An Iranian artist accused of spreading anti-government propaganda has gone on trial in Tehran.
Atena Farghadani, 28, was arrested and held in custody last August for showing a cartoon that mocked members of Iran’s parliament. She depicted them as monkeys and goats in a protest against plans to introduce two bills that will outlaw voluntary sterilisation and restrict access to contraception. She faces charges of “insulting members of the parliament through paintings” and “insulting the Supreme Leader”.
Farghadani was released, but she was imprisoned again in January and has since suffered a heart attack, according to her lawyer. Her trial, which began on 19 May, was ongoing as we went to press.
According to a statement released by Amnesty International, the authorities first took action against Farghadani after the artist showed works dedicated to demonstrators killed in the aftermath of the disputed election of 2009, when Mahmoud Ahmadinejad became the president of Iran. “Her exhibition, entitled Birds of Earth, was attended by relatives of political prisoners,” the human-rights organisation says. We were unable to establish where this show took place.
Last summer, 12 officers from the Revolutionary Guards confiscated Farghadani’s belongings, including her books and laptop. She was held in Evin Prison in Tehran for almost two months, including 15 days in solitary confinement.