شعردوست٬ صبا
93- شفیعی٬ شادی
94- شمس٫ سعید
95- شهرابی٬ شیما
96- شیرازی٬ علی
97- صارمی٬ نیوشا
98- صف‌سری٬ بیژن
99- صمدبیگی٬ بهروز
100- طالبی٬ رضا
101- ظهیری٫ نسرین
102- عبداللهی٬ شیرزاد
103- عزیزی بنی‌طرف٬ یوسف
104- عزیزی٬ آرش
105- علوی٬ حسین
106- علیجانی٬ ارشاد
107- علی‌نظری٬ مزدک
108- علیزاده منصوری٬ مریم
109- علمی٬ حدیث
110- غفوری٬ کامبیز
111- غلامحسین‌پور٬ ماهرخ
112- فاریابی٬ فرشید
113- فامیلی٬ شیرین
114- فتحی٬ سایه
115- فتحی٬ حسن
116- فخرایی٬ پویان
117- فراهانی٬ عذرا
118- فراهانی٬ منصوره
119- فردوسی٬ میترا
120- فرجی٬ مهران
121- فرجامی٬ محمود
122- فرهادیان٬ سروش
123- فرهودی٬ بیژن
124- فغفوری٬ گیسو
125- قادری٬ سیامک
126- قاضی٬ فرشته
127- قجر٬ آیدا
128- قدمعلی٬ محمد
129- قدیمی٬ مهدی
130- قربانی‌فر٬ مریم
131- قلمچی٬ احسان
132- کاظمی٬ مسعود
133- کاظمی٬ نازنین
134- کاویانی٬ مریم
135- کریمی٬ روزبه
136- کسایی‌زاده٫ محمد
137- کمره‌ای٬ نفیسه
138- کوثر٬ نیک‌‌اهنگ
139- گلپاد٬ فرزین
140- گنجی٬ رضا
141- لاری‌پور٬ نیلوفر
142- لطیفیان٬ علیرضا
143- لقایی٬ ساقی
144- لواسانی٬ مسعود
145- مافی٬ حمید
146- محسنی٬ مهدی
147- متین‌نیا٬ نازنین
148- محمدی٬ صابر
149- محمودی‌ سرابی٬ سام
150- مزروعی٬ علی
151- مزروعی٬ حنیف
152- مصلی٬ امیرحسین
153- معمار٬ داریوش
154- مقامی٬ علی
155- ملکی٬ رویا
156- مهرابی٬ احسان
157- منتظری٬ امید
158- موسوی٬ آمنه
159- مومنی٬ مینو
160- ناعمه٬ مرتضی
161- نجفی٬ مجتبی
162- نفیسی٬ ساناز
163- نیستانی٬ توکا
164- نیستانی٬ مانا
165- نیکونظر٬ لیلی
166- ویسمه٬ اعظم
167- یوسفی٬ میثم

Defending the Compassionate Prophet by a Criminal Act!

VOF: Regretfully, this year the birthday of the bearer of the message of compassion that awakens humanity’s conscience, coincided with a horrendous crime perpetrated by a gang of ignorant criminals in Paris, France on January 7, 2015.  This gang of amoral criminals were utterly oblivious to the high standards of morals and tolerance that the Prophet exuded, and acted under an illusion of protecting the sanctity of his prophethood by inflicting a devastating blow to the very message his religion exemplifies.

Of course, it is neither prudent nor moral to insult and ridicule the beloved personalities or religion of any nation.  Whereas in western nations even questioning the number of people murdered in the Holocaust is considered an overt act of wanton racism punishable by law, denigrating religious minorities already subjected to other forms of discrimination does not promote peace nor foster community building, and certainly it is not befitting of a civil society.

However, resorting to violence and barbarity to exact justice on the critics of religion are ignorant and immoral acts that are diametrically opposed to Islamic precepts, and are deemed far more abominable and maleficent than the offense itself.  It is through a legal and judicial process and in the presence of a judge, jury and defense attorney that such a case could be addressed.....  http://www.nedayeazadi.net/en/2015/01/2652

  

185 Iranian Journalists Condemn Charlie Hebdo Terrorist Attack

One Hundred eighty-five Iranian journalists condemned the January 7, 2015 terrorist attack on the Charlie Hebdo magazine offices in Paris, which led to the deaths of 12 individuals. “We, Iranian journalists, condemn the January 7 terrorist attack that took the lives of several journalists and citizens in Paris,” said the statement.

