1

Political Satire, the Barometer of Press Freedom:

A Review of Political Satire in the Iranian Press

during the 2000s

Seyed Mahmood Farjami*

Abstract:

Political satire has played a prominent part in the social and political sphere

of journalism in Iran from the first appearance of the independent press at the

beginning of the twentieth century. This paper examines its problems and

achievements in the Iranian press during the first decade of the twenty-first

century, including their historical context over the past one hundred years. Legal

and other important issues issues (e.g. Press Laws) affecting the Iranian press are

reviewed in addition to non-political forms of the genre of satire, which

significantly have often been used for political ends by authorities in Iran.

Keywords: Political satire, Political humour, Iranian satirists, Cartooning,

Editorial cartoons, Iranian Press in 2000s, Persian satire, Freedom of the press,

Censorship

______________________________________________________________

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* S. M. Farjami is an Iranian satirist and journalist, and a PhD candidate in the School of

Communication, Universiti Sains Malaysia.Political Satire in the Iranian Press, the

Roots

The appearance of political satire in the Iranian press came fast on the heels of

Iranians becoming familiar with the modern concepts of “politics” and “the press’’ itself.

Only three years after the Office of Censorship (Edareye Sansour) was established by

Etemad Al-Dowleh by the order of Nasereddin Shah in February, 1885, to maintain tight

control over all the presses publishing inside the country as well as publications delivered

from outside, the first newspaper wholly devoted to satiric content was registered with

the government. Shahsavan, a Persian magazine, was published overseas in 1888 and

sent to subscribers in Iran by private post.1

In fact political satire had officially appeared in the Iranian press during

Mozaffareddin Shah’s reign (1896-1907) when the first non-state papers were permitted

to publish. However, as Aryanpour points out, effective political satires in the Iranian

press were only published from the beginning of the 20th century, particularly under the

influence of Molla Nasreddin, a satiric political and social weekly which was written in

Azeri Turkish, published from 1906 until 1917 in Tblisi, in 1921 in Tabriz, and from

1922 to 1931 in Baku.2 By then, although political satire had been a very modern

phenomenon along with the whole idea of “politics”, political satirists had played an

important role in creating political awareness and promoting the Constitutional

Revolution of 1905-1907. Some of the most prominent and effective journalists and

activists of that era, like Seyed Ali Akbar Dehkhoda, Seyed Ashrafeddin Gilani (also

known as Ghazvini), Adib-ol Mamalek-e Farahani (Amiri), Mirza Agha Khan Kermani,

and Mirza Malkom Khan, chose satire to convey their political messages to audiences, in

prose and in verse. Furthermore, by this time, there were several Persian newspapers with

wholly satiric content (both text and caricature) such as Tolue Mosavvar, Azarbayjan,

1 Edward G. Browne, The Press and Poetry of Modern Persia, (Cambridge, 1983).

2 Yahya Aryanpour, Az Saba Ta Nima2 [From Saba to Nima2] (Tehran, 2008) 39 -105. Kasravi also

points out how Molla Naṣreddin, was particularly influential, for in it editorial opinion was cloaked in

verse and easily understood humorous anecdotes (Ahmad Kasravi, Mashrouteh3, (Tehran, 2007) 194).

3

Shabnameh, Hasharat-ol Arz, Estebdad, Bohloul, Jangal-e Mowla, Jarchi-e Mellat,

Sheida, and Nasim-e Shomal which critiqued political and social issues.3

Judging by its print runs, Ṣour-e Esrafil, a serious newspaper that included some

satiric content was one of the most popular, perhaps the most popular, newspaper of the

time. Its success was due chiefly to Dehḵhoda’s caustic and satirical column “Charand-o

Parand” (Balderdash). Without indulging in the invective and personal attacks

characteristic of some other columnists, Dehkhoda was able to deflate the Court and the

conservative clergy with his lively wit. Of the purely satiric newspapers Nisme-e Shomal

(Breeze of the North) was one of the most influential, publishing political satiric verses

almost always written by its own publisher, Seyed Ashrafeddin Ghazvini. Both

Dehkhoda and Ghazvini were particularly influenced by Jalil Mohammad Gholizadeh

and Ali Akbar Saber, two prominent satirists writing for Molla Nasreddin.4 Most of these

newspapers, except Nasim-e Shomal, disappeared before the beginning of the First World

War (1914).

From this time until beginning of the reign of Reza Shah in 1925, political satire

persisted in the press, though the quantity of satirical newspapers was not like earlier.

After the coup in 1921 that elevated Reza Khan first to the position of Sardar Sepah

(Minister of War) and then as Prime Minister, criticism became increasingly difficult and

dangerous, although some of the most influential political critiques were still published in

the form of satire. The most controversial subject was the Reza Khan’s idea for changing

the system of monarchy to a republic, which had both strong advocates and strong

opponents. Two of the best-known pieces of punditry battling this via satire were Nasim-

e Saba by Kouhi-e Kermani supporting the monarchy and Nahid by Mirza Ebrahim

Nahid, supporting the republic.

Some believe the piece that fostered the most negative public opinion about Reza

Kahn’s “republic” was a satiric long-form poem, Jonhouri Nameh (Letter of the

Republic), published under the name of a well-known liberal poet, Mirzadeh Eshghi, in

3 Hassan Javadi, Satire in Persian Literature, Toronto: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 1988.

4 See Yahya Aryanpour, Az Saba Ta Nima2 [From Saba to Nima2] (Tehran, 2008) 39 -105 for a

comparison between some Turkish prose and verse in Molla Nasreddin and similar prose and verses in

Persian in Sur-e Esrafil and Nasim-e Shomal that show the deep influence of Molla Nasreddin on Iranian

newspapers.

4

the spring of 1924, few months after Reza Khan had discarded the idea of the republic.5

Eshghi harshly satirized him and the republic in prose, verse and caricature in his

newspaper, Gharn-e Bistom (Twentieth Century), and a few days later, on July 3, 1924,

he was found murdered. Thereafter, political satire or criticism was rarely published in

the Iranian press during the reign of Reza Shah (1925-1941), and the few publications

remaining in print -- like Arjang, Nasim-e Shomal, Gol-e Zard and Nahid -- avoided

opposition political journalism.6

With the occupation of Iran by the Allies in the summer of 1941, Reza Shah fell and

his young son became the next Shah. In the political turmoil of the young king’s rule,

freedom of the press flourished and continued in differing degrees for more than a

decade. Elwell-Sutton’s study of the Iranian press in the years after the occupation (1941-

1947) shows that the number of press outlets suddenly rose from around 50 to 464 and

that 9 of these were fully or partly satiric.7 Among them were new publications like

Hardanbil, Baba Shemel, Ghalandar and Yoyo while others published previously

continued with interruptions. In addition, Chelengar, Haji Baba, Louti, Shab Charagh,

Noushkhand and Dad o Bidad were published from 1948-1953. Chelengar, established

by Mohammad Ali Afrashteh in 1949, was the most prominent political journal of the

era. Banned in June 1953, it published 11 issues under other names.

Iran’s press freedom was severely curtailed after the coup against Prime Minister

Masaddeq in August 1953, and did not recover until the end of the Shah’s reign at the

start of 1979. Despite this, political satire still maintained a presence in the Iranian press

and with even better quality, especially in the Towfigh newspaper. Published from the

spring of 1959 in a new incarnation by members of the founder’s family known as the

Towfigh Brothers (Hassan, Hossein, and Abbas), the newspaper soon became popular

again and attracted a roster of the best and brightest satirists and cartoonists including

Abolghasem Halat, Abbas Forat, Iraj Pezeshkzad, Parviz Khatibi, and young writers who

5 See: Mohammad Ghaed, Eshghi: Simaye Najib-e Yek Anarchist [Eshghi: The Portrait of A Decent

Anarchist] (Tehran, 2001). Ghaed believes this prominent poem cannot have been written by Eshghi alone,

and that probably Mohammad Taqi-e Bahar, the then well-known poet and MP, helped him or maybe wrote

the whole of Jomhouri Nameh, but had it published under the name of Eshghi with his agreement. 6 Satire in Persian Literature, P. 199

7 L.P. Elwell-Sutton, “The Iranian Press, 1941-1947”, Iran 6 (1968) 65-104.

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later became famous like Manouchehr Mahjoubi, Hadi Khorsandi, Omran Salahi,

Manouchehr Ehterami, and Kiumars Saberi Foumani, as well as cartoonists Derambakhsh

and Naser Pakshir (along with Hassan Towfigh who drew most of the cartoons for

Towfigh). In 1971, when Towfigh was banned without trial - most probably by the order

of Prime Minister Amir Abbas Hoveyda, who was the most common target of Towfigh’s

political satires - Towfigh was certainly the most famous and important satiric newspaper

in Iran. Its few competitors, like Kashkiyat (satiric attachment of newspaper Tehran

Mosvvar) and Caricature, could never attain its circulation and popularity.

