Ovi magazine; Tuesday August 22nd, 2023

The articles, the opinions, the stories, the poems, the thoughts, the reviews, the photos, the paintings and the cartoons Ovi magazine covers for Tuesday August 22nd, 2023

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Iran Repression Continues: NGO Action Needed by Rene Wadlow

Repression of protests in Iran continues.  A wave of protests swept across Iran in the wake of the September 2022 death in custody of 22 year-old Mahsa Jina Animi, an ethnic Kurd.  It is estimated that the Iranian security forces have killed over 500 protesters, and have arrested some 20,000 persons of all ethnic and religious backgrounds. (1)

In response to the State-led violence, the United Nations Human Rights Council has created on 24 November 2022 the International Independent Fact-Finding Mission on the Islamic Republic of Iran with the chairmanship of Sera Hossain of Bangladesh.

One aspect of the repression of protests is that religious leaders of the Sunni Muslim communities especially in Iran’s Sistan and Baluchistan province and the Kurdish provences are being increasingly targeted by the Islamic Republic authorities for arrest and imprisonment because of their peaceful criticism of the repression of protests.  Iran is a majority Shia Muslim country, and Shiism is the official religion of the State.

Continue reading HERE!

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Snow Globe #poem & #painting by Nikos Laios

“I gaze at the snow globe 
And remember those 
Ragged roads through  
Rugged mountain ranges, 
Grazing sheep on steep slopes”

Continue reading HERE!

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Ant-Biotics #22 #cartoon by Thanos Kalamidas

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Ovi magazine; Tuesday March 14th, 2023

The articles, the opinions, the stories, the poems and the cartoons Ovi magazine covers for Tuesday March 14th, 2023

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Saudi-Iranian deal brokered by China will change geopolitics in the MENA by Murray Hunter

For those within the Anglophile world, the recent agreement cut between Saudi Arabia and Iran, brokered by China, received scant reporting. The deal re-establishing relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran after a seven-year hiatus, may potentially become a major pillar for stability within the region.

Relations turned sour when the Saudi authorities executed a Shiite cleric Nimr Al-Nimr, back in 2016. This resulted in mobs storming the Saudi Arabian Embassy in Tehran, and the breaking off of diplomatic relations.

Iran and Saudi Arabia agreed last Friday in Beijing to restore diplomatic ties by reopening their respective diplomatic missions within the next two months. Shiite majority Iran and Sunni majority Saudi Arabia re-establish a nexus between two competing Islamic leaders, within the Middle East and North African region.

President Xi Jinping visited Saudi Arabia last December, and hosted the Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi in Beijing last month. The deal was signed just after President Xi, was re-elected for an unprecedented third term.

This is part of a broader Chinese initiative to broker a wider agreement, which includes Iraq, and Oman to reduce tensions in the region, and potentially realign the Middle East.

Continue reading HERE!

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That One #poem by George Cassidy Payne

“The one that doesn’t
want you to create anything
because it wants to
protect what it doesn’t know
from being found out.”

Continue reading HERE!

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Ant-Biotics #11 #cartoon by Thanos Kalamidas

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Ovi magazine; Friday January 13th, 2023

The articles, the opinions, the stories, the poems and the cartoons Ovi magazine covers for Friday January 13th, 2023

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World Citizens Protest Strongly Public Executions of Demonstrators in Iran by Rene Wadlow

he Association of World Citizens has repeatedly called upon governments for a moratorium on executions with a view to abolishing the death penalty – a penalty that extensive research has shown has little or no impact on the level of crime and too often opens the door to judicial errors and injustice.  In addition to State-sponsored official executions, usually carried out publicly or at least with official observers, a good number of countries have State-sponsored “death squads” – persons affiliated to the police or to intelligence agencies that kill “in the dark of the night” unofficially.  These deaths avoid a trial which might attract attention or even a “not guilty” decision.

The 7 January hanging of Mohammad Mehdi Karami, 22 years old, and of Seyed Mohammad Hosseini, 39, by the authorities of the Islamic Republic of Iran is an obvious effort to crush dissent and demonstrations which have shaken the authorities, set off by the death of Mahsa Animi in September at the hands of the morality police.

Continue reading HERE!

