The complaints and confrontation of two Majlis representatives with journalists and media graphics in recent days has brought forth much response in Iran.
Ahmad Lotfi Ashtiani, the Majlis representative from Araq has filed a complaint against the cartoonist who drew a controversial cartoon recently who has already been sentenced by a judge to be whipped. Mehdi Kootchakzadeh, another representative, from Tehran publicly cursed the reporters from Asseman weekly in the parliament’s cafeteria.
Rooz spoke with both representatives and here are their responses to Rooz’s questions and the issue in general.
Ashtiani refrained from presenting an explanation regarding his complaint from Mahmoud Shokrabe, the cartoonist from Araq and was not willing to talk about the issue. But in response to the question whether he would also file complaints against the other cartoonists who have drawn cartoons of Ashtiani in support of their sentenced colleague said, he had not seen these other cartoons.
When we asked whether he personally thought that whipping was the right response to a critical cartoonist, Ashtiani hung up the phone.
Cartoonist Mana Nistani had asked other cartoonists to support Shokrabe by drawing caricatures of the Arak Majlis representative. She did the same herself and wrote, “As a symbol of empathy to my colleague in protest to this fabricated sanctity that has been created for this political official, I ask all of my colleagues not to remain indifferent. There is no need to create an uproar and fall into political traps. Pick up your pens and who Shokrabe did: draw a cartoon of Arak’s Majlis representative without being insulting and publish them in their blogs and web sites.”
Nistani told Rooz, “I wrote that note and asked my colleagues not to be indifferent because I am concerned that the situation with press cartoons in Iran will get worse. It is clear that with the current laws, the few cartoonists who are active today will give up their work. In fact my note was so that even the current narrow breathing space that cartoonists have in Iran is maintained. Let’s not even talk about rolling back existing restrictions and breaking current taboos.”
I asked Mr. Nistani what impact would his action have, to which he replied, “The least impact is that cartoonists showed that while it was true that they were not organized, or better put those who are better than us decided that we should not have an organization, they feel responsible and are emphatic. The other impact is that it showed to that judge that he is not a superior authority and that cartoonists will easily defend their rights. What is the meaning of this that in this country a cartoon biennale is held every two years with the support of the government where a separate sections allows cartoonists to draw portraits of prominent political and non-political personalities whose best also receive official awards, while at another time a cartoonist is threatened and punished for drawing a cartoon of a Majlis representative?”
Until the writing of this piece, other than Mana, these cartoonists have drawn and published or posted their cartoons of Ahmad Lofti Ashtiani in his support: Tooka Nistani, Jamal Rahmati, Nikahang Kowsar (whose appear in Rooz), Vahid Nikgoo, Payam Boroomand, Hanif Bahari, Shahabodin Alavi, Morteza Khosravi, Soheil Shakeri, Sepehr Ali Mohammadloo, Ali Tajadod, Kasra Abbasabadi, Sasan Khadem, Mohammad Tajik, Vahid Jaafari, Khayam Movidi, Saeed Sadeghi, Hamed Shamloo, Mohsen Irani, Jahangir Darmani and Naeem Tadvin.
When I told Mana that the representative from Araq says he has not seen the other cartoons, he said, “When we collect all the works, and if Mr. Vakil requests, we will publish all of them in a booklet and present it to him as a souvenir. I hope he understands the point that when a cartoonist selects a subject he in fact is presenting a part of his own spirit in his work. This is in fact a kind of favor to the subject. A favor that I wish Mr. Lotfi understood.”
Mr. Shokrabe is a cartoonist for the Name Amir publication in Araq. This is not the first time that a cartoonist ends up in a court in Iran because of his work. Hassan Karimzadeh, Tooka Nistani, Nikahang Kowsar, Mana Nistani and Keyvan Zargar are among those Iranian cartoonists who have had to deal with the judiciary because of their work.
Earlier, Hassan Karimzadeh too had been sentenced to receive slashes for his work, and Mahmoud Shokrane is the second cartoonist to receive such a sentence in Iran.
Kootchakzadeh Curses Journalists
Mehdi Kootchakzadeh, the Majlis representative from Tehran verbally attacked Saeed Shams, the reporter from Asseman weekly and cursed him. According to Baztab website, Kootchakzadeh cursed and insulted Saeed Shams and Mohammad Ghoochani, the reporter and editor of Asseman weekly in the Majlis cafeteria. While screaming at the journalists, Kootchakzadeh yelled that Ghoochani was less significant than (controversial judge Saeed) Mortezavi’s dog.
When Rooz asked this Majlis representative whether his behavior was worthy of a Majlis representative, he responded by saying, “It is none of your business.
You should not be asking me.” When I pressed for a response, he said, “You seem to have little intelligence. You do not understand Persian. I do not like you and I hate those who adore foreigners.” “But you belong to the cultural committee of the Majlis and more than this is expected of you,” I repeated to which he replied, “If I had to learn my language from you foreigner lovers my situation would be really bad.” And when I asked, “Is your situation today good that you verbally attack a reporter in the Majlis?” he hung up the phone.
It should be noted that the cartoon that is the subject of this attack is a relatively benign image of the Majlis representative without any political undertones.
Fereshteh Ghazi
Source : Roozonline