Following the victorious 1979 Revolution in Iran, a rare but brief opportunity for

freedom of the press was born, namely the Bahar-e Azadi (Spring of Freedom) in which

the satiric press also flourished. Roya Sadr lists more than 30 satiric journals beginning

publication between March and September of 1979, when the first wave of press closures

occurred.8 Among them were reinvigorated journals from the past, such as Haji Baba,

Bohloul and Chelengar, now being published again. Chelengar (renamed Ahangar after

few issues9), became the most famous satiric magazine of the era, reaching a circulation

of 150,000 copies.10

Individual satirical columns in serious newspapers were also popular, particularly

Hadi Khorsandi’s in Kayhan newspaper which was also the first post-victory column to

appear on March 10, 1979, less than one month after the Revolution. It was also one of

the first political satires to be shut down as a result of protests and attacks, with Hadi

soon being run out of Iran in 1980.11

Ahangar was the first journal to be a casualty of the new press laws after the

Revolution; it was closed down just one day after Prime Minister Bazargan’s interim

government announced the first press law on August 7, 1979. After that, the free press

8 Roya Sadr, Bardasht-E Akher: Negahi Be Tanz-E Emruz-e Iran [Last Shot: A Review of Recent Satire

of Iran] (Tehran, 2006). She had listed and described them from page 30 to page163. 9 Both names mean “blacksmith”, Ahangar in literary Persian and Chelengar in Gilaki, a local language

spoken by some people in Gilan, a northern state of Iran. The reason for changing the name was protests

from Afrashteh’s family, claiming that Chelengar and Afrashteh’s name had been abused. Mohammad Ali

Afrashteh, the publisher of Chelengar, had died in 1959 in exile in Sofia and Manouchehr Mahjoubi was

the editor in chief of Ahangar. 10

Ibid. 11

Hadi Khorsandi, The Ayatollah and I (London, 1987).

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was continually under attack and finally all satiric presses were closed until 1981, one

year after the outbreak of war between Iran and Iraq (1980-1988). From the beginning of

1980 onwards, some of Iran’s most prominent political satirists were exiled, causing

some Persian political satire journals to be published overseas such as Asgharagha by

Khorsandi and Ahangar by Mahjoubi in London, and Haji Baba by Khatibi in New York.

Most published irregularly and stopped after only few years, except for Asgharagha.

Towfighiyoun (Towfighians) monthly, renamed Fokahiyoun (Humorists) after a few

issues,12

was the first satiric journal to surface after the big press closures at the beginning

of the 1980s. It published from the winter of 1983 until 1990, keeping away from

political satire particularly about internal issues during the Wartime. Khorjin (Carpetbag)

was a satiric monthly first published in January 1986 as an attachment to Keshavarz

(Farmer) monthly, becoming a separate magazine from issue 27. Around this time,

political satire also appeared in the (official, internal) Iranian press – in Ettela’at daily,

one of the most popular state newspapers. It was entitled “Do Kalameh Harf-e Hesab” (A

Couple of Sensible Words), a satiric social political column written by Gol Agha

beginning on 13 January 1985. Gol Agha was the pseudonym of Kiumars Saberi and his

satires soon became popular. He later chose the same pseudonym for his satirical weekly

when he got the license for it in 1990. With these few exceptions, political satire in the

Iranian press was very limited and rare until the end of 1980s.

Thus by the start of the 1990s, one year since the end of the war and only a few

months after the death of the first Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khomeini, very few

licenses for the satiric press were being issued. The satiric weekly Gol Agha and the

periodical Tanz Va Caricature published from 1991, followed by Javaldouz, Derang,

Kayhan Caricature, Tanz-e Farsi, Donyaye Tanz and Molavvan with licenses to publish

during the 1990s -- although in 1991, after 12 issues, Javaldouz Derang after 2 issues,I

were closed down and Molavvan after 40 issues followed in 1994. Of all of these,

12

In an interview with the author in winter 2008, Abolghasem Sadeghi, publisher and editor in chief of

Fokahiyoun claimed he had to change the name of Tofighiyoun to Fokahiyuon after a few issues under

pressure from Kiumars Saberi, then Cultural Consultant of the President, and from Mostafa Tajzadeh, then

General Manager of the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance. See: Mahmud Farjami, “Sotoun-e

Panjom! Tanz-e Matbouati Ba’d Az Enghelab-e Eslami” [Fifth Column! Satire in the Press after the Islamic

Revolution], Kheradnameh 20 (Nov. 2007), 36-37.

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Gol Agha not only was the most prominent and popular satiric newspaper of the

entire decade but also an institute for training an entire younger generation in satire, some

of whom became the best satirists and cartoonists in the ensuing years.

When the reformers won the Presidential election in 1997, and within a year of

President Khatami holding that office, came Bahar-e Matbouat (Press Spring). This was

one of the best ever eras for a free press in Iran but it ended at the turn of the century with

vast closures of presses in the spring of 2000. In these years (to be discussed in more

detail below), political satire flourished, becoming more radical and reckless, whether in

form or content, particularly in satiric columns in the reformist newspapers. Indeed, the

future for journalism in Iran during the 2000s was rooted in what happened in these three

short years, leading to mass closures of press outlets, pressure on the free press to

conform and ending with bloody mass protests against the state in response to the worst

attacks against the free press and journalists. This quick review of the history of political

satire in the Iranian Press provides the cultural, social, political and historical background

for the following more detailed account of the first decade of 2000s. , Addressing the

essential relationship between satire and criticism13

and the primary role that criticism has

in the freedom of press, its thesis is that what happened to political satire and its satirical

authors in Iran can be seen as a barometer of the freedom of the press and journalistic

expression for an era.

This survey includes examples of political satire published in the legally printed

media of Iran under state license during the 2000s, along with an examination of

alternative media such as cyber media. Any analytical survey of political satire

13

The Encyclopedia Britannica definessatire as “artistic form in which human or individual vices, folly, abuses or shortcomings are held up to censure by means of ridicule, diversion, burlesque,

irony, or other methods, sometimes with an intent to bring about improvement”

(http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/524958/satire, accessed 10 February 2012). Dr Johnson in

his Dictionary defined satire as “a poem in which wickedness or folly is censured” and Dryden went further

than this, claiming that “the true end of satire is the amendment of vices.” (quoted in Arthur Pollard, Satire

(Methuen, 1977), 2). Also Roeckelein believes that satire usually implies the use of sarcasm or irony for

critical purposes or censure, often directed at institutions, public figures, conventional behavior or political

situations. Jonson believed that “the one ingredient common to… all… satire… is criticism.” Highet writes

similarly that: “The purpose of satire is, through laughter and invective, to cure folly and to punish evil….”

Swabey agrees: “Closely related to irony is another variety of the comic involving adverse criticism known

as satire. To ridicule the vices and follies on mankind is the business of satire… satire by its imaginative

eloquence excites anger at human misdeeds and cruelties” (quoted in Charles R. Gruner, “Satire as

Persuasion”, in Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the Speech Communication Association, 1992) .

8

necessitates discussion of the legal issues surrounding journalism in Iran. In this way the

study of political satire in the Iranian press can be seen as an integral part of a larger

history of the press itself.

Freedom of the Press in the 2000s: A Short Overview

Over one night in April 2000, official letters from the Iranian judiciary were

delivered to publishers of popular newspapers and magazines informing them that their

publications had been banned. By the end of the week sixteen publications had been

banned ‘until further notice’ by Judge Saeed Mortazavi (Shahidi). Although there was no

lack of law actually pertaining to the press, given 90 years of history of legislation on the

subject in Iran, Mr. Mortazavi chose to apply a 1960 law aimed at crime prevention

(Ghanoun-e Eghdamat-e Tamini) for his orders.

