Global Voices » Iran

The Eccentrics and the Women Who Run for President in Iran

Farid — Mon, 20 May 2013 21:51:10 +0000

One of the more eccentric presidential hopefuls says ‘Presidents should be handsome'. Source: Entekhab

Hundreds of hopeful Iranians, including thirty women, have registered as candidates to replace President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in the forthcoming election on June 14, 2013 even though they have no chance whatsoever of being elected. The conservative Council of Guardians appoints the shortlist of candidates who will actually run.

Besides political heavy weights such as former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani and Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei, Ahmadinejad's ally, there are several eccentric candidates that have attracted media attention, momentarily stealing the limelight.

Eccentric Candidates

The elderly man in this television interview says he wants to make his eldest son the Minister of Housing if he is elected because they never had their own house.

Another candidate says, ”Presidents should be handsome and make people happy.” [photo above, video below]

Female Candidates

Thirty women have registered to stand as candidates for the forthcoming presidential election. Meanwhile, Mohammad Yazdi, a clerical member of Iran’s Council of Guardians, has declared that Iran's laws “do not allow women to become presidents.”

The blogger Saeedshabani says:

Dear Ladies, why does a regime that does not consider you to have enough brain to stand as a candidate, accept your votes? I ask this question: what is the difference between men and women? I hope women will boycott this election.

Is Iran's Most Believable Presidential Candidate a Fictional Character?

Farid — Sun, 12 May 2013 15:58:55 +0000

Zahra for President

The iron fist of Iran's regime allows no chance for opposition candidates to run in the presidential election, but in the virtual realm, a new graphic novel character is the champion of a free and fair election.

Hundreds of hopeful Iranians have registered as candidates to replace President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as in the forthcoming election on June 14, 2013. The conservative Council of Guardians will now appoint the shortlist of candidates who will actually run.

Zahra For President

Many still remember the massive protest movement that erupted after the election in 2009. The activist website United4Iran and the serial web comic Zahra's Paradise have launched the virtual campaign Zahra For President 2013 to expose Iran's corrupt political system through satire.

Zahra is the hero of the graphic novel whose 19-year-old son, Mehdi, disappeared after participating in demonstrations against Iran’s 2009 election outcome. Her campaign develops in weekly illustrated panels on the website Vote4Zahra.org.

Here is the virtual campaign message:

In 2009, Zahra and her family, along with millions of Iranians took to the streets to demand fair and free elections. Despite a brutal crackdown, the promise of an Iranian spring—democracy, dignity, and justice—is far from extinguished. Today, Zahra is running for President, the promise of a new day. Join her. Let’s win back our Iran.

The Right to a Free and Fair Election

People from around the world, including Iran, have uploaded their photos on the Facebook page for Zahra's Paradise.

Zahra's campaign in Iran

Some have posted photos with a simple but difficult to achieve slogan: “I have the right to a free and fair elections.”

Firuzeh Mahmoudi, the co-founder of United4Iran

Zahra Does Not Forget Bloggers

Zahra mentions that security forces have jailed and tortured bloggers, journalists and their families.

Zahra campaigns for bloggers

Zahra's campaign reminds us of a sad truth. Four years ago millions of Iranians believed in change, voted for real candidates, and some even sacrificed their lives. Now, a cartoon character appears to be the most appealing candidate for some.

Iran: SMS Calls for Internet Interruption Protest

Farid — Sat, 11 May 2013 08:07:51 +0000

Sokhanesabz says [fa] that people send SMS to each other inviting Iranians to protest against internet interruption in front of Ministry of Communication on Saturday 11th May.

Iran Tightens Grip on Internet Even More

Farid — Mon, 06 May 2013 20:52:44 +0000

Source: Mahmoud Reza Nourbakhsh

Several reports indicate that the Iranian regime has taken another step to control the already heavily censored Internet. According to an ITIran report [fa], the circumvention software Psiphon, as well as Kerio and Open VPN, are no longer effective against the Iranian state's efforts to block websites.