“In our opinion, committing violence against freedom of speech and the free activities of the media, and assassination of journalists in any context, in any form, and on any excuse, and in the hands of any individuals or groups, with any faith or belief, is condemned. Today we stand side by side with the Charlie Hebdo victims and all freedom-seeking people of the world and consider defending freedom of expression and thought against any suppression and violence our most obvious duty,” added the statement.

Source 

Människorättsadvokat Nasrin Sotoudeh började sittstrejk i Teheran

Advokatsamfundet i Teheran har beslutat att belägga den iranska juristen och människorättsaktivisten Nasrin Sotoudeh, med ett tre år långt näringsförbud som praktiserande jurist.  Nasrin är hedersmedlem i Svenska PEN.

Beslutet fattades den 18 oktober, på dagen tretton månader efter att Sotoudeh förra året släpptes fri från Evin-fängelset, åtalad för att ha bedrivit ”propagandistisk aktivitet”.

Iransk känd aktivist Mohammad Nourizad och Nasrins man (Reza Khandan) delade hennes bild på Facebook. Reza har skrift litte på engelska att förklara varför Nasrin protesterar i gatan!  

«Nasrin Sotoudeh takes sanctuary in front of "Iran Bar Association"
Nasrin started to take sanctuary in front of "Iran Bar Association" today morning, with the slogan: "work right, dissenters' right."

she protests against Professional Court of Lawyers' verdict, which deprived her of attorneyship.
some civil and political activists accompanied her, of course, in the presence of police and security forces. she continues the sanctuary till her wants to be accomplished» 

Det meddelade människorättsorganisationen International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) på sin hemsida under måndagen. 

39döda efter snöstorm i Nepal

 

39döda efter snöstorm i Nepal

Militärhelikopter i Nepal. Foto: TT

Dödssiffran stiger i den snöstorm som dragit in över Nepal mitt under turistsäsongen. Minst 39 personer har dött. Läs mer

mer information på engelska i BBC

Iranian Journalists to Rouhani: Stop Lying!

Iranwier: In a letter to President Hassan Rouhani, 135 Iranian reporters, editors and media workers from inside and outside Iran urged the president not to insult them by lying about the persecution of journalists in Iran.

The letter, published in Persian on IranWire, criticized Rouhani for recent comments he made during an interview with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour. During the interview, which took place while Rouhani was in the country to attend a UN General Assembly meeting, Amanpour asked the president to comment on the case of Jason Rezaian, the jailed Washington Post journalist. "I really don't believe the fact at all,” he said. “I do not believe that an individual would be detained or put in prison for being a journalist.” 

Technically, Rouhani is right, but the reality is somewhat different. Most of those in prison are not charged with activities related to journalism. Instead, it’s “endangering the security of the nation,” “spreading propaganda,” “insulting the Supreme Leader”. In some cases, journalists are held on charges of “promoting corruption” or “prostitution”.

According to research conducted by IranWire, there are 65 professional and citizen journalists in prison in Iran. All of them were arrested because of their reporting. Since the disputed presidential election in 2009, almost 300 journalists have been arrested. Iran has the highest number of women journalists in prison, and hundreds of Iranian journalists are forced to live in exile.

In their letter to Rouhani, which to date has 135 signatories, journalists asked Rouhani to honor his election promises: greater freedom for journalists, and a safer and more secure working environment. The letter is published in English below. 

Plus: Journalism is not a Crime, a databaseof Iranian journalists who have been targeted by the Iranian government

 

President Hassan Rouhani of Iran:

Your Excellency,

When you came to power in June 2013, you promised that you would create a more secure working environment for journalists and the media in our country.

Once again, in February 2014, you reminded the citizens of Iran of your election promises, stating that journalists should be entitled to greater security while doing their jobs. You said that shutting down a newspaper is not the right way to warn those who may have infringed on the law.

We, the undersigned, hoped you would take serious and practical measures to fulfill your promises. Yet more than a year after resuming office, the demands and expectations of journalists have not been realized. In fact, in an interview with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, you denied that there was anyone in jail in Iran for their work as a journalist.

You were once critical of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s administration and its habit of concealing and denying the truth. Your recent denial that a problem even exists echoes this sentiment, and remind us of its impact.

We, the undersigned journalists, believe that it is unethical, unprofessional and insulting to deny the fact that, today, many journalists remain in prison in Iran for doing their jobs. Moreover, a number of journalists have been imprisoned during your presidency. 