The first Press Laws were passed by the Majlis (Iranian Parliament) on 8 February

1908 in an attempt to define the boundaries of acceptability. According to this set of

laws, the “fabrication of news and subversive articles was banned (Article 32); the

publication of articles that were [considered] harmful and damaging to religion and

religious beliefs was subject to the payment of fines (Article 33). Insulting the kings of

friendly nations was completely prohibited and in such a case, the culprit would be

prosecuted with the punishment ranging from a fine to an imprisonment of up to one

year” (Article 41).14

Also three press laws were passed after the 1979 Revolution, the first

in 1979 by Prime Minister Bazargan’s government; the next one in 1986; and a new one

in July 1999 by the conservative-dominated Fifth Majlis which voted to amend the 1986

Press Law, in spite of strong criticism inside and outside the chamber.15

Furthermore,

Article 168 of the Islamic Republics of Iran Constitution, re-instituting the prosecution of

14

Goʿel Kohan Kohan, Tatikh-e Sansour Dar Matbuate Iran [A History of Censorship in Iranian Press]

(Tehran, 1984): 350-51. 15

Hossein Shahidi, “From Mission to Profession: Journalism in Iran, 1979-2004,” Iranian Studies 39,

no 1, March 2006, 1-28. Idem, Journalism in Iran: From Mission to Profession (London, 2007).

9

press offenses before a jury, provided that investigation of political and press offenses

will be held in open session of the Courts of Justice in the presence of a jury.16

A few days before the widespread April 2000 closures, the Supreme Leader,

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, had said publically that some newspapers had become “enemy

bases,” and that “10 or 15 newspapers” appeared “to be directed from the same centre,”

with the aim of “making the people pessimistic about the system.” He described this as

“journalistic charlatanism,” which did not exist even in the West.17

Indeed, this was just

one of several of Ayatollah Khamenei’s threatening proclamations against the reformist

press which had been publishing increasingly since 1997 when Mohammad Khatami won

the presidential election as a reformist candidate. President Khatami’s first year in office

saw the number of publications in Iran rise to more than 850, with total circulation

exceeding two million copies a day.18

By May of 1999, the number of newspapers in the

country had reached 930 with a total circulation of 2.7 million copies.19

During this period, Ayatollah Khamenei had repeatedly warned against a “cultural

offensive by the West”. Meanwhile, the judiciary, whose head had been appointed by the

Supreme Leader, had closed down popular reformist presses like Jameah, Bonyad, Tous,

Neshat and Salam and imprisoned some famous reformist journalists including

Mohammad Reza Jalaeepour, Mashallah Shams-ol Vaezin, and satirist Seyed Ebrahim

Nabavi (most were released on bail after a while). Nevertheless, this was the first time

since the 1979 Revolution that the press had had any freedom to “not only criticize the

President frequently, but also the Supreme Leader”.20

These three years (1977-1979)

have been called the “Press Spring” (Bahar-e Matbu’at), but this reprieve was cut short

16

The full text of the Constitution in English can be retrieved from:

http://www.iranonline.com/iran/iran-info/government/constitution.html 17

Matn-e Kamel-e Bayanat-e Magham-e Moazzam-e Rahbari Dar Didar Ba Javanan Dar Mosallaye

Bozorg-e Tehran [The Full Text of The Supreme Leader's Speech in Meeting with Youth in the Great

Musalla of Tehran] (2000). http://www.leader.ir/langs/fa/index.php?p=bayanat&id=1897, accessed 14

April 2012 18

Kazem Mo’tamednejad, “Barresi-Ye Sharayete Pishraft-E Nashriyat-E Mostaqel Va Kesrat-Gera [a

Review of the Conditions for the Development of Independent and Pluralistic Publications].” In

Majmou’eh Maqalat-E Dovomin Seminar-E Barresi-Ye Masa’el-E Matbou’at-E Iran [Collection of

Articles Presented at the Second Seminar to Review the Problems of the Iranian Press] (Tehran, 1998). 19

Ketab-e Jashnvareh-ye Sheshom-e Matbou’at [The Book of the Sixth Press Festival], 60, quoted in

Hossein Shahidi, “From Mission to Profession: Journalism in Iran, 1979-2004,” Iranian Studies 39, no 1,

March 2006, 1-28. 20

Mehdi Mohsenian-Rad, Rasaneh Quarterly 12, no. 1 (Spring 2001): 136–139.

10

by the Supreme Leader’s censure of the press in the spring of 2000 and by increasing

repression in the following years.

Although the reformists were dominant in the government and held a majority in

Majlis (until early 2004), by the second term of the Khatami presidency in 2001 more

than 100 publications had been closed down (usually with no trials) and several hundreds

of journalists became jobless through judiciary edicts based on repeated warnings from

Ayatollah Khamenei. According to official reports, between the 5th and the 7th Press

Festivals a total of thirty-two newspapers had been closed down, and 1,450 journalists

and other members of staff had lost their jobs; by the 8th Press Festival in May 2001,,

twenty-three more newspapers had been closed down. Seventeen journalists had also

been imprisoned, although some were later released.21

The annual reports of Reporters

Without Borders on their website22

show that from April 2000 to April 2001 more than

50 presses (including 24 newspapers) were closed down in Iran by the authorities. The

situation even became worse when Mahmud Ahmadinejad became President in the 2005

election and appointed Hossein Saffar Harandi, a former officer of Sepah Pasdaran

(Islamic Revolution Guards Corps) as Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance (Vazir-e

Farhang va Ershad-e Eslami), the organization which issues licenses to publishers and

supervises the media.

The decade ended with the greatest national political upheaval since the 1979

Revolution when numerous bloody protests and huge demonstrations were staged against

the state in 2009. A few days after the June 12 elections that year, the worst media

repression was launched with increased press closures and rampant journalist arrests. On

7 July 2009, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) described Iran as the world’s top

jailer of journalists with at least 30 journalists currently in prison.23

Freedom House (an

NGO that conducts research and advocacy on democracy, political freedom and human

rights), in its annual report of 2009 named Iran as one of the worst places for journalists

21

For more details and statistics until 2004 see: Hossein Shahidi, “From Mission to Profession:

Journalism in Iran, 1979-2004,” Iranian Studies 39, no 1, March 2006, 1-28. 22

For a list sorted by year, see: http://en.rsf.org. 23

Committee to Protect Journalists’ website, “Iran Is World's Top Jailer of Journalists”, retrieved from

http://www.cpj.org/2009/07/iran-is-worlds-top-jailer-of-journalists.php, accessed 5 May 2012.

11

and press freedom with a rank of 181 among 195 countries24

and in the Reporters

Without Borders’ Press Freedom Index 2009, Iran ranked only above Eritrea, North

Korea and Turkmenistan.25

Between June 2009 and the end of year, dozens of papers were closed, dozens of

journalists arrested, and the Association of Iranian Journalists (AOIJ) was banned on the

day of Ahmadinejad’s inauguration in the Majlis.26

In February 2010, CPJ reported that

“Iranian authorities are now holding at least 47 journalists in prison, more than any single

country has imprisoned since 1996.”27

The Poor Lucky License Holders: Political Satire in the Satiric Press

With the exception of a few brief periods, newspaper publication in Iran has always

required a license from the state. For 70 years since 1837, when the first authoritarian

official government Iranian newspaper was published until the Constitutional Revolution,

the only press in Iran was government-owned and/or government-supervised. Throughout

this era a license was required to publish any newspaper legally, and usually that required

the Shah’s personal signature.28

Early in 1907, the Ministry of Publications was abolished

and that part of its duties that concerned the supervision of printing-houses and issuing of

licenses for newspapers was passed to the Ministry of Sciences.29

The first Iranian press law approved by the Majlis in February 1908 was based on the

French Press Law of July 29 1881 that stressed general press freedom, the prohibition of

24

Freedom of the Press 2009 Survey,

http://www.freedomhouse.org/uploads/fop/2009/FreedomofthePress2009_tables.pdf, Accessed 5 May

2012. 25

World Press Freedom Index 2009 - The rankings, http://en.rsf.org/IMG/pdf/classement_en.pdf,

accessed 17 April 2012. 26

“Polomb-e Anjoman-e Senfi-e Rooznameh Negaran Dar Rooz-e Tahlif-e Ahmadinejad” [Journalists

Association was sealed off on the day of Ahmadinejad's inauguration], Persian Deutsche Welle website, 6

August 2009, http://www.dw.de/dw/article/0,,4546152,00.html. 27

Committee to Protect Journalists’ website, “With 47 Journalists in Jail, Iran Sets Notorious Records”,

http://cpj.org/2010/02/with-47-journalists-in-jail-iran-sets-notorious-re.php, accessed 5 May 2012from, Freedom of the Press 2009 Survey,

http://www.freedomhouse.org/uploads/fop/2009/FreedomofthePress2009_tables.pdf, accessed 5 May 2012. 28

Ali Akbar Saeedi Sirjani, “Constitutional Revolution VI. The press,” Encyclopedia Iranica, VI, Fasc.

