Two days ago I wrote about the arrest of one of my close friends; Maziyar Samiei. He was released the same day but "he is not allowed to -literally- enter the university anymore". This new rule, applies to two other friends of mine. They do not have the right of entering from universities door anymore because they participated in an demonstration against hardliners.

When we were chatting about this in an party last night, someone asked me "Do you know that Kian Tajbakhsh was detained some days ago?". I did not.

Kian Tajbakhsh (his website in English) was my Urban Sociology professor. He returned back from USA around 2 years ago and started teaching us "Urban Sociology" at the university of Allame. He has studied in Columbia University and worked at New School. I remember that during the class somebody asked him about the reasons for coming back to Iran. He said: "I returned back to show others that we can work here. We can promote the situation".

I think he succeed. I learnt that we have to continue. I don't know why the authorities have detained him. Maybe they are afraid of "colorful revolutions" ?! If this is the case, shame on them. Because colorful revolution is a tool in the hands of Democrats against Dictators. Do these people believe that they are dictators? A colorful revolution uses peoples power against a minority ruling elite. Do they afraid of peoples power? Shame on them if this is the case.

More:
BBC: Another US scholar 'held in Iran'
OSI: OSI Statement on the Detention of Dr. Kian Tajbakhsh


FreeKian Petition.

Our government is brutally attacking Bad-Hijab women. There are special forces all over the city and they arrest girls and women who do not hide all of their hairs or do not conduct in an "islamic manner". REMEBER: THESE ARE NORMAL PEOPLE WHO WHERE WALKING PEACEFULLY IN THE STREET 5 MINS AGO.



There are beatings all over the city. My heart beats mad writing this. I feel very angry and I am not able to do anything. Many many blogs are publishing these photos and the same but newspapers do not have the right to object.



I feel hopeless. At the morning I've got the news of the arrest of one of my close friends (Maziyar Samiei) was arrested because of his leftist ideas and now he is in prison; nobody know where. And now, these photos. Today I was thinking of leaving this country. Not for studing, not for work. Just for not being here.



I don't want this as my everyday life. I don't want to accept this regime but I am not a revolutionary. I don't know what to do! I know that I have to STAY. I have to do something. WE have to do something... but what? blogging? Writing open letters to the government who does this? I don't know.

Note: Taking this photo can lead to many problems. I have to thank the anonymous photographer who took it and shared it on the Internet.

Zeinab PeyghambarZaded is one of my friends and participated many times in my trainings.This morning she has to wake up at Evin Prison just because she believed that "Man = Woman = Human".

She was an active part of "1'000'000 signatures campaign". The are going to collect 1 million signatures from people against discriminatory laws. She was arrested 2 days ago because of being active in this campaign.

I have started this weblog to write about Iran, Iranian life, our culture and ... but nowadays I only write about miseries and bad things. Maybe nowadays everything is bad. I don't know. We will do whatever we can for her and for this brave campaign. Talking with people and collecting signature to change a law is the most civil activity I can imagine. She must not be in prison; specially the Evin.

(CBS/AP) Iran's foreign minister walked out of a dinner of diplomats where he was seated directly across from Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, on the pretext that the female violinist entertaining the gathering was dressed too revealingly.

And I think He (Our Foreign Minister) was the ONLY minister there who was checking violinist's dress and found out it was revealing. Other ministers probably where discussing about world affairs and how to promote their countries situations.

I wanted to download the "Persian Calendar" open source project from http://code.google.com/p/jalali-calendar/ today. When I clicked the "Download" link, it said Forbidden: You are accessing this page from a forbidden country.



It should be because of the embargo but from today on we do not have access to our open source projects on Google Code anymore. This happens while I am reading on boingboing.net that Shareholders ask Google to counteract foreign 'net censorship.

This page also popped up when I wanted to download the Google Earth, two days ago.

p.s. Thanks to TOR (The Onion Router from EFF guys) I downloaded it.