Iran: Mir-Hossein Mousavi Cartoon Upsets Greens
A leading Iranian cartoonist and blogger based in Canada, Nikahang Kowsar, posted a cartoon this month of opposition leader Mir-Hossein Mousavi that has caused numerous reactions in Iranian citizen media.
It shows Mousavi sitting at a desk 10 years from now, writing his 300th statement.
The cartoon is not directly insulting of Mousavi, but it shows an unfavorable outcome for his supporters. Perhaps responding to indignation over the cartoon, Roozonline, an opposition website, removed it from their own site without explanation. Meanwhile, several conservative (pro-government) websites within Iran have re-published the cartoon and “celebrated” what they see as a mood swing among “counter-revolutionaries” (the opposition).
Sabz1388 writes [fa]:
Mousavi is not a saint, he is a human-being from Earth who makes mistakes. Nikahang asks us about Mousavi's reaction to executions in the 1980s… I do not know, I was very young at the time, but Mousavi did criticize recent executions… Arguments for and against Nikahang just make us stray from news and activities of the Green Movement.
Jacoobjacoobi refers [fa] to Mousavi's 300th statement in the cartoon and says that even the most severe Mousavi critics cannot deny that he is resiting and demanding the rights of the Iranian people.
Sogholme argues [fa] that Nikahang is making fun of Mousavi's non-violent form of struggle. Nikahang, himself, disagrees and writes [fa] that he too supports non-violence:
“Some friends asked me if I want to destroy Mousavi. My answer is not at all. I have no personal problem with him… I am a cartoonist and I should make fun of all sides of power. Questioning them.”
Nikahang drew another cartoon displaying Mousavi as a “green” saint, comparing him with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad who once claimed a light surrounds him in a speech at the United Nations.