2, 202-212. 29

Seyed Farid Ghasemi , Rahnamaye Matbuat-e Iran: Asr-e Ghajar [A Guideline to the Press in Iran:

Ghajar Era] (Tehran, 1993) 28

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press censorship and curtailed the need to obtain permission for the publication of

newspapers. Nevertheless, 10 years after the Constitutional Revolution, and in

accordance with a decree approved in 1918 by the Council of Ministers, the principle of

free press publication had become limited and contingent upon permission obtained from

the Council; during the reign of Reza Shah (1925 – 1941) it was even tougher.30

The fall of Reza Shah brought a more appropriate climate for freedom of the press

and newspapers could be published without permission from the government. This

openness was short-lived however and following a public revolt in Tehran in the autumn

of 1942, all newspapers were banned and in accordance with the revision of the 1908

Press Law via the Revision of Part of the Press Law provisions approved on 24

December 1942, publishers were required once again to obtain permission for the

publication of newspapers.31

Later laws, approved in February 1952 and August 1955,

preserved this obligation. Therefore, during the 37-year reign of Mohammad Reza

Pahlavi (“the Shah”), with the exception of a few brief periods, Iranians needed to have a

license or permission to print newspapers.

With the fall of the Shah’s regime, no government permission was needed and as

already mentioned numerous newspapers were published in the brief period of Bahar-e

Azadi. But on 12 February 12 1979, less than 6 months after the victorious Revolution,

Prime Minister Bazargan’s interim government (4 February 1979 – 6 November 1979)

announced that from 7 August 1979 a government license (from the Ministry of National

Guidance) would be required to print any press publications. This requirement was

preserved in the bot later press laws approved in 1986 and 2000 in Majlis.32

From hereon

to the present in the Islamic Republic of Iran, anyone wishing to publish print media

(newspapers, magazines or even scientific journals) must apply for a license from The

Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance.

30

K. Moatamed-Nejad & N. Badii, “The problems of Press Freedom in Iran: From the Constitutional

Revolution to the Islamic Revolution” In Religion, Law, And Freedom: A Global Perspective

(Connecticut,2000) 31

Ibid. 32

Ibid.

13

One requirement for a license is that the field or topic area in which a publication is

classified must be clear. Some examples are: politics, sports, social, and tanz

(humor/satire). This is a significant term which requires some explanation. Tanz in

modern Persian includes the concepts of both humor and satire. Over almost four

decades, the word “fokahi” which means “humor” has been replaced by “tanz” which has

a meaning in Persian literature closer to “satire”. The last Persian magazine that used

“fokahi” in its name was Fokahiyoun (Humorists) published in the 1980s. Others have

preferred tanz (satire) for any kind of humor, even for TV comedy series; probably

because a positive meaning of tanz in Persian invokes literary values, as well as an

intention for improvement and social commitment. Although one of the best political

satire magazines in the history of the Persian press, Towfigh, has always described itself

as a “humorous paper” (Rouzname-ye Fokahi), none of the humorous press published

after 1990 has described themselves as “humorous” (fokahi), often preferring “satiric”

(tanz/tanz-amiz) in naming themselves. Therefore, although this article translates tanz as

“satire”,, it must be kept in mind that there is a conceptual confusion between satire and

humor in recent Persian usage. As an adjective, tanz is also used to mean both humorous

and satiric.

During the 2000s, whether under reformist President Khatami (until 2005) or anti-

reformist President Ahmadinejad (from 2005), the Ministry rarely issued a license for a

tanz (satiric/humorous) publication. Therefore, just a small number of publishers were

lucky enough to be able to print a satirical publication. Of these, one of the lucky few,

Gol Agha, the most prominent satirical paper after the 1979 Revolution, announced its

closure on its twelfth anniversary in October 2002. Until the end of his life, its editor,

Saberi, had always had influential friends among the authorities, including the new

Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, to ensure the safety of the satirists at Gol Agha. Saberi’s

position even improved when Khatami was elected President because they had had a

friendly relationship for a long time. Tt was very shocking therefore when Saberi

announced that the Gol Agha weekly, the main magazine of Gol Agha group of

publications,33

would cease publication on 24 October 2002. Saberi died of cancer in

33

The Institute also published a monthly, a yearbook, and “Bachcheha… Gol Agha” (Kids… Gol

Agha)..

14

2004 without explaining the reason for his decision to close down Gol Agha. However

after his death, Ebrahim Nabavi, the well known political satirist and first executive

director of Gol Agha, wrote in an essay for the BBC Persian that Saberi “on one hand was

disappointed by the reformists’ way and on the other hand, he was sure The Leader

expected him to do a role that he didn’t want. There was a long time when he would get

messages from security services that made him worried. For it, he closed down.”34

After

Saberi’s death, his only child, Poupak Saberi, inherited the business and re-published the

weekly, as well as a new comic magazine by the name Gol Agha Comic; but the venture

was unsuccessful. Finally Poupak announced in January 2008 that the Gol Agha Institute

would not publish any further print media and would only be semi-active on the Gol

Agha website (www.Gol Agha.ir).

Kayhan Caricature (Cartoon Kayhan) was a monthly publication that would often

publish professional cartoons and caricatures from both Iranian and non-Iranian

cartoonists, accompanied with specialist essays and articles about cartooning and

caricature. Although Kayhan Caricature was one of the journals published and funded by

the state owned Kayhan Institute, Mohammad Hossein Niroomand, the then chief editor,

cited financial issues and lack of government support as the main reasons for its closure

in 2003.35

Furthermore, in an apparently self- imposed action, Khorjin, Tanz-e Farsi, and

Donyaye Tanz were all closed down in 2000.36

Accordingly, Tanz Va Caricature (Satire

and Cartoon) was the only humorous magazine published on a national scale the whole of

this decade. This monthly was published by the cartoonist, Javad Alizadeh, from 1990,

the same year Gol Agha was published for the first time, but never reached Gol Agha’s

popularity. Critical political satires were rarely published in Tanz Va Caricature and,

34

Ebrahim Nabavi, “Kiumars Saberi (Gol Agha) Be Revayat-E Ebrahim Nabavi [Kiumars Saberi (Gol

Agha) in Ebrahim Nabavi’s words].” BBC, http://www.bbc.co.uk/persian/arts/story/2004/04/040430_pm-

nabavi_saberi.shtml. Also Nabavi wrote, in response to being asked why you want close down Gol Agha, Saberi had

answered “No son, it cannot be continued. They want me to do some things that I don’t want”. (Ebrahim

Nabavi, “Khandidan Posht-E Cheragh-E Ghermez [Laughing Behind Red Light].” From:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/persian/arts/story/2004/05/040522_pm-en-satire76.shtml) 35

“Sardabir-E Nashriye-Ye Kayhan Caricature Elale Tavaghghof-E Enteshar-E in Nashriye Ra Tashrih

Kard [Editor-in-Chief of Kayhan Caricature Explained the Reasons of Closure]”, ISNA, 4 November 2003,

accessed 19 February 2012 from: http://www.magiran.com/article.asp?AID=194. 36

Roya Sadr, Bardasht-E Akher: Negahi Be Tanz-E Emruz [Last Shot: A Review of Recent Satire of

Iran] (Tehran, 2006), 34

15

although he did not ban politics completely, Alizadeh preferred pieces in fields such as

cinema and football.

Some satiric journals were also published on a smaller scale with limited success,

like Sotoone Azad (Free Column), published by students at the University of Ferdowsi,

Mashhad. This satirical monthly began as a black and white photocopied student journal

in 2003 and slowly became a color newspaper with high quality paper, print, and content.

It consisted of political subjects as well youth matters, and was distributed to many

universities across the country. Sotoone Azad claimed a readership of more than 20,000

in the late 2009s, a record for a student journal in Iran.37

Fiery Columns: Political Satire in non-Tanz Press

As previously noted, satirical columns have existed as a venue for political writers

from the earliest history of the serious free press in Iran. In fact, the best Persian satire of

the modern era -- particularly during the Constitutional Revolution – was printed in

mainstream newspapers and magazines in a section titled “Sotoon-e Tanz” (Satire

column). Indeed, many of prominent Iranian satirists like Dehkhoda, Iraj Pezeshkzad,

Omran, Manouchehr Mahjoubi, Hadi Khorsandi, Kiumars Saberi, Ebrahim Nabavi, and

Abolfazl Zaruee Nasrabad have written famous satiric columns in serious press.