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Siren Songs #poem & #painting by Nikos Laios

“On a dark velvet night
I discovered the soul of this city;
Pulsating beats wrapped in 
The rushing sounds of traffic,
And the tree-tops bent by a
Cold breeze on a windy night”

Continue reading HERE

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Tang & Ram #54 #cartoon by Thanos Kalamidas

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Ovi magazine; Tuesday December 6th, 2022 – Finland’s Independence Day

 

The articles, the opinions, the stories, the poems and the cartoons Ovi magazine covers for Tuesday December 6th, 2022 – Finland’s Independence Day

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U.N. Human Rights Council Focus on Iran by Rene Wadlow

On 24 November 2022, the United Nations Human Rights Council held a Special Session on the human rights situation in Iran.  A Special Session is the highest form of attention which the Human Rights Council can take.  The Foreign Minister of Germany came in person to Geneva to present the Special Session resolution.  The resolution which was adopted calls for the creation of a special fact-finding mission to investigate “alleged human rights violations in the Islamic Republic of Iran.”  

Such fact-finding is an essential step towards ensuring that perpetrators are held responsible for their abuses.  While it is unlikely that the government of Iran will allow the fact-finding group to enter the country, the creation of the group after a heated debate indicates the wide-spread international concern with the repression of the demonstrations and the death sentences given by courts to at least five protesters accused of “moharebek” (waging war against God).

The manifestations began on 16 September 2022 concerning the death of a 22-year old woman Mahsa Animi at the hands of the “morality police”.  She had been arrested for showing too much of her hair under the mandatory veil – the hijab.  Now women cutting their hair in public has become one of the symbols of the manifestations.  The first cries were “Women-Life-Liberty” (Zan- Zevdegi-Azadi) and were focused on women’s issues. 

Continue reading HERE!

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The Exile #poem & #painting by Nikos Laios

“He woke up 
In the age of 
Machine men,
Cold steel streets,
Brick and cement beats,
A merciless world of 
Factories and smoke stacks,
Green fog fingering the city.”

Continue reading HERE

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Mika Toxica #42 #cartoon by Thanos Kalamidas

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Ovi magazine; Thursday November 10th, 2022 – Sesame Street Day

The articles, the opinions, the stories, the poems and the cartoons Ovi magazine covers for Thursday November 10th, 2022 – Sesame Street Day

Sesame Street Day was first established in 2009 to celebrate the fortieth anniversary of the show’s original broadcast. Beginning in 1969 in the United States, Sesame Street is a creation of the Children’s Television Workshop (CTW), an educational series that combines live actors with animation as well as special puppets by Jim Henson, known as “Muppets”. Through short vignettes, songs, skits and cameo appearances, the show seeks to create educational opportunities for children of all ages by fostering learning, engaging their minds, building social skills, promoting self-esteem and offering basic academic skills.

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A Wind of Change Blows Ever Stronger in Iran by Rene Wadlow

Despite strong governmental repression, a wind of change blows ever stronger in Iran.  What began  as manifestations on 16 September 2022 concerning the death of a young Kurdish woman, Mahsa Anini at the hands of the “morality police” continues today among all ethnic groups and in most parts of the country.  The first cries of “Women -Life- Liberty” continue, but “Down with the Islamic Republic” is increasingly heard.

This is a new generation of protesters, too young to have been in the 2009 Green Movement protests linked to the election of the President or the 2019 protests linked to the high costs of living.  The country still faces economic difficulties, but the hopes for gradual reforms to be undertaken by the government have given way to protesting the nature of the government.  More and more people are discussing the nature of a post-theocratic government. People are discussiong radical social change.  The tight control by the government and its conservative allies is fast slipping away.

Continue reading HERE!

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The Boss #poem & #painting by Nikos Laios

“Sunday, 
And a cool change 
Descends at the end 
A hot summer day,
And a sharp 
Herbal smell 
Of trees floats 
In through 
An open window,
And storm clouds 
Slowly collect 
Over the harbour 
And there’s moisture
In the air.”

Continue reading HERE

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Sceptic feathers #50 #cartoon by Thanos Kalamidas

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Ovi magazine; Friday October 7th, 2022 – World Cotton Day

The articles, the opinions, the stories, the poems and the cartoons Ovi magazine covers for Friday October 7th, 2022 – World Cotton Day

Cotton is a major source of livelihoods and incomes for many rural smallholders and laborers, including women, providing employment and income to some of the poorest rural areas in the world. On this second official UN World Cotton Day, the United Nations wants to raise visibility of the cotton sector and awareness of the critical role that it plays in economic development, international trade and poverty alleviation. The observance also aims to highlight the importance of sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all.

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Women- Life – Liberty by Rene Wadlow

The cry “Women-Life-Liberty!” is going up in many different parts of the Islamic Republic of Iran.  It is not possible to know in advance how strong the protests will be and what will be the specific reforms demanded. The protests began on 13 September 2022 at the announcement of the death of 22 year-old Mahsa Anini in police custody, having been arrested by the “morality police” for not having the proper dress.  She was an ethnic Kurd.  The protests began in the Kurdish areas but soon spread to all ethnic groups and to many parts of the country.  However, the government is worried that support for the demonstrations from Kurds, especially some in Iraq, could grow and lead to multi-ethnic tensions.

