Show trials continued in Tehran today of hundreds of pro-democracy supporters arrested during the

demonstrations of the past month, as Ahmadinejad took the oath of office for the second time. Choosing Aug.5 for his swearing in date showed particular hubris, since it is the anniversary of the 1906 constitutional revolution, whose freedoms have been abolished by Ahmadinejad and his IRGC regime.

Majid Saeedi (3rd row, 3rd from the left)

Among those on trial was internationally-renowned photographer Majid Saeedi , who was accused by Prosecutor Mortazavi of taking pictures of "illegal" demonstrations in Tehran and sending them "to an anti Revolutionary group Marzeporgohar in United States, Getty Agency in England and [Agence Sipa] in France.”

Mortazavi's account of the accusations was widely available inside Iran, and was carried by all the major Iranian and international news agencies when Saeedi's arrest was announced on July 27.

But in its ongoing effort to downplay any news from Iran that cuts against the orthodox view that the entire protest movement is just a factional war inside the regime between pro-Mousavi supporters and pro-Ahmadinejad supporters, the Voice of America purposefully omited the name of the opposition Marzeporgohar party in its TV and radio reporting, or on its website. " Iran's official news agency says two photographers detained earlier this month have been accused of new links with an unnamed movement seeking the overthrow of the Iranian regime," VOA reported. In fact, the official IRNA dispatch, quoted here, specifically mentioned Marzeporgohar (MPG)

Last month, when MPG founder, Roozbeh Farahanipour, traveled to Iran clandestinely (see below), a Voice of America reporter called him several times on his satellite phone over a half day period, forcing him to change locations to avoid arrest. “They put my security at risk for half a day before actually doing the interview,” Farahanipour said. “Then editors said they couldn’t air the interview because I had entered Iran clandestinely.”

VOA Persian Service editors have been claiming to reporters that they refused to air the interview with Farahanipour because they were "unable to verify that he was actually inside Iran," a preposterous excuse. Sources close to the son of the former Shah told FDI recently that "Reza Pahlavi has also been banned from the VOA Persian service for the past eight months."

Just in case anyone was wondering, the White House officially recognizes Ahmadinejad as "Iran's elected leader." Such was the word from the podium yesterday from White House spokesman, Robert Gibbs.

Farahanipour on Majid Saedi arrest: "Majd is a known and recognized photographer and he was doing what photographers are supposed to do, take pictures. The fact that the regime dislikes journalism does not make journalism a crime. In the eyes of Iranian people and the international community, reporting history is a duty; in the eyes of the Islamic Republic, it’s a crime.

Source: www.iran.org