Between Khatami’s election as a reformist president in 1997 and the crackdownon

the media in 2000 the most prominent and effective political satirist was Ebrahim Nabavi,

who wrote political satire columns in popular reformist newspapers like Jame’e, Toos,

Arya, Hayat-e Now, Neshat, Asr-e Azadegan and many others, sometimes

simultaneously. Nabavi wrote in various styles and forms applying a wide range of

techniques. Some of his most impressive works were parodies of the ideological and

revolutionary discourse of the ruling regime, including the Supreme Leader himself,

albeit indirectly. For instance, Ayatollah Khamenei and his supporters were well known

for dire warnings about an “Enemy” and numerous “enemy conspiracies” which Nabavi

courageously parodied using the Ayatollah’s own words in articles on topics apparently

37

Although it is a student paper, the archives of Sotoon Azad is available as pdf files on its website:

http://sotooneazad.ir/main/

16

“unrelated” to the Leader. He rapidly became an important columnist whose satires were

not only popular but also influenced the political sphere. His fame and influence in the

first year after Khatami came to office encouraged other newspapers to establish satire

columns, most notably Kayhan, the radical anti-reformist state newspaper.38

Although the then Press Law of the late 1990s stated that only the license-holder of a

newspaper was legally responsible and could be punished for published content, Nabavi

himself was twice arrested for his satirical writing. The second time was soon after the

annual Press Festival on 7 August 2000 at which he was named as best satirist in the

Iranian press. After 7 months of imprisonment on a charge of insulting the “state

authorities and Islamic regime”, Nabavi was released in 2001 and apologized in court in

front of TV cameras, albeit in a humorous tone.39

Thereafter, t he wrote social satires for

moderate conservative newspapers like Jam-e Jam and Mehr biweekly before leaving the

country in April 2003.40

After the new Press Law of 2000, a new dilemma was presented not just to satirists,

but to all whose work was published in the press. The new press law passed on 26 April

2000 by the mostly conservative dominated Majlis during the last days of its term,

included holding responsible not only the publishers, but also individual writers, for any

offences caused by their work (Article 9, Note 7).41

Hence, after the spring of 2000, there

was no repeat of the relative freedom of the press experienced from 1997-1999, nor was

38

There are three state-owned dailies in Iran, whose publishers are appointed by the Supreme Leader

directly and which use state finance and facilities widely: Kayhan, Ettela‘at,and Jomhouri-ye Eslami. 39

He defended himself sometimes by half joking words, particularly about one of his accusers, Hamid

Reza Taraqqi, a former MP. He also cracked a few jokes which raised several laughs from the judge, Saeed

Mortazavi ,and others in the court. See a report of the trial in Nabavi’s book, Salon Shomareye 6 [Corridor

No 6] (Tehran, 2005) , 290-302. 40

According to Nabavi’s autobiography on his website:

http://www.doomdam.com/archives/000126.php, Accessed 20 March 2012. 41

The new law also added the head of the Islamic Publicity Organization and the representative of the

Friday Prayer Leaders’ National Policy Making Council to the panel in charge of selecting the press jury,

which until then had consisted of a senior official from the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, a

senior judiciary official and the chair of the City Council (Article 36). The new law also allowed judicial

authorities to appoint members of the press jury directly, should their selection by the panel not have been

completed by the due date (Article 36, Note 1); and provided for the press jury’s secretariat to be funded by

and use the resources of the judiciary (Article 38, Note 30). See: K. Moatamed-Nejad & N. Badii, “The

problems of Press Freedom in Iran: From the Constitutional Revolution to the Islamic Revolution,” in

Religion, Law, And Freedom: A Global Perspective (Connecticut,2000), 125-126

17

that sort of regime-challenging political satire seen again in the official press. This does

not however mean however that political satire disappeared completely from Iran.

Abolfazl Zaruee, a well-known creative political satirist, wrote several columns for

several newspapers, the most popular being his satiric verse column, 42

“Asl-e Matlab”

(The Crux of the Matter), in Tehran municipality’s daily, Hamshahri.43

Zaruee sometimes

chose political subjects for his satiric poems but usually preferred social subjects to

criticism. Once he read one of his poems published in Hamshahri criticizing

administrative bureaucracy before the Supreme Leader himself, Ayatollah Khamenei,

who smiled and praised it.44

Abolfazl Zaruee, Ali Mirfattah and Reza Rafi’e also wrote (sometimes political)

satires in Jam-e Jam for a while. Rafi’e sometimes wrote in the state owned newspaper

Ettela’at as well. None of these satiric columns became as popular as Nabavi’s, maybe

because these were conservative newspapers and the satirists had to observe their

policies and practices. . Ali Mirfattah wrote social and political satire in a popular column

called “Ghalandaran-e Pijameh Poosh” (Pyjama Wearing Mendicants) in the Shargh

daily (2004 – 2006). He states in the introduction to a published collection of his work

that he got the idea from a humorous short story by Iraj Pezashkzad, entitled Angoor (The

Grape), concerning a few old men talking about their memories while smoking opium.

Similarly, in Mirfattah’s column, some old men smoking opium discuss various

apparently irrelevant topics that in fact mask hidden political and social critique. The

Shargh daily was banned several times, and although the column was not the cause, it

was finally removed.

Roya Sadr was the most prominent among the rare female satirists active at the time.

In addition to publishing several research books and articles about satire in contemporary

history of Iran and Persian journalism, she wrote political satire periodically in some

reformist publications like Etemad Melli. Ebrahim Raha (Ali Mirmirani’s pseudo name)

42

Writing political and social satirical verses in the Persian press was a dominant tradition in the

Constitution Revolution era, around a century ago. Some writers like Seyed Ashrafeddin Ghazvini,

Mirzadeh Eshghi, Mohammad Taghi Bahar, and Abolghasem Lahooti ,are well-known in Persian literature

for this genre, but in recent decades no-one could regularly publish notable, popular, satiric verse. 43

It was published later as a collection in Rofuzeha (Tehran, 2010). 44

The video shown by National TV (IRIB) can be seen on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roFXIo0ZtGk

18

tended to write fairly explicit short political satirical pieces also in the Etemad daily,

which made problems for the newspaper several times and finally his column was closed

down.

In May 2009, as is usual before a presidential election, the state gave the press a bit

more freedom so as to encourage voting. The reformist newspaper Etemad Melli

announced that it would publish a whole page of satire on a daily basis. Two young

satirists, the cartoonist Hadi Heidari, and a columnist Pouria Alami, organized the page

with the help of other satirists. Named “Shabnameh” (Night letters), it was duly printed

until 17 August 2009, when the newspaper was closed down by the judiciary – the same

day the head of the judiciary was humorously criticized on the satire page. “Shabnameh”

was one of the decade’s most prominent pieces of political satire in a newspaper .

<Insert Pic1>

19

<Description of pic1> The last issue of “Shabnameh”, political satiric page of

Etemad Melli daily. The short box on top right is a humorous critique of two

conservative brothers, Ali and Sadegh Larijani, one of whom was the head of the

legislature and the other recently appointed as the new head of the judiciary by

20

the Supreme Leader. The same day Etemad Melli was closed down by the

judiciary.

During these years when onlya few reformist papers existed to publish political

satire, some satirists tried to work in a new way by publishing in the conservative press,

hoping to protect both their views and themselves from bureaucratic repression. Shahram

Shakiba and Mahmud Farjami (the present author) were two who wrote critical satires in

two moderate conservative newspapers. Shakiba wrote for Khabar, a newspaper

supported by Ali Larijani, the head of Majlis, and Farjami wrote for Tehran-e Emrouz,

supported by Bagher Ghalibaf, the mayor of Tehran. Both Larijani and Ghalibaf were

Ahmadinejad’s rivals in the 2005 presidential election and, although conservative, they

proved powerful opponents to him in the following years. Farjami write in Tehran

Emrouz from 2009 to 2010, and then left the country. Shakiba wrote for Khabar until its

closing down in November 2009.

