These are the two versions of a photo of a meeting at the Austrian Embassy in Tehran, one with Sattar Beheshti's mother, and the other without. Javan newspaper say they altered the photo to protect her. Source unnamed.
There were warnings and protests from Iranian hardliners last weekend, when European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton met with with several human rights activists at the Austrian embassy in Tehran on Saturday, March 8, 2014.
In a negative article about the meeting, conservative newspaper Javan, doctored a photo, erasing an image of Gohar Eshghi, the mother of the blogger Sattar Beheshti, who died under torture in police custody in 2012.
Javan later published both photos with an explanation, saying they had censored the photo to avoid criticism for labeling the bloggers’ aging mother a “seditionist”.
Half Saddam, half Ashton
Mohammad Hassan Najmi tweeted a photo of a propaganda billboard showing Ashton's face halved and shared with Saddam Hussein's.
نصب پوسترهایی در تهران که نیمی از آن چهره #اشتون و نیم دیگر چهره صدام است. pic.twitter.com/SRFFCcVhZm
— Mohammad Hasan Najmi (@mnajmi64) March 12, 2014
In Tehran, some posters on billboards depict Ashton's face as half Saddam Hussein [former Iraqi president who led a war against Iran, 1980-88].
They censor because they fear
Mehdi Mohseni tweeted a satirical image of Sattar Beheshti's mother being cut out:
سانسورت مى‌كنند چون از حقيقت مى‌ترسند! #ستار بهشتى #اشتون pic.twitter.com/9XhZ97eOFu
— Mehdi Mohseni (@mehdimohseni) March 12, 2014
They censor because they are scared.
Mohammad Moni tweeted on March 11 on the likelihood of government complicity with the protest:
گروهی از «دانشجویان» در اعتراض به «اقدام خارج از عرف» #اشتون، در برابر سفارت #اتریش تجمع می‌کنند/توجه: تو این مملکت آب‌بازی هم مجوز میخواد
— محمّد معینی (@mmoeeni) March 11, 2014
Several students protested against Ashton's meeting with activists in front of the Austrian Embassy. Keep in mind you need a permission for even a water fight here. [several people were arrested after a playful water fight in public in 2011]
“Ms. Ashton, Iran is not Ukraine”
A small group of hardliners demonstrated in front of Austrain embassy. One of the slogans was: “Ms. Ashton, this is not Ukraine.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rhVEqPFb2C4
It was the first visit of an EU foreign policy chief to Iran since 2008.
5 comments
National Council of Resistance of Iran, a broad coalition of democratic Iranian organizations, groups, and personalities, was founded in 1981 in Tehran, Iran on the initiative of Massoud Rajavi, the leader of the Iranian Resistance. For more information visit http://www.ncr-iran.org/en/
National Council of Resistance of Iran, a broad coalition of democratic Iranian organizations, groups, and personalities, was founded in 1981 in Tehran, Iran on the initiative of Massoud Rajavi, the leader of the Iranian Resistance. For more information visit http://www.ncr-iran.org/en/