Admission of Censorship and Distortion of Information Regarding Meetings of Political and Religious Officials

Censorship of news and manipulation of information in the Islamic Republic has reached the 'sources of emulation' in Qom, with the son of Abdollah Javadi Amoli reporting selective publication and censorship of details regarding his father's meetings with former government heads. According to the website Khabar Online, Saeed Javadi Amoli stated that during a meeting between Ebrahim Raisi and Javadi Amoli, 'topics were raised that we were not allowed to fully publish or even disclose details about, and they did not allow' the content shared by Javadi Amoli with Raisi 'to be publicly released.' Saeed Javadi Amoli did not specify details but mentioned that the topics discussed were 'related to the position of the government and governance,' claiming that his father's office was 'under severe pressure not to publish these remarks, and after certain confrontations to preserve some aspects and caution, the content was not published.' The son of this cleric, who is referred to as a 'source of emulation' by official media, indicated that 'what is published in the official media as the exchanged words in these meetings is not necessarily the same as what was discussed.' The statements of Javadi Amoli's son are another example of the ongoing deceit of the Islamic Republic, which has a long history, showing that the Iranian government has expanded the boundaries of censorship from social and political issues and economic statistics to the speeches and statements of official clerics it recognizes as 'sources of emulation,' effectively implementing a policy of information suppression and censorship throughout all branches of governance. Censorship of economic statistics, especially regarding poverty and inflation, censorship of social statistics including crime and child marriage, censorship of human rights violation statistics, executions, and the suppression of religious minorities including Baha'is, censorship of the costs and operations of security and military forces outside Iran's borders, creating media restrictions even for internal critics including several former government heads, and censorship of news and information related to environmental disasters and the factors involved have always been on the agenda of the Islamic Republic. Professor of Economic Jurisprudence: Islamic banking is akin to Islamizing Hollywood through censorship. Continuation of the 'No to Execution' campaign on Tuesdays and the Writers' Association's request to combat censorship. The Deputy Minister of Justice of the Islamic Republic denies 'child marriage' in Iran. Reactions to 'class internet' and claims of lifting filters: Iran must be 'freed from clerics.'