The political satiric column of the Kayhan daily, “Goft-o Shenoud” (Dialogue),

established in 1977, was the only column published throughout the decade. Most believe

that this column was written by Hossein Shariatmadari, publisher and editor-in-chief of

Kayhan and appointed by the Supreme Leader. The satirical pieces, always in the form of

a dialogue between two people, were short (mostly 100-150 words), harsh and lacking

any elegance, directly attacking persons labeled enemies of the Revolution and of Islam;

they usually ended with a joke or anecdote. The press was strictly forbidden to print

insults in Iran and the judiciary warned or even banned the independent and reformist

press numerous times on charges of “being insulting”.45

However it was not unusual, to

see words like stupid (ahmagh), traitor (khaen), spy (jasoos), dissolute (fased), rude

(porroo), ugly (ikbiri), mercenary (khod foroukhteh), hack (ghalam be mozd) etc. used to

describe and humiliate individuals, groups, and politicians (sometimes using their real

names) in Goft-o Shenoud. Nevertheless, while the process of closing a newspaper for a

wrongdoing is as quick and simple as a letter from the judiciary, Shariatmadari has never

45

One of the accusations against Ebrahim Nabavi, for which he had to apologize in court, was labeling

a former conservative MP, Hamid Taraqqi, “shameless” (bi haya). A report of the trial court proceedings is

published in Nabavi’s memoirof his time in jail, Salon Shomareye 6 [Corridor No 6] (Tehran, 2005).

21

been in serious trouble for these irreverent remarks.46

Clearly it depends which side is the

subject of the satire.

Political Cartoons: Little Crime and Huge Punishment

Throughout this decade, political cartoonists worked hand in hand with political

satire writers. Indeed, newspapers were more interested in cartoons than satirical

columns; probably because cartoons are potentially moreindirect and equivocal than

satirical texts, and in an atmosphere of oppression what is seriously needed being are the

qualities of discretion and flexibility. That is why most political cartoons published in this

decade tended to be symbolic, abstract and surrealistic rather than blatant, realistic and

literal, sending a critical message with greater safety. For instance after the elections of

July 2009, at the height of clashes between protesters and state police, while thousands of

dissidents were arrested and numerous newspapers shut down on suspicion of supporting

the unrest, Hadi Heidari successfully published a cartoon to reflect the current events in a

conservative tone: it depicted a would-be song-bird entangled in lines and notes of

music, unable to sing. This was published in Etemad Melli, the newspaper with ties to

Mehdi Karoubi, one of the strongest critics of the election results.

<Insert pic2>

46

He was only obliged to apologize on a few occasions, such as on 1 June 2005 when the sixth

reformist MP was described as “cow”.

22

<Description of pic2> Gagged song-bird, by Hadi Heidari, Etemad Melli

daily, 4 July 2009.

In fact, unlike in sthe Press Spring (1997-1999), most of the cartoons published during

the 2000s were non-political and concerned social subjects, sports, arts, etc.

Even so, despite all precautions and use of discretion, the greatest trouble over

humor and satire during the 2000s arose from cartoons. In February 2000, a cartoon was

published in the Azad daily, drawn by Nikahang Kowsar, who was the best-known

political cartoonist of that time, and who worked hand in hand with Nabavi. The cartoon

23

showed a crocodile labeled as “Master Crocodile” (Ostad Temsah) strangling a man and

simultaneously weeping and crying, “Isn’t there anyone to save me from this open-

minded hack writer?!”, while his victim (standing for all journalists) shouts for help.

<Insert Pic3>

<Description of pic3> “Master Crocodile (Ostad Temesah)”, by: Nikahang

Kowsar. Crcodile: “Isn’t there anyone to save me from this open-minded hack

writer?!”; Man: “Help!”.

The cartoon sarcastically referenced Ayatollah Mesbah Yazdi, whose name

(Mesbah) rhymes with the Persian word for crocodile (Temsah). For the Reformists, he

was the most important of the clergy in Qom whose religious/political decrees, or

“fatwas”, encouraged state officials and pressure groups to violently attack Reformists. A

few days earlier, Mesbah Yazdi had claimed that the former head of the CIA head had

24

secretly come to Iran with “a suitcase full of dollars” to share with certain newspapers

and cultural organizations. The cartoon caused an uproar among Mesbah’s students and

followers in Tehran, Qom and elsewhere. Azad was banned and Kowsar arrested, though

he was released on bail six days later. He later fled to Canada, but was tried in 2005 in

absentia and sentenced to four months in prison.47

Cartoon-based tensions were not always caused by the cartoonists. In early 2003,

Alireza Eshraghi, the editor of Hayat-e Now, was arrested and spent fifty-three days in

solitary confinement for printing a cartoon with a character claimed to have some passing

ressemblance to Ayatollah Khomeini.

<Insert pic6>

<Description of pic6> The page of Hayat-e Now with the image that caused

controversy. Some claimed the figure shown beneath the thumb in the cartoon

ressembled Ayatollah Khomeini, the former Supreme Leader. The accompanying

47

A detailed report from the story can be retrieved from: "Majaraye Ostad Temsah [the Story of

Professor Crocodile]." http://www.roozonline.com/persian/opinion/opinion-

article/archive/2006/november/22/article/-3807acb111.html

25

text is an interview with Dr Tavassoli ofTehran University about the concept of

“social capital”.

Hayat-e Now and the cartoonist denied having any intention or knowledge about the

claimed similarity and were able to prove that the model used in the cartoon had itself

been drawn about sixty-five years earlier by an American cartoonist and represented

Franklin D. Roosevelt. Despite this, several demonstrations against it were held by

conservative supporters of the regime and the newspaper was quickly banned.

Three years later, on Jan. 2006, Elham Afrootan, a nineteen years old amateur journalist, was arrested

in a very similar case of misinterpretation. She had published a satiric essay in Tamaddon-e Hormozgan

(Civilization of Hormozgan), a local low-circulation newspaper for Hormozgan , the southern state of Iran.

The article was entitled “Let’s make public the campaign against AIDS: How to be immune to state

AIDS?’’. It was a reprint of a satire of political satirist F. M. Sokhan (pseudonym name)48

. At first sight it

looked like an essay about AIDS, but in fact was a political satire ridiculing highly pplaced state officials.

The manager in charge, Ali Dirbaz, a conservative Iranian MP, claimed the journalist was to blame,

although Afrootan emphasized that she had not read the essay and just copied and pasted the essay in hurry

as an essay on health before sending the newspaper file to the printer office. She was imprisoned and after

about five months released on bail, but finally sentenced to a suspended sentence, a fine, and five years

deprivation of social rights49

. Ignorance is no excuse, it seems, when it comes to satire in Iran.

However the most severe reaction came in response to a cartoon with no obvious

political content at all. On 12 May 2006, in a special section for children in the Iran

Friday paper, a humorous essay about cockroaches was published, accompanied by a few

small cartoons by Mana Neyestani. In one of them, “cockroach grammar” was discussed,

showing a cockroach saying “Namana?”, Turkish for “What?”.

<Insert Pic4>

48

“Mobarezeh Ba Aids Ra Alani Konim: Chegooneh Dar Moghabel-E Aids-E Hokumati Masoon Shavim?

[Let’s Make the Campaign against Aids Public: How Do be Immune to State Aids?]”in. Gooya News,

http://mag.gooya.com/politics/archives/040405.php, accessed 9 May 2012.

49 BBC Persian, “Panj Sal Mahroumiat Az Hoghough-E Ejtemaee Baraye Rooznameh Negar-E Tamaddon-

E Hormozgan [Five Years Deprivation of Social Rights for the Journalist of Tamaddon-E Hormozgan].” 4

July 2006, http://www.bbc.co.uk/persian/iran/story/2006/07/060704_mf_afroutan.shtml, accessed 8 May

2012.

26

<Description of pic4> The page from Iran Friday including the essay. In the

top right cartoon drawn by Mana Neyestani, a boy says “cockroach” in Persian in

several different ways to an uncomprehending cockroach, who replies, “What?”

in Turkish but written in the Roman not the Persian alphabet (namana).

The cartoon series was titled “What should we do so that the cockroaches don’t turn

us into cockroaches?” and this frame simply showed the boy using Persian to saying

“cockroach” in different ways to acockroach, while the latter replies uncomprehendingly

in Turkish but written in in Roman not Persian lettering.

