The Iranian-French author Marjane Satrapi has declined France's Legion of Honour award in protest against what she describes as "the hypocritical attitude of France towards Iran."
She published a video and her letter to French Culture Minister Rachida Dati on Instagram on Tuesday.
Satrapi, who is also an illustrator and director, called for support for a women's revolution in Iran following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, known to friends and family as Jina, in police custody in Iran in 2022. She had been arrested for not wearing her headscarf properly, sparking nationwide protests.
Satrapi said "the women's revolution in Iran cannot be supported by merely taking photos with victims or celebrities at the commemorations of Mahsa Amini's death."
French President Emmanuel Macron was famously photographed in the Elysee Palace with the well-known Iranian women's rights activist Masih Alinejad.
Satrapi, 55, also criticised France after media reports said the government had refused tourist visas to young Iranians, artists and dissidents, while the children of Iranian oligarchs stroll through Paris and Saint-Tropez.
"I have been struggling for a while to understand France's policy towards Iran," she added.
Satrapi became globally famous with her graphic novel Persepolis, in which she describes her childhood and youth in Tehran and Vienna. It was adapted into a film. - dpa