The report also says that Internet speeds have fallen sharply, restricting access to many websites. Some consider it a leap towards launching an Iranian national internet, and others say the coming presidential election in June is why they are tightening their grip on the internet.

Iranian netizens reacted to this sad event:

The blog ‘Fighting against Internet filtering’ says [fa]:

The problem started on Saturday, May 4. You face problems when you use anti-filtering software and the Internet connection gets interrupted.

@SHoBBarMZ tweeted [fa]:

“Filtering is closer to you than God.” Ministry of Communication

Some netizens directly addressed the Iranian regime. @Babakaram tweeted [fa]:

Be proud that you have one of the strongest cyber armies yet you only use it for restriction and filtering.

Another tweet by the same person says, sometimes the authorities say many countries face filtering and it's a normal thing.

@Mahtab tweeted:

When we get old, we will tell our grand children it's because of filtering that we became old.

The blogger Andarbaba encourages Iranians around the world to protest against Internet filtering no matter their political opinions.

Iranian filtering does not concern only Iranians. Colin D. Anderson, a computer researcher in the United States, tweets regularly about Iranian censorship. It's a real window on the situation for anyone who wants to learn the real situation of virtual Iran.

Iran: Investors Swarm Ahmadinejad over Losses

Farid — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 21:23:19 +0000

According to Payvand site and several bloggers, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was swarmed by a group of Iranians protesting the loss of their money in the Tabriz Nasr Secured Loans Fund.

Iran: Facebook is ‘the most disgusting US spyware’

Hadi Nili — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 19:39:11 +0000

A high commander in Iran cyber police says Facebook is ‘the most disgusting spyware and the most dangerous warfare of the U.S.’ which is also ‘responsible for one third of divorces in Iran’.

Facebook and other famous social networking websites are blocked by Iranian authorities. They blame this services as ‘tools to promote unrest and in favor of regime change in Iran’.

Iran: 60% of Population Online

Hadi Nili — Sat, 20 Apr 2013 16:02:51 +0000

An organization affiliated with Iran’s government says 60 percent of Iranians are connected to the internet, 40 percent of them are young people in their 20s.
Iran’s “Center For Managing National Development Of Internet”, MATMA, says more than 45 millions are connected to the internet,almost 2.5 millions of them through their mobile devices.

Iran: Act Like a Man, Dress Like a Woman!

Farid — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 15:33:38 +0000

A man dressed in a red dress with a veil on his head was paraded by security forces through the streets of Marivan in the Kurdistan province of Iran on Monday, April 15, 2012. A local court decided this would be the punishment for three men, reportedly found guilty in domestic disputes. The exact circumstances are unclear, but the mere idea of this punishment has angered many.

Women in Marivan held a protest against the sentence on Tuesday, saying it is more humiliating to women than it is to the convicted men. According to one human rights activist, security forces physically attacked protesters [fa]. A video shows women marching through the streets.

Shared on the Facebook page ‘Kurd Men For Equality’

Online, several Kurdish men have photographed themselves dressed as women as part of a Facebook campaign to say, “Being a woman is not an instrument to punish or humiliate anybody.” The photos appear on a Facebook page named Kurd Men for Equality.

Namo Kurdistani writes:

To show my solidarity and support to the “womanhood” and their suffers and torments during the history mostly have done by “men” [sic]. as we have faced recently a stupid judge”s order to punish a person by putting on him the feminine customs, so it is one of the times that we should gather around each other and condemn this stupidity, brutality and inhumanity against the womanhood; the half of society as well as at least half of the human being on the earth. I am supporting womanhood by the at least I can do for them.

The Facebook page of the Women's Association of Marivan also condemned the act and wrote [fa]:

Security forces dragged a convicted Marvani’s man in the city. They dressed him as a woman and wished by this act to humiliate him. The Women's Association of Marivan condemn this action and consider it an insult to women. Kurdish women protested against this act [one day after].

Mohmmad Mostafai, an Iranian lawyer and human rights defender says [fa]

Iran’s judiciary has no right to order such punishment which goes against human dignity. Dressing convicts like women is not something you can find in the laws of the Islamic Republic.