Women have been a central focus of the social policy of the Islamic government.  Even before coming to power in 1979, Ayatollah Khomenini from his exile in France had said that the overly great liberty of women was a chief obsticle to his policies.  Repressive policies against women with compulsory veiling laws were quickly put into place. However, unlike the Taliban in Afghanistan, women were not barred from higher education.

Continue reading HERE!

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Saturnalia #poem by George Cassidy Payne

“You are so much more
than a giant, spinning ball
of hydrogen and helium.”

Continue reading HERE!

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Ma-Siri & Alexa #43 #cartoon by Thanos Kalamidas

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Iran's dictators execute dignity ones more

Human rights groups have protested against the execution on Friday of a young Iranian woman for a murder committed when she was 17 years old.

Amnesty International said it was outraged by Delara Darabi's hanging and that she did not get a fair trial. The head of Iran's judiciary had recently granted a two-month stay of execution but her lawyer says this was disregarded by the prison authorities. Ever since her confession Ms Darabi, an artist, had said she was innocent. She said she had taken the blame to save her boyfriend. Her case received international attention after dramatic paintings and drawings created in her cell were seen around the world.

When it comes to dictatorships especially freak religious dictators, disgust is not enough!

Iran feels ready for dialogue with US

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has said he would welcome talks with the US as long as they were based on "mutual respect". Speaking on the 30th anniversary of the Islamic revolution in Iran, he said Iran would welcome change from the US as long as it was "fundamental".

He said: "The Iranian nation is ready to hold talks... in a fair atmosphere." The two nations cut ties in 1979 after the revolution, when the US embassy in Tehran was occupied for 444 days.

Odd how the word dialogue works with dictators especially when they are dressed in cleric uniform!

Ovi today

Voices and legality by Thanos KalamidasThe Iranian government condemned the new EU sanctions against Teheran over the uranium enrichment program as illegal and this raises the question what is legal and what illegal.

Nice Beavers! by Clint Wayne
As a self-confessed 'Wildlife Freak', it was with great interest that I watched this week's BBC News report detailing the formation of a Beaver dam and the possible breeding success of two Beavers released under licence here in the UK.

Missile defence system, did Lithuanians betrayed Poland? by Newropeans-Magazine
Probably most of you heard about the anti-missile defence plan for Europe. In short anti-missile radar should be deployed in the Czech Republic, and an interceptor base in Poland.

Cyprus report by Euro Reporter
Euro Reporter finds itself on Cyprus today.

Israeli warning, nuclear Iran

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has said Iran's nuclear programme must be stopped by "all possible means".

Speaking during a visit to Washington, he said Tehran must be made to see it would suffer devastating repercussions if it pursued atomic weapons. The US and others have accused Iran of building nuclear arms capability. Tehran says its programme is peaceful.

Mr. Olmert's US visit comes as he faces pressure at home over corruption allegations, which he denies. "The Iranian threat must be stopped by all possible means," Mr. Olmert said in his speech before the American Israel Public Affairs Committee - a lobby group.

"The international community has a duty and responsibility to clarify to Iran, through drastic measures, that the repercussions of their continued pursuit of nuclear weapons will be devastating," he added.

Is it just me or this is a déjà vu? Didn’t they say the same things about Iraq? Where all these led with Iraq is …known, what remains is to see where they are going to lead Iran!

Obama over Bush’s Iran barb

Barack Obama has accused George W Bush of attacking him after the US president compared those in favour of talking to terrorists to Nazi appeasers.

The White House has denied that the remarks - from a speech to the Israeli parliament - were aimed at Mr Obama. Mr Obama, who is the frontrunner to become the Democrats' presidential nominee, has argued in favour of negotiating with the Iranian regime. But he has ruled out talking to militant organisations like Hamas.

What does he care, after a few months is not going to be his problem anymore, Obama most likely will have to deal with it!

Tehran protests for Hillary

The Iranian government is protesting remarks from Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, who said the United States could "totally obliterate" Iran if it made a nuclear attack on Israel.

The mullah’s run Islamic Republic News Agency said Iran sent a letter of protest, dated Wednesday, to the United Nations and the U.N. Security Council over remarks it calls "provocative, unwarranted and irresponsible." Clinton told ABC's "Good Morning America" that "I want the Iranians to know that if I'm the president, we will attack Iran (if it attacked Israel)."

