HRANA News Agency – The jury of documentary section of the 61 th Cannes Film Festival called to cancel the sentence of Keyvan Karimi on its website in part of introducing the judges and documentary films which compete, attracting audience’s attention to the fate of the Iranian artist sentenced to imprisonment, lashing and a fine and called for continued international effort to cancel his sentence in an article entitled “Solidarity with Iranian filmmaker Keyvan Karimi”.
According to the report of Human Rights Activists News Agency in Iran (HRANA), in the documentary section of the 61th Cannes Film Festival, 17 films nominated and award “Golden Eye” on May 21, 2016 will be awarded to the best documentary at the discretion of jury. At this part of the web page an article entitled “Solidarity with Iranian filmmaker Keyvan Karimi” has been posted for the audience.
The article points out that “The jury of “Golden Eye” award attract audience’s attention to the fate of the Iranian artists Keyvan Karimi, who had been sentenced one year in prison, 223 lashes and a fine of 20 million IRR due to a documentary film named “writing on the wall” about writing slogans and graffiti on the walls of Tehran in political movements of 1971 and 2009.”
The article emphasizes that the international efforts must continue to cancel his sentence by removing the barriers on the freedom of artistic creativity around the world. He was accused of “insulting religious sanctities” and “propaganda” against the government due to showing romantic scenes which he denied to have filmed.
HRANA had reported previously that Branch 54 of the Appeals Court of Tehran, had sentenced Keyvan Karimi to 223 lashes, 20 million IRR fine, one year in prison and one year suspended sentence.
The Iranian artists was arrested in October 2013, and released on the bail after about two weeks.
He was sentence to 6 years imprisonment and 223 lashes in 2015 at a lower court in branch 28 of the Revolutionary Court presided by Judge Moghiseh.
Keyvwn Karimi’s charges are propaganda against the regime, insulting religious sanctities and intimacy through kissing and shaking hands with non-mahram.