History repeats itself

More than three years ago, Iranian authorities attempted to use the same method of humiliation against a student activist, but failed.

Back then, Iranian authorities claimed that Majid Tavakoli dressed as a woman to escape after delivering a speech in Tehran on Student Day. However, human rights activists in Iran published a report from an eyewitness saying: “All the pictures published by the state media are false and a clear use of immoral means against student and civil activists in Iran.” At the time, hundreds of Iranian men photographed themselves dressed as women in hijab to support Tavakoli.

Iran: Earthquake Struck near Nuclear Plant

Farid — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 17:55:39 +0000

Thirty people have been killed after a 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck near Bushehr in Iran. Several bloggers worry about the safety of Bushehr plant.

Iran's Anesthetics Shortage Reaches Alarming Levels

Hooman Askary — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 00:13:04 +0000

Firoozeh Mozafari's cartoon for Iranian news website khabaronline, Translation of the words: [Doctor to Patient]: “Sir, please cooperate and get unconscious. We need to do our job!”

Panic struck in Iranian hospitals as the country's medical officials confirmed a serious national shortage of anesthetics on March 15, 2013 hindering life-saving operations on patients in Iran.

Kheirollah Gholami, a pharmacist in Tehran, has been widely quoted as saying, “If the situation stays like this, we don't really know what to do. Patients cannot be knocked unconscious with a hammer.”

Iranian netizens and bloggers have reacted. Mana Neyestani, a renowned dissident cartoonist has created the following for Mardomak website:

Cartoon by Mana Neyestani. Translation from right to left 1) “The aesthetician is doing his best…” 2) “Once upon a time there was a lion that lived in a jungle….” 3) [the patient] “Damn you with your sanctions!” — [words on the newspaper] “Head of Anesthetics Association: “Anesthetics have become rare.”

Iranian blogger, Dara, slams the Islamic Republic for having failed people in every possible way:

Operating rooms in some hospitals across the country have been closed due to the shortage of anaesthetics, fake penicillin imported from China claims the lives of our compatriots, the American dollar value is still at a whopping 35,000 rials and high prices strain people to an extent that it seems this [Nowruz] new year's shopping will be among the dullest in recent years. And at such times, some still talk of participating in elections. Seriously, what do you expect us to elect while all has already been taken care of by the Leader? [...] Whom should I vote for when I cannot even receive anaesthetic in the operating room?

Mohsen Sazgara tweeted:

According to a high ranking official in the medical faculty of the University of Tehran, if this situation continues, we will be forced to shut down operation rooms.

An Iranian Blogger's Hunger Strike in Question

Farid — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 13:19:03 +0000

Mehdi Khazali source: doostaranedrkhazali.blogspot.com

350 Iranian bloggers, political and civil society activists co-signed a letter last week warning that the life of publisher, physicist and blogger, Mehdi Khazali is in grave danger after he has been on hunger strike for more than 90 days.

But while some bloggers warn that Mehdi Khazali’s life is danger, there are also those who question whether he is really on hunger strike.

Khazali is the son of a leading right-wing cleric and former Counsel of Guardians member, Ayatollah Khazali. He was arrested together with several participants of a writer's association called Saraye Ghalam.

Iranian blogger Freedomseeker [fa] explains the rumours:

… one of main reasons that people do not believe in Khazali’s hunger strike is that more than a year ago, it was announced that he had been on hunger strike for 67 days. Shortly after he was released by order of Ayatholah Ali Khamenei, the Islamic Republic’s Leader, Khazali started his weekly mountain hiking and urged people to take part in parliamentary elections. In the photos published from his mountain hiking, there was no visible sign of a long hunger strike and he appeared in good shape… His past activities with the regime made some people suspect the regime is in the process of creating fake opposition.

