Keyvan Karimi, Iranian Documentarian, Transferred to Evin Prison to Serve Sentence

Reports indicate that Keyvan Karimi, an Iranian documentarian sentenced to one year in prison and 223 lashes, was summoned to Evin Prison on Wednesday to serve his sentence. According to Khabar Online, the execution of Keyvan Karimi's sentence began on Wednesday, despite the fact that he was convicted for a film that was never made. Some reports suggest that Karimi was summoned by phone to the Evin Prison execution office, where he was detained and transferred to prison to serve his sentence. Karimi was initially arrested in connection with the film 'Writing on the City' on December 14, 2013, and was released on bail of 100 million tomans after 12 days in custody. This film is a 60-minute documentary about 'the graffiti and wall writings in Tehran after the revolution.' Karimi was initially sentenced to six years in prison and 223 lashes by the Revolutionary Court, but his sentence was reduced to one year in prison, while the 223 lashes and a fine of 20 million rials remained unchanged. The charges against him include 'insulting sacred beliefs and propaganda against the regime' and 'illicit relations through handshaking and kissing with non-mahrams,' with the latter charge resulting in the 223 lashes. His lawyer previously told Radio Farda that 'Mr. Karimi's charge is insulting sacred beliefs, which is based on the fact that he was supposed to make a clip but did not do so because he could not reach an agreement with the clients about the details; however, the court interpreted this as an act of insulting sacred beliefs.' He added: 'Mr. Karimi is a documentarian and has permits for the films he has made, and what he has not made is not even the subject of the case; it is an act he did not commit, and one cannot punish someone for an act they did not commit.' Last December, 137 Iranian documentarians expressed their 'surprise and disbelief' at Mr. Karimi's conviction, hoping that the 'misunderstanding' would be resolved and the ruling would be overturned in the appeals court. The signatory documentarians emphasized the need for 'job security' and reminded that 'Iranian documentarians, like other artistic and cultural sectors of this land, believe it is their right to create their works in a safe, worry-free, and unaccused environment.' Keyvan Karimi, 30 years old and born in Baneh, Kurdistan Province, gained fame two years ago with a short black-and-white film titled 'The Story of a Husband and Wife.'