Iranian cartoonist Mana Neyestani was honored last Friday by the Cartoonists Rights Network International for courage in editorial cartooning after his arrest in Iran for a cartoon featuring a cockroach using a ethnic slang.
Because the cartoon appeared in a government newspaper, Iranian Azeris decided they were being harassed and classed with cockroaches. In ensuing riots, five people were killed, and Neyestani was jailed for two months.
With help from CRNI, Neyestani eventually relocated with his wife, Mansoureh, in Malaysia. He is currently working on a graphic depiction of those two months in an Iranian jail.