Mohsen Namjoo, the 50-year-old singer whose fusion of Persian classical poetry with blues and rock made him one of the most recognisable Iranian artists of his generation, flew into Tehran late last week after nearly two decades in the United States (Express Tribune; France 24; Arab News; Dawn Images).
What he was returning to
Namjoo left Iran in 2007. In 2009 he was sentenced in absentia to five years in prison on charges of insulting Islam — the charge arising from his treatment of religious text in his music. He had also backed protest movements against the authorities.
That sentence is the fact that gives the homecoming its weight. He has not simply been living abroad; he left under a conviction.
What he said
“I have come to see my homeland and my family,” Namjoo said, praising “the utmost kindness” he had been shown on arrival. In a video published by the ISNA news agency on Sunday, he said he had decided to return “a few months ago” but had kept it quiet.
The dispute
The return ran into controversy immediately. A video said to be from Namjoo’s wife, published by the Prague-based Radio Farda, said she had been completely unaware of his decision and that he had effectively been missing for several days. Namjoo issued a swift rebuttal.
Both accounts are attributed here. Neither has been independently verified, and this newspaper cannot establish which is accurate.
How Tehran has framed it
Iranian authorities have been encouraging artists living abroad to come home, presenting such returns as displays of patriotism against the backdrop of the conflict with the United States. State media praised Namjoo’s positions on the US and Israeli strikes.
The timing is the point, and it cuts both ways: a returning dissident artist is a useful image for the state, and Iranians abroad are reading the episode closely for exactly that reason. What has not been reported is whether the 2009 sentence has been set aside — no outlet has said it was, and no Iranian authority has said so either.
[Image: AFP via Express Tribune]
