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UNESCO Drops Support for Iran's Philosophy Day Events

   VOA News 10 November 2010
   UNESCO headquarters in Paris, France (file photo)

Photo: AFP

   The   United  Nations  Educational  and  Scientific  Organization  has
   withdrawn  its  support  for  events  Iran is organizing to mark World
   Philosophy Day later this month.
   Western  diplomats said Tuesday that a 2008 agreement for Iran to host
   this  year's  events  became  extremely  controversial  given Tehran's
   record  of  repression  and  censorship following last year's disputed
   presidential election.
   Diplomats and rights groups pointed to the arrests and deportations of
   notable  Iranian  academics  after  the  election  and to evidence the
   philosophy  event  is  being  run by harder-line voices in the Iranian