IRAN, VEILED APPEARANCES
Monday October 6, 2003 at 10pm ET/PT
repeating Monday June 7, 2004 at 10pm ET/PT
repeating Friday June 11, 2004 at 10pm ET/PT


"We are not tied to our past; we have no idea what the future holds.  We live in a state of suspended animation, lost in space." - Student from the Dramatic School of Art of Teheran.

This summer the arrest and murder of Montreal journalist Zahra Kazemi focused attention on the political struggle within Iran. It's a country that for two decades has seen revolution, violence and religious fanaticism. Yet in the midst of this turmoil there is now a new generation that wants to break through the confines of Islamic fundamentalism and move their society toward Western-style democracy.  THE PASSIONATE EYE, hosted by Michaëlle Jean, presents Iran, Veiled Appearances, a deeply human portrait of a socially and culturally fractured society searching for freedom and a new identity.

Camera in hand, director Thierry Michel set out to capture the rising crisis between radical Islam and those who desire more freedom. He immersed himself in Iranian everyday life - a college dormitory, military academy, drama class, a mosque - to hear the aspirations of students and intellectuals. He also found that conservative Islamic fundamentalists still have firm control of the army, the courts and the media. And they do not hesitate to resort to political assassination to curtail freedom of speech.

Journalists, artists and even close associates of the reform-minded president, Mohammed Khatami, are subjected to political assassination, imprisonment, psychological and physical torture.  A true battle for freedom of expression is shaking the Iranian capital, but it seems impossible to predict the price that will be paid to reach this goal.

Veiled Appearances examines this clash of cultures and beliefs, where the young can no longer find meaning in the religious revolution of an older generation.

Iran: Veiled Appearances is produced by Christine Pireaux (Belgium) and Serge Lalou (France).