27

Very soon some Iranian Azeris from the North who speak Turkish protested against

this publication, claiming the purpose of the cartoon was to insult Turks by making them

appear like stupid beetles with doltish language. They further claimed this was not just a

simple mistake by one cartoonist but represented general policies. Mana Neyestani

vigorously denied the accusation but it was useless. The Iran daily was temporarily

banned and the then Prosecutor General, Saeed Mortazavi, had the cartoonist and the

paper’s editor, Mehrdad Ghasemfar, incarcerated in Evin Prison. Riots were sparked over

this incident with some deaths and injureies during violent demonstrations in Azeri cities

like Tabriz, Uroumieh, Abhar and Zanjan.50

While it might appear that this was exclusively a social and cultural issue concerning

one ethnic group, there is evidence to show that the event was also deeply rooted in

politics. First, by this time the state had demonstrated its discrimination against Azeris

and protests were already taking place at some universities, particularly the University of

Tabriz. Thus as Neyestani himself mentioned in interview, the cartoon did not provoke

but only added fuel to the riots.51

Secondly, it was used by the security forces as a pretext

for suppressing Azeri activists, allowing the forces to appear to bebattling against chaos.

Also some evidences reinforce the speculation that some state forces stimulated demonstrations and chaos.

Gholamhossein Eslamifar, the then manager of Iran, claimed in court that while the normal circulation of

Iran Friday is at most 30,000 of which only 3,000 are sent to the Azeri regions, 300,000 copies of the issue

were printed in a short period and then sent there. . Eslamifar was acquitted. 52

The printer(s) who were

able to print this amount of paper have never been found by Iranian security forces, despite the fact that

they control all printing offices in Iran. Thirdly, it served the purposes of political vengeance

and political exploitation of the events, such as permitting the denunciation of the

50

BBC Persian, “Bazdasht-E Tarrah-E Karikator-E Janjali Va Toghif-E Rouzname-Ye Iran [Detaining

the Drawer of Controversial Caricature and the Banning of Iran Newspaper].” 23 May 2006, accessed 1

May 2012 from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/persian/iran/story/2006/05/060523_mf_cartoon.shtml. 51

Interviewing with Alex Rühle, Sueddeutsche.de, “Mit Glück: Gefängnis”, 12 January 2010, accessed

5 May 2012, from: http://www.sueddeutsche.de/kultur/im-gespraech-mana-neyestani-mit-glueck-

gefaengnis-1.1030613. 52

BBC Persian, “Modir-E Mas'ool-E Rozname-Ye Iran Bigonah Shenakhteh Shod [Manager-in-Charge

of Iran Newspaper Was Acquitted]”, 27 August 2006, accessed 5 May 2012, from:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/persian/iran/story/2006/08/060827_mf_iran_jury.shtml.

28

Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance by some MPs and allowing the Leader to warn

once again of “enemy” actions.53

The event can be seen as a dramatic example of how unpredictable and dangerous it

is to work as a satirist in a country like Iran.As a professional humorist, one must always

be careful not to cross “red lines” and to tread very lightly on sensitive social, regional,

ethnic, cultural and political matters. However, while reformist and independent press

cartoonists and writers have faced numerous pressures and threats, especially by the

judiciary, a cartoonist like Maziar Bijani of the Kayhan newspaper is the only political

cartoonist who has worked with almost no limitations over two decades publishing

political cartoons against the reformists. Others, mostly reformists, such as Nikahang

Kowsar, Touka Neyestani, Mana Neyestani, Bozorgmehr Hosseinpour, Hadi Heidari,

Hassan Karim Zadeh, Ali Derakhshi, Jamal Rahmati, Firoozeh Mozaffari, and Keyvan

Zargari, were not so lucky. The best Iranian political cartoonists worked for many banned

publications including: Aftab-e Emruz, Tavana, Sobh-e Emrooz, Bonyan, Doran-e

Emrooz, Hayat-e Now, Mosharekat, Nowrouz, Azad, Vaghaye’e Ettefaghiyeh, Eghabl,

Yas-e Now, Etemed Melli and Bahar. Many of their publishers received warnings not to

publish particular political writers and cartoonists.

Satire and New Media, Amusing From a Distance

From 2000 onwards, with the closure of various publications, there was a

continuous wave of emigration by journalists from Iran, reaching its climax in 2009.

Reporters Without Borders reported on 22 April 2010 that in the face of arrest and

unable to do their job, more than fifty Iranian journalists had to flee the country since

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s disputed re-election on 12 June 2009.54

In addition to

opposition satirists like Hadi Khorsandi (in exile since 1980), at this time some of the

53

BBC Persian, “Doshmanan Amel-E Taharrokat-E Ghomi-E Akhir-E Manategh-E Tork Neshin-E Iran

['Enemies’ Directed Recent Ethnic-Inhabited Turk Regions of Iran].” 28 May 2006, accessed 9 May 2012,

from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/persian/iran/story/2006/05/060528_v-khamen-ethnic-issues.shtml. 54

Reporters Without Borders, “Overview of Reporters Without Borders financial aid to journalists and

media in danger in 2009”, 22 April 2010, accessed 9 May 2012, from: http://en.rsf.org/overview-of-

reporters-without-22-04-2010,37122.html.

29

best satirists who were not part of the opposition but were willing towork within a regime

regulated framework, had to leave the country. Sadl deaths of some of the best Persian

political satirists also had a negative impact on political satire in the era. Among them,

Saberi55

, Salahi56

and Ehterami57

are most notable. All had a huge influence on younger

satirists, specifically those who wanted to write political satire with Persian literary

values; and along with the other social and political factors already mentioned, their

deaths had a chilling effect on political satire in the Persian press in the new century.

In spite of all these negative factors, new media and the fast growth of access to the

internet in the last decade have provided a much wider and far freer domain for Persian

satire. In 2000, it was estimated there were 250,000 internet users, but by 2005, seven

and a half million Iranians had access to the internet and as many as thirty-two million by

2009.58

Although internet access has never been as cheap, fast or safe for Iranian users,as

for much of the rest of the world,59

this extent of access to new media has affected

Iranian journalism deeply.

55

Kiumars Saberi, the most prominent political satirist during the Islamic regime, who could as

mentioned resurrect political satire at the middle of war with his “Do Kalameh Harf-e Hessab” (A Couple

of Sensible Words) and who trained satirists and cartoonists at the Gol Agha institute over two decades,

died in 2004, aged sixty-three. 56

Omran Salahi, a well-known satirist, poet, caricaturist and humor scholar, died from a heart attack in

2006 when he was sixty. Though he was Saberi’s friend and wrote in Gol Agha, he had numerous problems

with the state. The main reason was his satires published in intellectual magazines like Donyaye Sokhan,

Adineh, Karnameh and Bokhara, where he apparently wrote satires about literature but usually managed to

mock the cultural policy and ideology of the Islamic regime as well. Once, Dehnamaki, a leader of Ansar

Hezbollah pro-leader pressure group, even accused him of “insulting theProphet Adam” in a satire. 57

Manuchehr Ehterami, another prominent satirist, poet and satire scholar, died in 2009 at sixty-seven.

He wrote both prose and verse satires in Towfigh from the age of severteen, wrote humorous scripts for

Radio Iran in the 1970’s, and was always one of best satirists of Gol Agha until its last issue. Through his

fluency in Persian literature, he created several satiric styles over half a century. For instance, in a series of

poems under the name “Jame-ol Hekayat” (Comprehensive Anecdotes), Ehterami applied the style of

Persian mystical poetry and seemingly wise anecdotes to the criticism of recent political and social issues.

He was also a famous children’s poet and his Hasani Nagoo Ye Daste Gol, published in the early 1980s, is

a classic. 58

Internet World Stats, accessed 25 January 2012, from: http://www.internetworldstats.com/me/ir.htm. 59

According to authoritative sources, Iran is highly ranked for the number of internet users in the

Middle East but has one of the worst rankings in the world for quality of connection (price, speed, freedom

of access).. An online status report of speed of internet access can be seen on:

http://netindex.com/download/allcountries/ . This gives 1.24 Mbps for Iran, ranking it 158 out of 172

countries, at time of writing ( 27 January 2012). Some in fficial reports in Iran reported the same(see a

report in Persian, Afta. “Iran Az Nazar-E Sorat-E Internet Dar Radif-E Kam Sorattarin Keshvarhaye Jahan

Gharar Darad [Iran in One of the Worst Countries Regarding Speed on Access to Internet].” At:

http://aftabnews.ir/vdcc1sqss2bq1e8.ala2.html.)

