Asghar Farhadi boycotts Oscar ceremony in protest against Trump’s travel ban
The Iranian director won for best foreign film but refused to attend. In a message read by Anousheh Ansari, he slammed the travel ban as “inhumane”, calling it a “deceitful justification for aggression and war" that “creates fear”. Iranian Foreign Minister says he is proud of the victory.
Los Angeles (AsiaNews) – President Donald Trump's "inhumane" travel ban on foreigners “creates fear”, and represents a “deceitful justification for aggression and war,” said Iranian director Asghar Farhadi in his acceptance statement read by Iranian-born US cosmonaut Anousheh Ansari. His picture, ‘The Salesman”, won the Academy Award for best foreign language film.
Mr Farhadi, who won another Oscar in 2012, refused to attend the ceremony to protest against President Donald Trump’s executive order against travellers from seven Muslim majority countries.
The order restricts entry to the United States by the nationals of seven Muslim majority countries in the Middle East and Africa, including Iran.
Courts were seized with the issue, and temporarily suspended its application, but the White House has indicated that it is determined to reintroduce the regulation in some other form to "protect" the United States from terrorists.
Various analysts and experts note that none of the latest attacks in the US were carried out by people from the countries included in the presidential ban.
Many intellectuals, artists, human rights activists, and ordinary citizens have come out against what has been dubbed the “Muslim ban”. On Oscar night, the ban came in for even harsher criticism as a violation of human rights.
Asghar Farhadi chose to boycott the ceremony and not receive the award from Shirley MacLaine and Charlize Theron, sending instead two prominent Iranian-Americans.
In the statement read by Anousheh Ansari, the director thanked the Academy for the “valuable award for the second time."
“I’m sorry I’m not with you tonight. My absence is out of respect for the people of my country and those of other six nations who have been disrespected by the inhumane law that bans entry of immigrants to the U.S.
“Dividing the world into the "us" and "our enemies" categories creates fears. A deceitful justification for aggression and war. These wars prevent democracy and human rights in countries which have themselves been victims of aggression.
“Filmmakers can turn their cameras to capture shared human qualities and break stereotypes of various nationalities and religions. They create empathy between us and others. An empathy which we need today more than ever.
Loosely based on Arthur Miller’s ‘Death of a Salesman’, Farhadi’s movie also won awards at the Cannes Film Festival.
All six directors nominated in the best foreign language film category signed a statement before the ceremony condemning a "climate of fascism" in the United States.
In London, Sadiq Khan, the first Muslim mayor in the history of the British capital, organised a screening of the film attended by at least 10,000 people under the statue of Admiral Nelson in Trafalgar Square.
"President Trump cannot silence me,” Khan said. “We stand in solidarity with Asghar Farhadi, one of the world's greatest directors."
On Twitter, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said “Proud of cast & crew of "The Salesman" for Oscar & stance against #MuslimBan”, noting that “Iranians have represented culture & civilization for millennia”.
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12/04/2023 18:18
