Peyvast

It was not until after I watched the movie 300 that I came to the realization that I am black. That Jabba was not from planet Hut but he too was a Persian and that the Persian kings who freed Jews and created the first article of human rights were nothing but drag queens.

I am not sure whom to thank for this realization. The ones who rule my homeland and have created such image or Hollywood? Either way God bless freedom of expression, Hollywood special effects and imaginations.

As for those Iranians who seem to be so upset about the timing and bias of Hollywood towards Hollywood presentation of Iranian  “barbarism”, I suggest instead of complaining to invest in production of the magnificent movie script written by Ren A Hakim called: Xerxes : http://www.renahakim.com/

Zahra Amir Ebrahimi is a talented and famous Iranian actress who was victim of a Paris Hilton type alleged hidden sex tape which was distributed on internet and DVD. (the girl in this music video). “A victiom of the narrow mindedness in my homeland.”

Mohsen Namjoo is an innovative Iranian singer, song writer and composer with a genius mix of traditional Persian music with blues and other western musical styles.

Hafez was a Persian mystic and poet famouys for the beauty, love, mysticism and music of his poems.

And this music video is a unique of the three…

Tresses in the Wind:

Let not the wind into your tresses or I will go into the wind
Let not seduction be your way or I will loose mine

Drink not with any old contender or I will drown in pain
Savor not your wine or I will turn red in sobriety

Lock not your hair or I will be locked in remorse
Twist not your hair or I will get twisted

Become not the rival’s friend or I will become mad with rivalry
Feel not for others or I will cease to feel

Open your face and I won’t need a flower
Stand tall and I won’t need the air of heights

Paint not the town red or I will shed blood for tears
Cherish not the other’s company or I will perish

Steal not the limelight or all light will leave me
Ogle not or I will melt beneath your gaze

Be kind to this poor suitor and come to my aid
For me not to appeal to the Messenger

Hafez will never turn away from you
For he became free the day he was entrapped by you.

Mahboobeh Shadi

Press Release
Campaign to Free Women’s Rights Defenders in Iran

Women’s Rights Defenders Now in Solitary Confinement
Deemed A Threat To Iran’s National Security

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 12, 2007

Shadi Sadr and Mahboubeh Abasgholizadeh have been arraigned, charged with being a “threat to national security,” and remanded on March 11 by Evin Ward 209 interrogators authorized by the Ministry of Intelligence of Islamic Republic of Iran. Sadr and Abasgholizadeh are the only two women who still remain in custody after their arrest last week. Thirty-one other women were also arrested but have been gradually released on bail (cash or bond). Sadr is a lawyer and women’s rights defender and was arrested while performing her duty defending the women activists on March 4th.

Based on the Criminal Procedure Laws of the Islamic Republic of Iran, at any point in the investigation, the interrogator is authorized to issue a remand and extend the temporary detention until the date of the trial. If not in agreement, the prosecutor has the power to appeal the interrogator’s remand to the court system. If the prosecutor does agree with the order of detention – which is often the case – it is very difficult and almost impossible for the prisoners to appeal the collective decision of the prosecutor and the interrogator. As such both Sadr and Abasgholizadeh continue to be in detention since their arrest on March 4th, 2007 without any likely prospect of being released.

Throughout their detention, Sadr and Abasgholizadeh have been interrogated in the absence of their lawyers (Mohammad Mostafaei, Farideh Gheirat, and Elham Fahimi) and were denied the right to speak with them. Furthermore, the detainees are unaware that the interrogator and the prosecutor have refused to speak with their lawyers. In the face of such confusion and the absence of any legal representation, the detainees themselves have been unable to ask for a court hearing.

Abasgholizadeh has been held incommunicado since her arrest. Sadr has had two short telephone conversations with her husband, the last of which was on Saturday, March 10. Sadr’s husband, Hossein Nilchian, who contacted the Revolutionary Court authorities on March 11, has confirmed this.

The families of the two have been denied all visitation rights and are extremely alarmed, especially considering the women’s medical conditions. According to other women who have recently been released from Evin Ward 209, Sadr and Abasgholizadeh have no access to medical care. Sadr is suffering from chronic stomach ulcer. Abasgholizadeh suffers from arthritis and migraine headaches.

