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In , he helped organize a clandestine Yahoo chat group for gay Iranians, called Voice Celebration.
The group had 50 participants, who exchanged views on how best to achieve civil rights. Less than three years later, he was asked to speak publicly in Geneva, Switzerland, at the second session of United Nations Human Rights Council and on the fourth anniversary all international media published some articles about Iranian gays and lesbians. Parsi was the executive director of the Iranian Queer Organization and director of the organization's online magazine, Cheraq for several years.
Parsi has been working on Iranian queer asylum cases. Parsi's autobiography, Exiled for Love , was written with Marc Colbourne and published by Fernwood Publishing in Parsi and Marina Nemat are the only two Iranians that were selected for the museum. On April 23, , a Toronto Small Claims Court found [13] Parsi liable for defamation of Soheila Amintorabi , who is also known as Shadi Amin , for activities taking place on the anonymous website "justice4lgbt. Parsi's position was that he was not responsible for the website and has no knowledge of the parties who operate it; [16] [15] however, Deputy Judge Ashby of the Small Claims Court found that "[o]n a balance of probabilities, I am persuaded that Mr.
Parsi was involved the creation and publication of the articles on justice4lbgt. Having found Parsi was involved with the website, the Deputy Judge found that certain articles published on the website "justice4lgbt.
Parsi's response to the ruling was made in a statement [17] in which he said that "I am at peace with the outcome of the court and grateful that it ended the way it did" because he was "placed in a very difficult position. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Most main meals in Iran are based on rice with meat, vegetables and nuts. Herbs and fruit also make up a lot of the traditional dishes, so expect to see lots of these for sale in local bazaars alongside many different spices.
While different types of kebabs are most associated with Iran, we also love their hearty stews and ash , which is a kind of thick soup. For drinking, bear in mind that Iran is an alcohol-free country, but instead try the delicious sweet chai tea as well as a plethora of yummy non-alcoholic beers in a variety of flavours.
We mentioned the Zoroastrians when talking about Yazd, and you should definitely explore their otherworldly fire temples.
Zoroastrianism is one of the world's oldest continuously practised religions, which originated in Iran around the 6th century BC. There are many Zoroastrian fire temples in Iran, where there are ever-burning fires which the Zoroastrians revere. The fire inside the Yazd Atash Behram temple in Yazd has been continuously burning for over 1, years! You might have heard of the Achaemenid Empire as the Persian Empire, the one that invaded Greece and defeated the Spartans at the Battle of Thermopylae.
Persepolis was founded by Darius I, and completed during the reign of Xerxes I, who led the invasion of Greece. This is the biggest mosque in the world, which contains the mausoleum of Imam Reza, a museum, a library, a cemetery, the Razavi University of Islamic Sciences, a dining hall for pilgrims, vast prayer halls and other buildings. Imam Reza was a descendant of the prophet Muhammad, so this is a very important site for Muslims. The ancient city of Susa also sometimes called Shush features a castle, acropolis and palace remnants. Nearby city Shushtar is home to an amazing historic hydraulic system with water mills, dams, tunnels and canals.
You might not think of snow when you think of Iran, but the northern Alborz mountains are actually a popular skiing destination with local Iranians.
The ski resorts of Shemshak and Dizin are both about two hours drive from Tehran with high altitudes which make them perfect for powder junkies. The area is amazing for skiing in the winter as well as for hiking in the warmer months. Immersed amongst the date palms and unique crumbling castles, Garmeh is a classic desert oasis village, built using rustic mud-bricks. The village is years old, but becoming a bit of a popular destination for travellers looking to experience traditional Iranian desert life.
While staying here you can organise camel-rides further into the desert, hikes to hot-water springs and excursions to the nearby salt flats. Just be aware that it does get ridiculously hot in summer, so you may want to visit during the cooler shoulder season. Why should we go giving our hard-earned dolly dollars and pink pounds to a regime that simply wants to get rid of us?
I am generally opposed to people who say you should boycott countries for human rights issues. Because when it comes to issues like gay rights, I think it's far more productive to travel to these countries, find gay friendly people and businesses if you can and support them with your tourist cash. Check out the Nomadic Boys' article about what it's like travelling as a gay couple in Asia , in which they explored this argument in detail. Plus, in many countries with anti-LGBT policies, human rights violations against gay people generally happen with the citizens of those countries — not tourists.
I was recently in Iran for about 10 days. I really didn't get the sense that gay issues were a top concern for the people who lived there. Iranians are mostly concerned about inflation and putting food on their tables. They probably don't give much thought to gay people — if they think of them at all. Moreover, it's important to remember that you're going there on vacation — not to advocate for gay rights or to live out your life as you would if you were at home.
You're going to visit Persepolis and Tehran and Shiraz, not to participate in a parade.
They think that being a homosexual is only about sex—a physical need. In June , according to information provided to Human Rights Watch, undercover police agents in Shiraz arranged meetings with gay men through internet chat rooms and arrested them. The judge spoke the whole time. Amir is a year-old gay male who was arrested at a private party in Shiraz in Congrats on excellent set of photos. I lived with him for eight to nine months. During this time I tried going back home but my father would not allow me inside the house.
Before I embarked on my trip, one of the main concerns of my friends and family was that I would be a gay guy travelling to a country with such strict laws against it. We recommend you always take out travel insurance before your next vacation. What happens if you suffer from illness, injury, theft or a cancellation? With travel insurance, you can have peace of mind and not worry.
We love World Nomads travel insurance and have been using it for years. Their comprehensive coverage is second to none and their online claims process is very user friendly. Stefan is the co-founder, editor and author of the gay travel blog nomadicboys. As a travel nerd, he has explored more than 80 countries across 5 continents.
What he loves the most about travelling is discovering the local gay scene, making new friends and learning new cultures. Stefan is also a qualified lawyer, having practised as a commercial property litigator in London for over 10 years. He left his lawyer days behind to work full time on Nomadic Boys with his husband Sebastien. Find out more about Nomadic Boys. Oh your reports is trebly wrong dear. Ofcourse homosex is illegal in iran.
Some cities are religious like qom and mashhad and romantic act is rudeness there even about hetrosex couples.
We strongly advise all LGBTQ travellers going to Iran follow the safety tips set out in this article, as well as their government's Foreign Office or equivalent formal guidance! I visited Iran for a month with my boyfriend last year, and it was completely fine - more than that, it was one of my best travelling experiences!
Of course, as a couple, you can't really display affection and it might not be wise to tell people you are a couple while in there - as you correctly point out in your article.
That being said, we were also pretty lucky to be visiting friends that knew we were a couple and it was absolutely fine with them and with their friends. We were also introduced to some local gay guys and even saw a couple openly yet discreetly kissing and holding hands at an artsy restaurant. From my impression, it feels like attitudes are fast changing in Iran, even if the political situation remains complex, to say the least.
Hey JU thanks for your message. This service is more advanced with JavaScript available. Front Matter Pages i-xvii. Pages Reading Foucault in Tehran. Conclusion: Gay Livability in a Queer Dystopia. Back Matter Pages