Iran: Reverse harsh sentence imposed on film director Jafar Panahi

Jafar Pinahi and the Berlin Silver Bear Award, 2006.

On 24 January 2010, I received an email from Amnesty International USA shining light on a harsh sentence imposed on Jafar Panahi, an award-winning Iranian film director. He was arrested and recently imprisoned in Iran and banned from making movies - in violation of his right to freedom of expression through film-making.

According to Amnesty International USA, Jafar Panahi was accused of making an anti-government film without permission and inciting opposition. In December 2010, he was convicted of "Propaganda" against the state and sentenced to 6 years behind bars by Iran's Revolutionary Court. Besides this conviction, Jafar is banned from making movies for 20 years, and forbidden from writing scripts, traveling abroad, speaking with the press and from expressing political descent.

It is worth mentioning that Jafar Panahi is known for writing and directing films that expose the oppression of women in Iran. One of his compelling films titled "OFFSIDE" captures the story of women officially banned from men's sporting events, including football (soccer) in Iran. WATCH the trailer:



As a proponent of fundamental freedoms and human rights - including civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights - I view this imprisonment and limitations slammed on Jafar as an attack on freedom of expression and the movie industry, as well as an attempt to silence critics of oppression in Iran. Those who value freedom of expression and film-making are encouraged to take action now to reverse this harsh sentence and outrageous conditions imposed on film director Jafar Panahi.

Jafar Panahi's artistic collaborator, Mohammad Rasoulof was also sentenced to 6 years imprisonment.

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Botswana President invites Ouattara but deny Bushmen rights

President Seretse Khama Ian Khama.

The President of Botswana, Seretse Khama Ian Khama, has reportedly invited Alassane Ouattara, the internationally recognized winner of the disputed 2010 presidential election in Ivory Coast to Botswana for a state visit. This was announced barely a day after the government of Botswana approved the opening of a $3 billion diamond mine on the ancestral land of oppressed indigenous Bushmen in Botswana.

Khama's government argues that African leaders (like Laurent Gbagbo) who reject election results and cling to power "deny people the right to have leaders of their choice." This argument, no doubt, holds water but at the same time it is hypocritical - coming from a government that continues to deny indigenous land rights of it's own people.

Why should a government defend rights abroad, and at the same time violate indigenous rights in it's own backyard?

In 2002, the government of Botswana evicted Bushmen from their land and resettled them in camps after the discovery of diamonds in their ancestral land. Although some Bushmen have been allowed to return to their land following a High Court ruling, the government continues to make life difficult for them by denying them access to water and the right to hunt on their land.

Survival International, an organization working for tribal and indigenous rights, maintains that the Bushmen were evicted from their ancestral land to make room for lucrative diamond exploitation. The recent approval of the construction of a diamond mine worth billions of dollars on the disputed ancestral land of the Bushmen backs this assertion.

In December 2010, President Khama whose regime is apparently more interested in respecting voting rights abroad than the rights of Kalahari Bushmen, described Botswana's indigenous Bushmen as "Primitive," "primeval" and living a "life of backwardness."

It is true that Ivorians have the right to have a leader of their choice, and President Khama has recognized Ouattara as that leader. But it is also true that the government of Botswana has an obligation to respect Bushmen's right to live on their ancestral land and maintain their way of life no matter how "primitive" or "primeval" it may seem.

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Happy New Year 2011!

You've probably noticed that the last article - Ivory Coast: Power Struggle endangers lives - was posted on this blog on December 17, 2010. Hence, it goes without saying that until date, I have not wished all readers of this blog a Happy New Year 2011. It would therefore be unfair and perhaps negligent for me to resume writing on a new year, after a fun-filled break on the coast of West Africa, without wishing you a happy and success-filled new year 2011.

2010 was arguably the most productive year of my life so far simply because I entered into a contract with myself by way of written goals. In other words, I had a written "nonnegotiable obligation" to be productive.

It is in this vein that you are encouraged to write down ALL your goals for 2011, if you've not done so yet. Write them down where you'd see them daily and be reminded of what you expect to achieve by the end of the year. You'd be amazed by the power of written goals.

Happy New Year 2011! Make it bigger than 2010!

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