In our country, security agents regularly imprison journalists, denying them their basic rights simply for carrying out their duty: to inform the public. As the head of the executive branch, and as the second highest official of the land, whose responsibility includes supervising the execution of the constitution by different branches of the government, it is your duty to improve the situation of Iranian journalists. 

At the very least, we expect you to correct your false statement concerning imprisoned journalists in Iran. But we hope for more, and we ask you to fulfill your promises to create a more secure environment for journalists in our country.

cc: 

The Committee to Protect Journalists

English PEN

Index on Censorship

International Federation of Journalists

Reporters sans Frontiers

 Source: http://en.iranwire.com/features/6047/

 

Signatories: 

- Aida Ghajar

- Ahmad Rafat

- Alieh Motalebzadeh

- Ali Asghar Ramezanpour

- Ali Shirazi

- Ali Mazrouei

- Alireza Latifian

- Amirhossein Mossala

- Arash Bahmani

- Arash Ashourinia

- Arash Azizi

- Behdad Bordbar

- Behrouz Samadbeygi

- Bijan Farhoudi

- Darioush Memar

- Delbar Tavakoli

- Ehsan Mehrabi

- Elnaz Mohammadi

- Ershad Alijani

- Fatemeh Jamalpour

- Farshad Ghorbanpour

- Fereshte Ghazi

- Farshid Faryabi

- Farahmand Alipour

- Fariborz Soroush

- Farid Haeinejad

- Farideh Ghaeb

- Firouzeh Ramezanzadeh

- Hamid Eslami

- Hamidreza Ebrahimzadeh

- Hanif Mazrouei

- Homayoun Kheiri

- Hossein Alavi

- Javad Heidarian

- Isa Saharkhiz

- Kamyar Behrang

- Kaveh Ghoreishi

- Khatereh Vatankhah

- Ladan Salami

- Lida Ayaz

- Lida Hosseininejad

- Leila Sa'adati

- Leili Nikounazar

- Maziar Bahari

- Maziar Khosravi

- Mana Neyestani

- Mani Tehrani

- Mahrokh Gholamhosseinpour

- Mojtaba Najafi

- Majid Saeedi

- Mohammad Aghazadeh

- Mohammad Tangestani

- Mohammad Hossein Nejati

- Mohammad Rahbar

- Mohammad Ghadamali

- Mohammad Kassaeizadeh

- Mohammadreza Nassababdollahi

- Mahmoud Farjami

- Morteza Kazemian

- Marjan Tabatabaei

- Maryam Amiri

- Maryam Jafari

- Maryam Shahsamandi

- Maryam Majd

- Mazdak Alinazari

- Masoud Behnoud

- Masoud Safiri

- Masoud Kazemi

- Masoud Lavasani

- Mostafa Khalaji

- Maliheh Mohammadi

- Mansoureh Farahani

- Mahdi Tajik

- Mehdi Jami

- Mehdi Ghadimi

- Mehdi Mahmoudian

- Mehdi Vazirbani

- Mehdi Mohseni

- Mehran Faraji

- Mehraveh Kharazmi

- Mehrad Abolghassemi

- Mehrdad Hojati

- Mehrdad Mashayekhi

- Mitra Khalatbari

- Meisam Youssefi

- Milad Beheshti

- Minou Momeni

- Nazanin Kazemi

- Nazanin Matin'nia

- Nasrin Zahiri

- Naeimeh Doustdar

- Negin Behkam

- Noushabeh Amiri

- Noushin Pirouz

- Nikahang Kowsar

- Nima Dehghani

- Niousha Saremi

- Omid Montazeri

- Parvaneh Vahidmanesh

- Panah Farhadbahman

- Pourya Souri

- Reza Ansarirad

- Reza Haghighatnejad

- Reza Rafiei

- Reza Shokrollahi

- Rouzbeh Mirebrahimi

- Roya Maleki

- Reihaneh Mazaheri

- Sara Damavandan

- Saghi Laghaei

- Sam Mahmoudi Sarabi

- Sanaz Ghazizadeh

- Sepideh Behkam

- Sahar Bayati

- Soroush Farhadian

- Saeid Shams

- Saeideh Amin

- Soulmaz Eikder

- Siamak Ghaderi

- Seyyed Mojtaba Vahedi

- Sina Shahbaba

- Shabnam Shabani

- Shahram Rafizadeh

- Shahrzad Hemati

- Shohreh Asemi

- Shirzad Abdollahi

- Shirin Famili

- Shima Shahrabi

- Saba Sherdoust

- Sadra Mohaghegh

- Tahereh Rahimi

- Tara Bonyad

- Taraneh Baniyaghoub

- Touka Neyestani

- Youssef Azizi Banitorof

An epistle to the children of #Gaza

Here is an English translation of the Persian text of the letter Iranian filmmakers have written to the children of #Gaza--English translation is by Professor Mahmoud Sadri—