30

The potential to be outside the country but connected with audiences inside is

perhaps the most important facility provided by the internet to those who address an

Iranian audience. Of the famous political satirists, Ebrahim Nabavi

(http://nabavionline.com60

) and Hadi Khorsandi (http://hadi2000.com61

) were the first to

establish their own humorous websites early in the 2000s to connect directly with their

audiences. Settling in Belgium in 2003, Nabavi continued his political satire on Persian

websites including Gooya news, BBC Persian, Deutsche Welle, Entekhab, and Radio

Zamaneh, with the most reliable since 2005 being his daily satirical column on

Roozonline.com.. He also made political satirical TV and radio programs for Persian

Voice of America (VOA) TV and for Radio Zamaneh.

Nikahang Kowsar left Iran a few months after Nabavi. He emigrated to Canada and

published political cartoons on Iranian and occasionally non-Iranian websites. Like

Nabavi, Kowsar has worked for Roozonline.com, and since June 2004 has run a Persian-

language weblog (http://nikahang.blogspot.com/). From 2006 to 2009, he wrote and

performed a political humorous radio program named “Kalaghestoon” (Crowland) for

Radio Zamaneh three times a week. Later he too launched a political website,

khodnevis.org, featuring political satire and cartooning.

Mana Neyestani fled to Malaysia where he began publishing his cartoons on the

Radio Zamaneh website. His works, mostly black and white with a specially aesthetic

take on political issues, soon drew attention.62

He also created a series of cartoons about a

characteristically Iranian family named “Khanevade-ye Dargir ( The Involved Family)”.

This series has appeared on the Mardomak news website since 2009.63

Numerous other

political satirists living both in Iran and outside have sought greater freedom for

publishling their works by establishing weblogs or personal websites. These include

Bozorgmehr Hosseinpour, Abolfazl Zaruee, Afshin Sabooki, Roya Sadr, Jalal Samiee,

Touka Neyestani, Mahmud Farjami, Vahid Nikgoo, Ebrahim Raha, Ali Mirfattah, and

Alireza Rezaee.

60

No longer available, replaced by: http://enabavi.com 61

No longer available, replaced by: http://asgharagha.com 62

Acollection of Mana’s cartoons on Radio Zamaneh is at: http://www.radiozamaneh.com/zamtoon. 63

A collection of Mana’s cartoons on Madomak in at: http://www.mardomak.org/cartoons.

31

Laughing within the Trojan Horse: Injecting Satire into the Serious Press

Another notable development was the injection of humor into the serious press.

According to the Iranian Press Law, papers may cover one or a few more fields but must

announce their specific field/s on the front page of every issue.64

Satire is one such field.

Therefore, a paper with a license that does not mention “satire” cannot feature satire or

humor. On the other hand, given the restrictions humor and satire, hardly any licenses for

this field have been issued. Accordingly, some innovative ways have been tried to apply

satirical content in papers with a license in fields other than satire. Chief examples of this

approach are Tavana and Chelcheragh.

Tavana, a serious weekly, changed its form and content after 1998-1999, and by the

time its closing-down in 2000, it was a popular social and political comic strip weekly

that also published some serious essays. By then, cartoonist Jamal Rahmati had gathered

some younger pioneering cartoonists by along with prominent cartoonists like Kiarash

Zandi, Bozorgmehr Hosseinpour, Nikahang Kowsar, Ali Derakhshi and Mana Neyestani,

who worked both as cartoonists and as journalists and editors for the weekly.

Tavana was closed by the judiciary in late 2000 after it published a front page

cartoon of then President Khatami by Hosseinpour. Though this was a supportive image,

and neither Khatami nor any other reformist complained about it, Tavana was banned by

the judiciary on charges of “insulting the clergy”. The cartoon showed President

Khatami, who was preparing for his election for a second term, without his usual clerical

habit (robe and turban), seated on a chair supported by the people, repeating a verse from

the famous Persian poet Rumi: “I didn’t come here of my own accord, and I can’t leave

that way”. Hosseinpour’s signature appeared under the picture.65

64

In chapter 4, article 7, note B of the Press Law, specifies that to publish contents in fields different

from the field for which the publisher has a license is a crime (a full version of the Law (Ghanun-e

Mat’buat) is available at: http://www.magiran.com/article.asp?AID=34). See also a critical review of this

part of the Press Law in: Mohsen Esmaili, “Hoghough va Vazayef-e Darandeye Mozavvez [Rights and

Duties of a License Holder]”, Rasaneh Quarterly 7, no. 2 (Summer 1996): 53-60. 65

In July 2003, two years after the closing of Tavana, the publisher Iraj Rastgar, was imprisoned after

being summonsed to court (“Modir Masoole Hafteh-nameye Tavana Bazdasht Shod [Editor-in-Chief of

Banned Weekly Tavana Arrested],"”2003).

32

<Insert Pic5>

<Description of pic5> President Khatami, preparing for re-election for a

second term, shown on the front-page of Tavana. The speech-balloon quotes

Khatami as speaking a verse by the famous Persian poet Rumi: “I didn’t come

here of my own accord, and I can’t leave that way”. By: Bozorgmehr Hosseinpour

In June 2002, Chelcheragh, a new magazine for Iranian youth, was published under

the management of the reformist Fereydoon Amoozadeh Khalili.. It called its audience

33

“Nasle Sevvom (Third Generation)”, those born after the 1979 revolution, generally in

the 1980s. Amoozadeh and his young colleagues injected humor into almost all content

instead of having a traditional separate section for humor. They intended it still to be a

serious magazine with content in subjects like technology, history, literature, politics, and

youth culture, but almost all accompanied by playfulness and humor. For example, not

only did Hosseinpour draw cartoons for the final page every week, but Akbarpour also

wrote his scientific essays about computers and technology with a humorous tone. The

experiment was successful and soon Chercheragh became one of the most widely-

circulated magazines in Iran. The “mixed” style became popular and was imitated by

other publications. A few years later, Hamshahri Javan (Hamshahri for Youth), one of

the papers funded by the municipality of Tehran, after trying unsuccessfully to become

more popular, applied precisely this style and quickly flourished Although Chelcheragh

was banned in November 2010, it later re-opened.

Conclusion: Satires, Horrors and Hopes in the 2000s

Political satire is often one of the first targets of a press crackdown attempting to

limit political freedom, due to its critical examination of power and authority. From this

point of view, political satire can be seen as a barometer of freedom of speech in Iran. In

the Iranian press,it suffered great setbacks during the decade reviewed here. Of the very

few license holders, none were able to publish a humorous or satirical paper for long, and

only one humorous monthly, Tanz Va Caricature, was published continuously. Gol

Agha, the most prominent satirical publication of the time, was closed by its own

publisher. Very few the satiric political columns survived. The new Press Law, passed in

the spring of 2000, facilitated the arrest and punishment of satirists as well other

journalists and press related writers. Many of the best political satirists and cartoonists

left Iran for other countries and many became jobless. At least four satirists (Kowsar in

2000, Nabavi in 2001, Neyestani in 2006, and Heidari in 2009) were detained and some

of the most influential Persian satirists died druing these years.

In cyber space, by contrast, political satire boomed. It was the only segment of the

Iranian media where independent journalism had an opportunity to develop.. Almost all

34

the satirists who left the country continued publishing their works in various electronic

media, taking advantage of increased freedom to be explicit in their criticism. In

particular, Nabavi and Kowsar began to take Khomeini and Khamenei, the two Supreme

Leaders of the Islamic Regime of Iran, as their subjects, thus breaking a taboo of more

than 30 years standing.

Given severe political repression in this decade, some kinds of non-political satire in

the Iranian media matured, particularly the work of a young generation of satirists that

deserves separate study. Further studies are also needed of Iranian political satire in

alternative media (online, visual, etc.), as well as more background on the history of

Iranian journalism, cultural studies and Persian literature. The prominent role of satire in

the literature, journalism, politics, folklore and culture of Iran makes such a project

worthwhile.

Acknowledgment:

I am grateful to all academic colleagues and satirists especially Mana Neyestani and Hadi

Heidari whose comments on an earlier draft helped improve the quality of this article, as

well as to professors Dr Jessica Milner Davis and Dr Hossein Shihidi for their valuable

comments and careful editing assistance.

Note:

For a sample of Persian political satire in English in late 2009, see Letter to Hussein, by

Ebrahim Nabavi at Tehranbureau website, accessible on:

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/tehranbureau/2009/11/letters-to-hussein-iran-

has-changed.html#ixzz1keUNhjFp