“Allah did not create man so that he could have fun. The aim of creation was for mankind to be put to the test through hardship and prayer. An Islamic regime must be serious in every field. There are no jokes in Islam. There is no humor in Islam. There is no fun in Islam. There can be no fun and joy in whatever is serious.” — Ayatollah Khomeini
“Iranians sentenced to 91 lashes for Pharrell ‘Happy’ video,” by Oliver Duggan, the Telegraph, September 18, 2014 (thanks to all who sent this in):
The six Iranian singers who were arrested for appearing in a viral video dancing to Pharrell Williams’ song “Happy” have been sentenced to six months in prison and 91 lashes.
The group became famous in May when their music video for the hit song circulated on YouTube, racking up more than 150,000 views before attracting the attention of Iranian authorities.
It featured three men and three unveiled women singing and dancing along to the four minute song in the street and rooftops of Tehran, mimicking the style of Pharrell’s official video.
Authorities arrested the group for contravening Iran’s strict vulgarity laws, which prohibit public displays of dancing, and paraded the six on state television, forcing them to express remorse for their behaviour.
The Islamic Republic condemned the video as a “vulgar clip which hurt public chastity” and in a trial on Wednesday sentenced the participants to a suspended sentence of six months in prison.
The director of the video was handed a suspended sentence of one year, while the whole group was told they would receive 91 lashes each.
“A suspended sentence becomes null and void after a certain period of time,” their lawyer, Farshid Rofougaran, told Iran Wire.
“When it’s a suspended sentence, the verdict is not carried out, but if during this period a similar offense is committed, then the accused is subject to legal punishment and the suspended sentence will then be carried out as well.”
Speaking shortly after the group’s initial arrest, the brother of one of the video’s star told The Telegraph that their confessions on state television were “outrageous”.
Siavash Taravati, who lives in the US, said: “The IRIB’s (Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting) action in showing the “confession” of my sister and her friends (…) is just outrageous.
“Apparently they first arrest people without any charge or civil right to defend themselves, then interrogate them and then make them confess and finally broadcast their show.”
Pharrell Williams responded to Iran’s actions on his Twitter account in May, saying: “It’s beyond sad these kids were arrested for trying to spread happiness.”
John C. Barile says
the imam khomeini allah be pleased him he say there is no happy in islam but please allah he be.
Or some such thing.
Beagle says
Ninety ONE lashes? How do they determine with such precision? Good thing it was not a Miley Cyrus song.
As the sentence was suspended I await many more statements by leftists that all religions are exactly the same. Though Iran and Saudi Arabia, et al, implement primitive sharia punishments daily, only the pop music and social media connection (I guess) made this newsworthy.
Salah says
“It’s beyond sad these kids were arrested for trying to spread happiness.”
Others are arrested for wearing…Red Sandals!!!
http://crossmuslims.blogspot.com/2011/07/red-sandals-in-iran-des-sandales-rouges.html
Julia says
I guess nobody is happy in Iran. :-/
Naomi Cusack says
Yes ahahhahhaaaa no one is happy in Iran:(
geneve says
Jesus sat at his friends wedding and drank a little wine, lets follow his example and be merry sing and dance.
Jay Boo says
In the middle of our trouble, yet find joy in the Lord.
A Muslim who finds a brief moment of joy can only bring about resentment among fellow Muslims, since misery always loves company.
Blitz2b says
91 lashes will surely beat the ” happiness” out of these young uns….. How dare they…… Don’t they know there is no happiness in Islam?; Allah is a despot who forbids any fun…. Pathetic religion… Why people insist on staying in it is amazing..
ApolloSpeaks says
AMERICANISM MEANS: Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness and Peace.
ISLAMISM MEANS: Death, Slavery and the Pursuit of Joylessness and Jihad.
mortimer says
Sharia law creates untold misery and removes refinement and even innocent pleasures from life.
Sharia law imposes 7th century Arabian desert culture on the world.
Johnny Canuck says
The funny thing about Islam is that it is not funny.
Walter Sieruk says
No sane person would think that young people acting a little silly is a “happy video ” was a crime. That the cruel, tyrannical and intolerant ayatollahs and mullahs who have so much power in Iran actually think the the silly video was so terrible was a crime in itself. The way the these Muslim clerics reacted to that video was the actually the thing that was terrible. This vicious reaction of the Islamic in clerics who are in power in Iran only further proves that the Bible is right when it teaches “When the wicked rule, the people groan.” Proverbs 29:2. [[N.I.V.]
gravenimage says
Iranians sentenced to 91 lashes for Pharrell ‘Happy’ video
……………………………….
91 Lashes! Because happiness is un-Islamic.
euskal herria says
The imams and mullahs would really hate to listen to this happy family group!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElvKQi9K58w
Warning: Listening to this can get to be habit-forming!
Uncle Vladdi says
The Ayatollah was lying (quel surprise;) there’s plenty of evidence to the fun Muhammad’s own dark, schadenfreude sense of humor enjoyed in the Qur’an and ahadiths:
He often joked cracked racist jokes about Blacks (how they were “pug-nosed raisin-heads with donkeycocks who carried the plague,” and “if you throw a Black off a cliff, he’ll probably snap his fingers to an imaginary beat to mark time all the way down,” etc).
Not to mention that now-misunderstood joke he cracked when he quipped about how he was returning from the “lesser,” easy jihad of waging gruelling physical war on the infidels hordes, to the REALLY tough, “greater” jihad of dealing with his hordes of squabbling wives back home in his harem!
And his snide, running commentaries on the Bibles? To die for!
Whatta standup (comedian) guy that Big Moe really was!
😉
Dave J says
There is no fun, music, tolerance, conviviality or dancing in Islam.
But there is subservience, beheadings and suicide bombings!
How do they get their converts again?
Oh yeah, criminals and psychopaths.
Semeru says
And in moderate, yes I mean moderate they bring us this little tune “Crazy Haji”
So here is solid proof that craven hasn’t a clue about islam and music