*Jafar Panahi Sentenced to 6 Years in Jail, 20 Years of Silence* Shocking and terrible news from Tehran today. Farideh Gheirat, a lawyer representing several of the politicians, journalists and artists detained during the protests that immediately followed the disputed 2009 Iranian presidential election, has told the ISNA news agency (as reported by Reuters and the AFP) that Jafar Panahi has been sentenced to six years in jail and that his "social rights," including "making movies, writing scripts, foreign travel and giving interviews to domestic and foreign media, have been taken away for 20 years."
"Panahi, an outspoken supporter of Iran's opposition green movement, was convicted of gathering, colluding and propaganda against the regime," reports Saeed Kamali Dehghan. "Hamid Dabashi, a professor of Iranian studies at Columbia university, told the Guardian the sentence showed Iran's leaders could not tolerate the arts. 'This is a catastrophe for Iran's cinema,' he said. 'Panahi is now exactly in the most creative phase of his life and by silencing him at this sensitive time, they are killing his art and talent. Iran is sending a clear message by this sentence that they don't have any tolerance and can't bear arts, philosophy or anything like that. This is a sentence against the whole culture of Iran. They want the artists to sit at their houses and stop creating art. This is a catastrophe for a whole nation." Gheirat has announced that she will appeal this decision, so we do have some hope that this incredibly harsh sentence will not stand. Panahi was one of several mourners who'd gathered near the grave of Neda Agha-Soltan in a Tehran cemetery who were arrested in July 2009. So, too, was filmmaker Muhammad Rasoulof, who has also been sentenced to six years today. When Panahi was released that summer, his passport was revoked and he was forbidden to leave the country. In March of this year, he was arrested again because, as the Iranian culture minister put it, he "was making a film against the regime and it was about the events that followed election." Throughout the ordeal, prominent filmmakers, film societies and festivals formally protested Panahi's detainment, and finally, in May, he was released on bail. *The speech he delivered during his hearing in November has been widely cited and quoted, and you can read it in full at Current Conflicts. Here's just a bit: "You are putting me on trial for making a film that, at the time of our arrest, was only 30 percent shot. You must have heard that the famous creed, 'There is no god, except Allah,' turns into blasphemy if you only say the first part and omit the second part. In the same vein, how can you establish that a crime has been committed by looking at 30 percent of the rushes for a film that has not been edited yet?... I, Jafar Panahi, declare once again that I am an Iranian, I am staying in my country and I like to work in my own country. I love my country, I have paid a price for this love too, and I am willing to pay again if necessary. I have yet another declaration to add to the first one. As shown in my films, I declare that I believe in the right of 'the other' to be different, I believe in mutual understanding and respect, as well as in tolerance; the tolerance that forbid me from judgment and hatred. I don't hate anybody, not even my interrogators.*" Earlier this month, TIFF Cinematheque ran a retrospective of Panahi's work: "With five critically acclaimed and copiously awarded features to his name, Panahi is one of the major figures of the New Iranian cinema; once the protégé to Abbas Kiarostami, Panahi has forged a style and path all is own. His cohesive body of work owes much to Italian neo-realism, with his documentary style and preference for mostly non-professional actors, and a fierce belief in human and social rights." One of the films screened was The Accordian, a short that's Panahi's contribution to Then and Now: Beyond Borders and Differences, an omnibus film supported by the United Nations; the film premiered at the Venice Film Festival in September. Panahi: "The Accordion is the story of humankind’s materialistic need to survive in a pretentious religion. In it, a boy is prevented from playing for reasons of religious prohibition, which he accepts in order to survive. But the main character of the film is the girl or, perhaps, in my view, the symbol of the next generation." http://mubi.com/notebook/posts/2671 On 20 December 2010 12:14, Ghulam Muhammed <[email protected]>wrote: > Monday, December 20, 2010 > > > > *A Jew is a Jew is a Jew* > > > > *It is time the world should recognize and acknowledge a Jew as a Jew, > first and last. World should acknowledge the tremendous good Jews, > individually and collectively had contributed to humankind in practically > every facet of human existence, especially in modern societies. At the same > time, the world should beware of the tremendous potential of damage they > could inflict on the world and had been in the past in history. Like with > special children, the best way to keep them in sight is to keep them under > constant surveillance, for the good they do to the world and to their own > kind and for the damage they can do to the world and even to their own kind. > * > > * * > > *New York Times writer, Thomas L. Friedman is first and last Jewish. He > carries all the positives and negatives that converge on his Jewish > intellect. His analysis of the world around us has been singularly brilliant > and eye-popping. In his latest article in The New York Times: We’ve Only Got > America A (Dec.14, 2010), he rightly expresses alarm over how his country, > the USA is slipping in world affairs. * > > * * > > *It is the remedy that he suggests shows that even a most liberal of Jew > could only fall back on his own kind’s existential propensities to find a > solution for America’s survival. He wants America to go back to the American > Jewish Neo-con model of War War rather than Jaw Jaw. He writes: “…it will > be a lot easier with a healthier America committed to its core values, > powerful enough to project them and successful enough that others want to > follow our lead ---- voluntarily.” * > > * * > > *According the American Jewish Neo-con, to project America’s power, it has > to pick an Iraq here, an Afghanistan there and the world will be struck with > shock and awe, for America to subdue the recalcitrant and force them to come > to it voluntarily. * > > * * > > *It is clear that even with America in decline like the Great Britain > after the World War II, its Jewish thinkers are determined to prove that > since there is no more any other America to save the world, as they had > jumped from Europe to America as their survival strategy, they finding a > dead end of further colonies, America itself should rearm itself and stand > up to claim the title of the lone superpower of the world. * > > * * > > *It is not that the US does not have the military power to bomb the entire > planet many times over. It’s the fragility of the world in which Americans > too have to make a living that forces them to compromise and resort to token > warfare. They are now gearing up to take on North Korea. That will once > again give them a chance to show the world that America is still alive and > kicking.* > > * * > > *Friedman warns his countrymen, that if America goes weak, though, and > cannot project its power the way it has, ---“your kids won’t just grow up in > a different America. They would grow up in a different world.” On the face > of it, this means that the different world, if it is dominated by > non-Caucasians, like China and India, would be a disaster for the Americans. > Both China and India are not yet Zionist proxies. * > > * * > > *A constant theme in Science Fiction literature and children’s comic books > in America conjures up how Aliens from different galaxies where their > survival is threatened, invade earth and how we the earth people deal with > them. * > > * * > > *The constant refrain shows how thinkers in literature and comics have > been preparing the American children, for decades, when their survival on > American soil will become difficult and they will have to invade other > countries and find new colonies to settle. * > > * * > > *Jews who have a history of moving from countries to countries, for any > number of reasons, will be the first to jump the ship and the two countries > that they would like to descent on, are China and India. * > > * * > > *China** is a difficult place to penetrate. India is a soft target and it > is possible that America and its vanguard Jewish troopers will try to > colonize India. * > > * * > > *India**’s extremist fascism oriented Hindutva political party’s President > is now visiting Israel and openly asking Israel to help them in internal > security of India. That is good enough entry point for Zionist Jews into > India. Others will follow. India already has been propped up as the next > ‘superpower’ in the making and is being offered goodies of all spurious > kind, like a seat at UN Security Council. However, the moment India is > embroiled in any of harebrained scheme of joining the next war, say against > it’s neighbor China, India’s own economy is bound be ruined and the loss of > Indian blood will blot the country’s future for all time to come. * > > * * > > *India** at best will be a reluctant imperialist power. Its mutinous > millions will not easily succumb to American Neo-con maneuvering to engage > them in a Third World War on Asian soil. Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao’s > current visit with 400 Chinese business leaders offering doubling of mutual > trade to US$100 billion by 2015, is a visionary approach to keep India > engaged in its Asian neighborhood, without getting entangled with West’s > machinations. However, a jingoist Brahmin minority is on the same wave > length as the Zionists and would do anything to perpetuate its stranglehold > on India, even though their minority has organized a manufactured majority > that is bound to disintegrate if the fruits of economic progress is > monopolized by an easily identified oligarchic community and not available > to the deprived rest. Unlike US, India is prone to internal violent strife. > It therefore cannot unite to mount a foreign adventure, especially where > nuclearly armed neighbours are involved.* > > * * > > *It is therefore difficult to figure out where Thomas Friedman would like > the US to go to show its military might that could translate in rejuvenation > of its economy.* > > * * > > *Friedman has identified two potent developments that are threatening the > current world order. One: the emergence of China as an economic power. > Second: the anarchy unleashed by whistleblower Wikileaks that is now a > permanent threat to America’s secret war on its friends and foes. But > emerging facts about Zionist connection, in censoring Wikileaks postings, > challenge his pious lamentation on world anarchy.* > > * * > > > > > > *Ghulam Muhammed, Mumbai* > > *[email protected]* > > *http://ghulammuhammed.blogspot.com * > > > > > > > > > > > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "humanrights movement" group. > To post to this group, send email to [email protected] > . > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > [email protected]<humanrights-movement%[email protected]> > . > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/humanrights-movement?hl=en. > -- AMAR KANWAR New Delhi India -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "humanrights movement" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. 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