Those recently released described the cells as being damp and very cold. To make matters worse there are no toilets in the cell. As a routine measure, the prisoners are deprived of warmth, since they are given only one blanket and forced to sleep on the cold floor. Mahnaz Mohammadi, who was arrested on March 4th and recently released, is still suffering from pneumonia. Moreover, those in custody have reportedly been interrogated while blindfolded during the night, and thus, have had little if any sleep.

Article 27 of Iran’s Constitution guarantees the citizens’ right to assemble peacefully, which is precisely what the women defenders were doing. However, the interrogator/prosecutor claim that their peaceful gathering was instead a threat to Iran’s national security. As such Sadr and Abasgholizadeh were charged according to Chapter 16, Article 113 of the Islamic Penal Code: “Whenever two or more people gather and plan to commit a crime against the internal or external security of the country or facilitate the implementation of a crime, … then they will be sentenced to two to five years of imprisonment.” http://www.ghavanin.ir/detail.asp?id=6955

The women’s rights advocates have become one of the main targets of the recently increased violation of human rights and the rising repression on the civil rights in the name of “national security”. Another concern is that certain intelligence authorities seem to be after plotting a “corruption and moral scandal” against some prominent women detainees in order to defame and de-legitimize women’s rights cause in the eyes of the larger public.

Sadr and Abasgholizadeh are prominent activists and women rights defenders who have organized the Stop Stoning Forever Campaign, which aims to abolish stoning as a legal form of punishment for adultery. After exposing two incidents of stoning and identifying 10 more individuals condemned to be stoned, the campaign has successfully saved the lives of three women and one man.

Source

Those arrested last Sunday were conducting a peaceful protest against the ongoing trial of five of their colleagues, accused by the Iranian court of breaching the public order and security as a result of their participation in a peaceful demonstration for women’s rights in June 2006, the presidency said in a statement.

“The activists were exercising their established right to freedom of assembly and opinion, enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of the United Nations,” said the statement released in Berlin.

“The presidency of the European Union notes that most of the women arrested have now been released. It calls for the immediate and unconditional release of those still being detained and the cessation of proceedings against those already released,” the statement added.

The statement urged Iran to respect universal human rights, “particularly to the principle of non-discrimination on the basis of gender and the right to freedom of opinion and assembly.”

source

Photo of Shadi Sadr with Nazanin in one of Nazanin’s courts

In a joint statement Shirin Ebadi , Iranian nobe prize winner and many other activists stated:

WE THE UNDERSIGNED CONDEMN THE ARREST OF THE TWO WOMEN RIGHTS ACTIVISTS AND DEMAND THIER UNCONDITIONAL FREEDOM.

To add your name to the list of signers you can complete the comment form on TOP LEFT OF THE PAGE AT :

http://herlandmag.info/news/07,03,12,03,24,44/

(form is set only for parsian alphabet but you can copy/paste in English )

VIEW VIDEO HERE

BBC:  Thirty-three women were arrested on Sunday after staging a demonstration outside a courthouse in Tehran.  They were showing solidarity with five women on trial for organising an anti-discrimination protest in 2006. Women activists say the crackdown is intended to prevent any kind of protests as Iran marks International Women’s Day on 8 March. The five arrested last June have been charged with endangering national security, propaganda against the state and taking part in an illegal gathering.

‘$50,000 bail’

The women began the hunger strike in protest at the continued detention of at least seven of their younger colleagues, their families said. Human-rights activists and family members confirmed up to eight women were subsequently released from jail. But they also confirmed that those remaining in jail were continuing the hunger strike to press for their own release. The eight were told they were being transferred to another cell and had no idea they were about to be freed, the activists said. Some of the jailed women have been able to telephone their families.

The husband of one told the BBC his wife had been asked for more than $50,000 as bail, and when she said they could not afford it she was told her case would be sent to the judiciary.

The BBC’s Frances Harrison in Tehran says different women’s groups have announced plans to protest outside parliament and Tehran University on 8 March. One group even said it wanted to protest against the law that says Iranian women must wear Islamic dress