"In the next 10 years, during which they might foolishly consider launching an attack on Israel, we would be able to totally obliterate them," Clinton said. "That's a terrible thing to say, but those people who run Iran need to understand that, because that perhaps will deter them from doing something that would be reckless, foolish and tragic."

At least she didn’t lie! By the way, do the cleric dictators of Iran and their puppet president think that Obama will do any different?

UN condemns Turkey border deaths

The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) has accused Turkish police of causing the deaths of four men by forcing them into a river on the Turkey-Iraq border.

The strong current swept the men away, the UNHCR said, quoting witnesses. The incident happened on Wednesday at an unpatrolled stretch of the border near the Habur crossing point, in Sirnak province, the UNHCR said.

At least one of the four was an Iranian. They were among 18 Iranians and Syrians refused entry into Iraq. There has been no comment from the Turkish authorities.

And does anybody thinks that Turkey cares if UN condemns, they are killing daily innocent Kurds, they occupy European land and they will care for a few more dead?

Hillary's talk on Iran

Hillary Clinton has issued a stark warning to Iran, as Democrats in Pennsylvania vote to choose between her and Barack Obama to run for president.

She said the US would attack, and could "obliterate" Iran, if it launched a nuclear strike on Israel. Mrs. Clinton has been playing up foreign affairs and leadership as she tries to make up ground in the Democratic race.

She leads polls in Pennsylvania, the largest remaining state, but analysts say her hopes depend on a big victory. A Zogby survey released on Tuesday showed Mrs. Clinton leading Mr. Obama by 10%, while an Insider Advantage poll had her 7% ahead.

Now the mullahs of Iran can sleep quiet, whoever is the president they are …screwed!

Iran's Children on Death Row

"I am a murderer!" The young voice trembled on the other side of the telephone line. "I was 15 when I committed the murder. I regret what I did. It was an accident. Please save me! I want to live. I want to be free. I am living the last days of my life. Any day now they may take me to the noose. I want to survive. Is there anybody there who can save me?"

The short conversation fades into the distant tumult of Adel Abad Prison in Shiraz, a city in southwest-central Iran, where Behnam Zare' has been awaiting execution for three years.

In the spring of 2005, Behnam was a freshman in high school when a scuffle over pet pigeons broke out between him and his friend Mehrdad. Minutes later, Behnam had become his buddy's murderer. He says he still has no recollection of how it really happened.

Behnam, still a minor at the time he was arrested, landed in prison. Not long after the judicial process began he was convicted of murder in the primary court and sentenced to death.

Iran is among the very few countries in which children under the age of 18 can be sentenced to death. Although a signatory to the United Nations' International Convention on the Rights of the Child and International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which prohibit the ill-treatment and execution of children or juvenile offenders under any circumstance, the Islamic Republic still preserves for itself the right of over-ruling the treaties.

What understanding and humanitarianism can you expect from the religious freaks of Iran? I suppose this is the ideal state for them, Sharia laws!!!

Iran, freedom and fair in prison

Hard-liners? Reformists? Somebody is making a joke to the people of Iran; whatever they voted the puppet dictator of the ayatollahs will be the president!

The international media report that the early results suggest that the caricature president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has the ‘parliament’ – they don’t call it temple – has won a strong victory! I’m speechless; do they mean that there was an opposition? Alive? Reformists also hailed successes, despite the barring of large numbers of their candidates from the race.

The EU has criticized the conduct of the vote as "neither fair nor free". What Iran’s dictators have to do with fair and freedom? You just need to read a couple of the puppet dictator’s speeches to understand that freedom in Iran is prison or shot dead!

Iranians in general election

Voting has begun in Iran's elections, with conservatives expected to win after opponents of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad were barred from running. This is democracy ...Iranian Style!!!

Iraqi archbishop dead

Muslim nations and citizens all around the world have often claimed the lack of tolerance towards Islam and is so weird when in most of these countries to be a Christian is simple illegal and it can lead to a vicious punishment including the death penalty in some areas of Pakistan for example.

So what can you say for the body of Paulos Faraj Rahho, the Chaldean Catholic archbishop of Mosul, was found in a shallow grave close to the city. And he is not the first. Another priest a few months ago was killed in Turkey, so much for the religious tolerance.

Iraq has been the one Muslim country where there was a Christian minority and they were able to practice their faith but you can see Iran’s and its ayatollah’s reaching there as well and the one who paid it was the Archbishop Rahho was kidnapped not long after he left mass in Mosul, in northern Iraq, on 29 February. This minority however was the first to abandon Iraq predicting a very dark if not a very dark ages’ future.