Literary Editor Guilty of Insulting Chador with Poem

Iran's press court has distinguished itself again recently by prosecuting Ali Dehbashi, editor of the literary journal Bukhara ­­and a long-time fixture on the Tehran literary scene. The court has found Dehbashi guilty of publishing material that contravenes Islamic values. The charges relate to the publication of a poem about a crow that appeared in Volume 92 of the journal, which hardline conservative media in Iran has claimed denigrates the black chador covering.

Dehbashi, a mild-mannered, tireless publisher whose journal has appeared regularly throughout the past decade, has steered away from politics and managed to keep Bukhara as one of the enduring hubs of literary activity throughout the fraught Ahmadinejad era. While the literary evenings he has held in conjunction with his magazine have prompted some hardline complaints about nefarious cultural activities, he has until now managed to evade formal legal proceedings.

In response to the criticism, Dehbashi published a short note in apology and in his defense: “Since my youth I have been devoted to respecting and observing Islamic values, and have sought to bring that sensibility to the work published in Bukhara. It should be needless to say that I was raised by a veiled, faithful woman and that many women of my own family wear the hejab, and as such, am regretful for what inadvertently and negligently has passed. I extend my apologies to the faithful women readers who comprise part of Bukhara's readership.”

While Dehbashi was deferential in his apology, Mansoor Oji, the author of the poem, pushed back against legal prosecution as a result of subjective literary interpretation. He argued that Islam demands modesty from men and women alike, and that nowhere does the faith mandate that such covering should be black. “There are many spaces where black is invoked in a way that is abhorrent. If my poem conveys the color black as constricting my heart, it is because of this, not because of the Islamic hejab.”

These clarifications weren't sufficient, however, to keep the judiciary from prosecuting Dehbashi, and neither was his sentencing enough to stop the attacks. This week the hardline daily Kayhan singled out the magazine once again, writing that “Bukhara magazine, which recently published a poem mocking the symbol of chastity that is the veil, has now turned to publishing pieces that defend heresy.”

For those who have witnessed Bukhara thrive over the years within the repressive press climate of the Islamic Republic, Dehbashi's resilience has been singularly impressive. But though his day came late, his quiet magazine has actually vexed hardliners for a long time. Payam Fazlinejad, who sits on the editorial board of Kayhan, wrote about Dehbashi and Bukhara in his 2007 book Arteshe-e Saari Roshanfekran, alleging that the editor is connected to monarchists, secular historians, and Freemason writers, and has participated in literary circles where Shia values have been insulted. In 2007, Kayhan accused Dehbashi of being the link between Israeli writers, the US-based Zionist lobby and Iranian publishing.

While it not yet apparent what Dehabashi's sentence will be, it is clear that Iran's judiciary feels empowered to intimidate and bully literary journalists who are working far from the political fray. The administration of President Hassan Rouhani has much work ahead, if gentle, benign figures like Ali Dehbashi are emerging as obvious targets.