Iranian director Asghar Farhadi’s The Salesman has won the 2017 Academy Award for best foreign-language film.
The award was accepted by two prominent Iranian-Americans representing Farhadi, who boycotted the Oscars over US President Donald Trump’s executive order banning visitors from seven Muslim countries. Anousheh Ansari, the first Iranian space tourist, read out a statement by Farhadi.
“My absence is out of respect for the people of my country and those of other six nations whom have been disrespected by the inhumane law that bans entry of immigrants to the US,” Ansari said. “Dividing the world into the ‘us’ and ‘our enemies’ categories creates fear, a deceitful justification for aggression and war.”
Before the Oscar ceremony on Sunday, The Salesman, was screened in London’s Trafalgar Square thanks to the request of London Mayor Sadiq Khan who referred to the ban as “cruel” and “shameful.”
