Are we to believe...
...that women have his much freedom in Iran? I enjoyed the film but I highly doubt that anyone, particularly women have this much freedom in Iran.
I think she's the saddest girl ever to hold a martini.
Yes, indeed. Women are kept in cages and go out on a leash by men. What parts of it did you find suspect in the film?
(Also, are you an American, by any chance?)
I found the fact that women running around in cars was obviously frowned upon in the film although they did get arrested. Also, find it hard to believe women were allowed to run around out at bars and frolicking about on the beach half naked in public, etc. etc. We ARE talking about Iran here, not California. If you're not from Iran then don't answer my post. I'd like to hear it from a female who lives in Iran to answer me since all we ever hear about in the west is about the repression of women in the middle east. ARe you implying everything we've ever heard is simply a falsehood? If women in Iran are that free, one of them should be allowed to get on the net and answer my post.
I think she's the saddest girl ever to hold a martini.
ok so i am not iranian, but i do live in the middle east(Egypt to be exact) and i do have friends who lived in iran.
i'll try to answer your questions as much as possible.
driving cars is no big deal, women can drive. in the movie they were arrested for another reason (subtitling the film(s) that entered the country illegally)
the only place where women are banned from driving is saudi arabia. Afghanistan women dont drive as well but poverty is so high that most ppl dont have cars anyway. But there isnt any clear law against women driving.
half naked on the beach..no they are not allowed to be half naked on the beach, thats why they swam at dawn were no one was around..if they got caught they would have probably went to jail.
bars and clubs are underground societies and they keep changing locations for security reasons. whoever is active in these scenes go to jail, whether you are a girl, a boy, a man or a woman.
regarding iranian women replying to your post.
the last i heard; internet was cut-off in iran and over 30 million iranians couldnt log in their email accounts. the ppl now are doing a revolution against the islamists, no media is allowed and ppl couldnt access the internet to tweet/write/document whats is going on. :(
the movie is also banned in iran, so do not expect a lot of ppl living in iran having access to the movie.
there are pages on facebook for the movie and i believe a lot of the people there are iranians living abroad. maybe you should join a page and ask a few questions if you want more insight information.
you also have to understand something, regarding free speech or iranians coming online expressing what they feel/think about oppression. women and men equally do not have that freedom, if an iranian guy living in iran came here and talked about women's oppression or people's oppression. he will also go to jail :S
i hope that helps
Thanks for clearing that up for me! I appreciate it. How is life for women in your part of the world? Are they still not allowed to travel without a man's permission? I used to work with a lady who married a man from Egypt and when he heard she was going to divorce him, he left the country and took their daughter and she can no longer see her daughter unless she goes to Egypt to visit.
I assumed this movie was something that probably wouldn't be shown in Iran. So there are living in Iran who wish to have more freedom from the Islamists - do you mean radical Islamists? Most people in western societies don't know the difference between a Muslim and an Islamist.
Thanks again!
I think she's the saddest girl ever to hold a martini.
well...women in egypt, we have less oppression politically but more socially. regarding travel, i think its fine if a woman travels without her parents legal permission after she is 21. a lot of parents wont allow it though and wont back up their daughter's decision financially. i want to leave the country but my parents wont help me economically and my job isnt enough (and it sucks cuz i used to live in toronto and i miss it so much) . so even if a girl wants to travel, or immigrate, she legally can but her family will stand in her way for social reasons.
regarding your friend, i am very sorry to hear about that. i wish i had more information regarding custody battles but i dont :S
islamists are men of religion who interfere/active in politics in the name of God. the conservatives side of politicians if you will :)
a muslim is a person who follows the islamic religion, an Islamist is a person or a group of people who want to enforce sharia law (which is the islamic law).
not all muslims are pro islamists, i am a muslim but i am liberal. Sharia Law on the other hand is not that bad and its originally liberal but for some reason after the 1960s in the middle-east radical extremist islamists raised from saudi arabia. funding islamic clerics to be more conservative all over the middle east.
if you study the middle east in the 50s, we were quiet liberal politically and socially so was iran before the revolution in 1979. the Islamists nowadays are pretty radical only for political reasons to control societies. but according to the proper sharia law, they are abusing their power.
its like in europe christian radicals took power and the orthodox were killing the catholics. Even though christianity does not say so, but for political reasons ppl who profit from war encouraged religious extremism.
i really hope that helps :)
Thanks for all the information you sent. It is quite helpful! It's sad that as an adult, you cannot travel as you wish. I've never been to Toronto but I'm sure it is nice. Were you schooled there?
What are the more liberal Muslims actively doing to get out of this hotbed of politics that the Islamists are doing all over the middle east? Is that something that is simply tolerated or do liberals have a snowball's chance in Hades of changing these problems?
I've heard about Sharia law but it's all seen as bad from a western standpoint and of course, I have no idea what it was like in the past.
Thanks again for the exchange. You've been most helpful!
I think she's the saddest girl ever to hold a martini.
i did study in toronto for a while..it was a one year certificate
regarding liberal muslim politicians and people..it differs from one country to another. but a lot of out-sopken liberals go to jail in iran.. if you are a student and you publicly talk about liberalism or be publicly against the islmists u can go to jail and/or get banned from education
there are a lot of documentaries about this
in egypt we just came out of a revolution and the islamists took over 60% of the Parliament..we dont know whats going to happen
lebanon is the most liberal..in the gulf area people are very rich and they couldnt care less about politics because they live an extremely luxurious life. They also dont have any elections, as most of the gulf countries are kingdoms. the gulf countries are not liberal but the islamists are not that powerful either except for saudi arabia.
algeria, tunisia and morrocco are more liberal..liberals do have a struggle though but not as bad as here in egy
asian muslim countries are quiet liberal..like Indonesia and Malaysia (but of-course not as much as the west)
Yes I heard about the recent events in Egypt. It doesn't sound very promising at least from the western perspective anyway. It seems they are ruling that part of the world with an iron fist.
I would be interested in watching any of the documentaries on this subject if you have the titles available?
I worked with a fellow from Lebanon but he was a Christian actually. I don't know much about his background but he was definitely liberal in his thinking
Thanks again!
I think she's the saddest girl ever to hold a martini.
we also have a lot of christians in egypt btw :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzNUjiKapOs
that one is quiet good and painful to watch
you should also watch a movie called persepolis..its animation and a bit personal but its powerful
i heard about a good movie called "women without men"..i didnt see it but the trailer looks nice..its about politics and feminism in iran
you should also google "green movement in iran" i am sure a lot of videos, photos and interviews are going to pop up about the revolution for freedom/liberalism in iran
I've seen the Graphic Novel Persepolis but I haven't purchased it yet. I will check out the film. Thanks!
I hope things change for the better in your part of the world!
Thanks a lot for the suggestions! Much appreciated!
Take care!
I think she's the saddest girl ever to hold a martini.
Amy-ra, you say Sharia is originally liberal, yet the Sharia of the Islamists is taken from the Quran and the Hadith. What is "proper" sharia law?
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Why Richard, it profits a man nothing to give his soul for the whole world... but for Wales?