Iranian Documentarians Protest – Filmkommentaren.dk

Statement of Iranian Documentary Filmmakers
In the Name of God
We are documentary filmmakers. Our work is to discover and tell the truth. Truth can only be found when all aspects of reality are told. In the course of recent events in our country, our national media, by deliberately hiding the realities, is making it impossible for the public to access the truth.
We are documentary filmmakers. Our work is through media. The National Iranian Television belongs to the entire Iranian society and should be committed to represent social events truthfully and different points of view in their diversity. It should not be the mouthpiece of a specific faction and ignore a vast part of society.
We are documentary filmmakers. Our work is art and we are committed to the culture, art, and language of our country. The language of journalism should respect the dignity and honor of a society. The National Iranian Television, by distorting and suppressing the news and with the use of degrading rhetoric, makes lying and slander acceptable. It also addresses people with degrading and abusive vocabulary and thus provokes the people into confrontation and uproar.

We warn: Under the present tense circumstances depriving the society of a peaceful and respectful discourse can result in violent reactions; a society whose people up to the Election Day were promoting their diverse views peacefully and respectfully.
We warn: This kind of action means sharing the responsibility for any kind of violence, terror, social disruption, and human tragedies. It divides and antagonizes a society that is able to create unity by justice.
In the last 30 years, each and every citizen of this country has shared happiness and sorrow. They have fought side by side, brought sacrifices and lost loved ones.
We are a people with a history of several thousand years. We all belong together and share this history and this country. Do not tear us apart.

17 June, 2009

The Signatories:
1. Mohammade Reza Aslani 2. Mohammade Tahami Nejad 3. Rakhshan Bani Etemad 4. Pirooz Kalantari 5. Mohsen Abdolvahab 6. Orod Zand 7. Homayoun Emami 8. Naser Safaryan 9.Mojtaba Mirtahmasb 10. Mahboubeh Honarian 11.Hasan Bahramzadeh 12. Bahram Azim Pour 13. Ebrahim Mokhtari 14. Kamran Shirdel 15. Mohammad Reza Moghadassyan 16. Parviz Kimyavi 17. Khosro Sinayi 18. Mahvash Sheykhol Eslami 19.
Farhad Varharam 20. Houshang Azadivar 21. Mahnaz Afzali 22. Reza Haeri 23. Ahmad Mir Ehsan 24. Farhad Mehran Far 25. Mani Potgar 26. Mehrdad Zahedyan 27. Houshang Azadi Var 28. Rokhsareh Ghaem Maghami 29. Mahnaz Mohammadi 30. Mohammad Rasoulof 31. Hamid Soheyli Mozafar 32. Mohammad Jafari 33. Azar Mehrabi 34. Gholamreza Katal 35. Nahid Rezayi 36. Majid Movasaghi 37. Soudabeh Mortezayi 38. MOhsen Khan Jahani 39. Hadi Afarideh 40. Mitra Mansouri 41. Banafsheh Khoshnoudi 42. Majed Neysi 43. Iraj Moslehi Milani 44. SAyid Naderi 45. Mahmoud Moghadas Jafari 46. Shahram Derakhshan 47. Nader Khadem Tarighat 48. Lida Moyini 49. Javad Najmeddin 50. Amir Hossein Behbehani 51. Arash RAyisyan 52. Ahmad Zahedi 53. Pouyan Shahrokhi 54. Mostafa Shiri 55. Mohammad Reza Marzoughi 56. Mehdi Bagheri 57. Hamid Bahari 58. Babak Behdad 59. Azadeh Bizar Giti 60. Javad Tavana 61. Mohhamad Razdasht 62. Maryam Hagh Panah 63.
Mohsen Gholam zadeh 64. Kaveh Bahrami Moghadam 65. Esmail Emami Langaroudi 66. Hamd jafari 67. Behzad Khoda Veisi 68. Farnaz Jamshidi Moghadam 69. Reza Bahrami Nejad 70. Mohsen Ostad Ali Makhmalbaf 71. Abbas Amini 72. Hiva Amin Nejad 73. Mehdi Ganji 74. Mehdi Parizad 75. Mohammad Sadegh Jafari 76. Mohammad Shiravai 77. Mohsen Nazari 78. Manouchehr Moshiri 79. Ali Shahryari 80. Ebrahim Haghighi 81. Farahnaz Sharifi 82. Pedram Akbari 83. Ali Arkyan Sharifi 84. Hossein Dalir 85. Sousan Bayani 86. Mohsen
Amir Yousefi 87. Mohammad Khalil Zadeh 88. Ebrahim Asadi 89. Parivash Nazaryeh 90. Mohammad Rasekh far 91. Hamideh Sharif Rad 92. Saiid Vahidi 93. Khaterh Hanachi 94. Seyed Alireza Rasouli Nejad 95. Morteza Shamli 96. Ali Reza Dehghan 97. Milad Bahar 98. Mehdi Ghorbanpour 99. Mehdi Asadi 100. Babak Shirin Sefat 101. Mohhamad hassan Saemi
102. Ahmad Reza Sedghi Vaziri 103. Mohammad Reza Fatah Hosseyni 104. Kourosh Farzanegan 105. Ahmad Gol Naraghi 106. Kourosh Afshar panah 107. Reza Majlesi 108. Reza Zyayi Doustan 109. Abolfazle Haj Saeed 110. Foad Afravi 111. Mazyar Bahari 112. Bahman Kyarostami 113. Houshang Fazli etc…

Appeal of Documentary Filmmakers Association (IRDFA)

Following the detention of two members of the Iranian Documentary Filmmakers Association, Maziar Bahari and Hossain Dalir, and also the beating and harming of some of our members and the confiscation of their Cameras and tapes during the recent events, we declare that:
The Iranian Society has the Right to demand Documentary filmmakers, to do their duty in capturing the social events taking place in Iran and portraying the real picture in their films. The issue at hand is as ‘important’ and ‘critical’ as it was, when documentary filmmakers tried to accomplish the same tasks since the early stages of entering Cinema in Iran and in particular during the last 30 years in which the Revolution, the War and other crises took place.
Therefore, Documentary filmmakers, due to their obligation and responsibility, have the Right to be present in these social events and to be able to capture the truth. This is the recognized Right of Documentary Filmmakers across the World.
We also demand the immediate release of our fellow colleagues. As far as we know, they have been arrested and taken into custody because of their roles in capturing and reporting the truth that is taking place in Iran and by fulfilling their professional duties.
We demand respect towards our professional Rights, so we could respond to our society’s undeniable need for unbiased reporting and recording of this period of history.
Documentary Filmmakers Association (IRDFA)
24 June, 2009

Tue Steen Müller