In the name of the God of “Olives”

An epistle to the children of Gaza:

Greeting, people of Gaza,
Children,
Infants,
Mothers in late pregnancy,
Grandfathers,
Grandmothers.

Are the olive trees you planted leafy yet?
Can one enjoy them on the “Iftar” spread?
We have heard it has been rainy over there, these last few days.
We do not understand why this rain does not become a deluge,
To wash you into the Nile – that lady of blue tresses?
We do no know why this rain obliterates your houses?
Rain does not shred children into pieces, does it?
Rain does not open gashes in people’s chests, does it?
Rain does not smash skulls, does it?

Rainstorms create flash floods,
Why is the flash flood of Gaza bloody?
Rain brings thunder and lightening,
Clouds rub against clouds, the sound grow fearsome,
But it does not annihilate, does it?
Rain rejuvenates the roots of olive trees; it turns earth green,
Why is the rain over Gaza burning olive trees?
Rain comes with the weatherman’s warning.
Why is your rain so abrupt and brusque?
Why is this rain savagely razing the earth?

Rain lets children shelter their dolls under their umbrellas.
What rain is this that makes the dolls into umbrellas for children, entangled with them, in their graves?
I saw a cat, roving in the rubble of Gaza, lost, lamenting,
Avoiding the shreds of flesh, detritus of the lives of the Children of Gaza.
She recognizes the children who shared their meager meals with her, in rainy days past.

The lady of Gaza/Palestine:

If the rain over Gaza gives you leave to carry your baby on your back out of the wreckage, do not forget to take along pen and paper.
Write my lady; say:

“Rain gave me leave to leave.
We were not home, when the walls collapsed.”

Write my lady, so your man does not go mad with grief, at the sight of the rubble of his house, to imagine his beloved, the flesh of his flesh, are buried alive under the ruins.

You may ask, by the way: “where would I leave the note, so my man can find it? There are no walls standing”.
Write my lady; you can trust your letter to the wind. You can entrust it, like in old legends, to the beak of a bird.

Lady Gaza/Palestine:

We have heard that your neighbor yonder – the same one who came over in 1948; the same one with whom you shared your bread and water,
The same neighbor of 1948 who bemoaned the horrors of Hitler’s crematoria,
The same neighbor who had told you your home is the cradle of the prophets,
The same neighbor who had told you: Palestine is the land revelation,
The same neighbor who had told you: are Muslims not famed for their hospitality? Don’t they host any lost wayfarer for three days, without question?

Lady of Gaza/Palestine:

You had replied: Yes, we are kind, hospitable, cannot be otherwise.
Lady, we have heard that your neighbor yonder now watches your slaughter from hilltops in jubilation, as if from the galleries on an amphitheater.

Lady Gaza/ Palestine:

You were hospitable to the unannounced guests of 1948. They have now left you in the rubble of a prison in exile. they witness your torment and desolation. They have been watching you; up to now, up to this moment.

Lady Gaza/ Palestine:

Your poets have composed lines that have sunk, like so many bullets, into your faithless neighbor’s heart. Your children have abandoned school and have taken up arms. They realize that in a land they do not have the schooling they have will come to naught.

Lady Gaza/ Palestine:

Your once abandoned neighbors have now found many keepers:
The same people who pushed them out their own lands now have turned into their defenders, raining bullets on you; you who gave your neighbors shelter. Your neighbor’s erstwhile enemies now build iron domes above their heads and abet them in their slaughter of your children.

Lady Gaza/ Palestine:

We are left on this shore, pen and camera in hand.
We are left astonished: what is to be done?
How do we come to pay homage to your prone body?
Your shameless neighbor has blocked all of the paths to us -- your guests.

Lady Gaza / Palestine:

We were thinking: now that bullets rain on you,
Now that the deluge of blood has carried away your children,
May be we can infuse life into your children’s innocent bodies, from our own veins.