Not everyone shares this belief. An online petition calls for the immediate and unconditional release of Mehdi Khazali:

Mehdi Khazali renews hunger strike. Mehdi Khazali, a jailed Iranian physician and blogger, has begun his sixth round of a hunger strike in Evin Prison. Mehdi Khazali was last arrested in November of 2012 after security forces attacked a writer’s gathering. Kaleme reports that Khazali had broken his earlier strike when prison authorities promised to meet his demands. However, a lack of commitment to those promises and the persistent “illegal treatment of prisoners by the interrogators and judiciary officials” have led Khazali into another hunger strike.

Irane Azad writes[fa] that the same people who make fun of Mehdi Khazali’s hunger strike, if he dies tomorrow, will call him martyr. These people boycotted the presidential election in 2009 but after the Green Movement [protest movement] erupted, they became supporters on the frontline.

Meanwhile, blogger 666Sabz warns[fa],”People! A person is dying in prison.”

Iran's ‘Oldest’ Blogger Passes Away

Farid — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 19:20:52 +0000

Ahmad Falsafi, an 82-year-old dentist and blogger who wrote in his blog for about eight years, has died. Many considered him as the oldest blogger in Iran.

Iran: “We Want Our Children to be Free”

Farid — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 21:03:33 +0000

The mother of dead blogger, Sattar Beheshti,said in a message in YouTube that she gave her son for Iran and added “we want our children to be free”. Sattar Beheshti died in “Cyber Police” detention facility last year.

Iran: 500 Year Old Market was Burnt

Farid — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 21:01:59 +0000

Bloggers informed that Masuleh‘s 500 year old market was burnt in fire. The historical city of Masuleh has an age of eight hundred to a thousand years.

Iranian Singer Ermia's Show Biz Veil

Hooman Askary — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 11:19:14 +0000

Iranian music talent show participants (season three). Photo by Manoto TV, from Googoosh Music Academy's official Facebook page

Iranians flooded social media with comments at the end of March, when Ermia, a female amateur singer who lives in Germany and wears a veil (hijab) won a talent show on the London-based Persian language television station, Manoto. Some found it strange for her to wear the veil on the show voluntarily, while others supported her decision.

The very popular Googoosh Music Academy (GMA) programme that debuted three years ago on Manoto TV is an adaptation of the American hit show, American Idol.

Iranians who have lived with compulsory hijab-wearing for women in their country for the past 34 years under the Islamic Republic had radically different reactions to Ermia's win:

@Pooyamax tweets jokingly, criticising Ermia's hijab:

Ermia was born in Khomein and her real surname is Khomeini, in fact she is Imam Khomeini reincarnated as Ermia.

In her blog, Fatemeh, sees the controversy as natural within the Iranian post-revolutionary context:

How come when singers in other countries, like Egypt, sing with their hijab on, [people let go of it] but an Iranian girl participating in a talent show while covering her hair causes all this fury and protest? [...] one cannot expect this society to react as easily and comfortably, [ours is a society] under constant persecution of a state that interferes in how the citizens treat their bodies or choose to wear. [...] all the violent treatment of women and omission of secular females first from governmental offices and then from the society, the ill-treatment of girls by veiled interrogators and forcing them under the veil…. all this fear and grudge is now channeled against the young girl of Googoosh Music Academy who has a good voice and has chosen hijab. This prejudice and resentment is an offspring of suppression and oppression and has not come about out of the blue. Before any criticism or intellectual humiliation of people, one must try to understand their panic and discover the root of their fears.

Another Iranian blogger, a self-declared “Atheist who voted for Ermia” looks at the Ermia phenomenon from another perspective:

I personally don't disagree with hijab [in principle,] what I have a problem with is the suffix of “compulsory”. Yet, I did not see any effort on the side of this lady [Ermia] to advertise that. In my opinion protesting hijab or veil, is like protesting wearing orange socks! My question is why we degrade ourselves to disagreeing with a mere piece of clothing. I cannot convince myself to hate someone for their hijab. Perhaps this is because there have been people I hold dear who had chosen this kind of appearance, but, despite my detest of black veil as an attire for women, I have tried not judge people based on their garments.