Ali Salehi Criticizes the 'Censorship Experts' of the Ministry of Culture

Ali Salehi, a poet and theorist of wisdom poetry, criticized the 'censorship experts' at the Ministry of Culture for 'turning upside down' his book for seven months during the era of 'claimants of freedom of expression.' According to ILNA news agency, on Tuesday, November 6, he announced that his latest poetry collection titled 'The Anthem of the Great Soul' has not received permission for publication for seven months. He wrote that this collection has been submitted to the Ministry of Culture's Book Office by the Negah Publishing Institute and has been 'stuck in a seven-month forgetfulness and seizure.' In his note, he questioned the Book Review and Printing Permit Office of the Ministry of Culture about 'by what right' they are doing this and strongly criticized that the collection 'The Anthem of the Great Soul' has been 'driven into the shadows in this time of small-mindedness.' This poet added, 'By what right are you playing with our lives? How much do the censorship experts need to turn this book upside down, especially in the era of those claiming to grant freedom of expression?' He wrote that 'whether they investigate left or right, whether they read from bottom to top, no specific point will be grasped from this poetry collection because the entire book is a point.' Ali Salehi further referred to the 'terror of waiting for permission for each of his works after decades' and stated that this issue has not made him 'tired, hopeless, or isolated.' He continued that 'this is the power of independent writers. Those who monitor my works this year in the Book Review Office should probably be familiar with modern Persian poetry and perhaps be poets themselves.' Salehi added, 'Like all these decades, I will be patient again, but patience has its limits; if I lose my temper, I will publish and reflect this collection on social networks.' He also indirectly addressed the officials of Hassan Rouhani's government, stating that 'the claimants of abundant freedom of expression should know that neither their false hopes nor their cautious strategies have cured any pain.' Previously, the author of the book 'Ali-Ashraf Darvishiān's Encyclopedia' announced that the Ministry of Culture officially informed the publisher that the publication of this book is 'prohibited.' Arash Sanjabi stated to ILNA that 'according to the Pearl Publishing, this work was declared unpublishable in 2013 during the second term of Mr. Ahmadinejad, but this issue was officially communicated to the publisher during Mr. Rouhani's government.' Following Hassan Rouhani's victory in the eleventh presidential election and its repetition in the twelfth term, despite promises for easier issuance of permits for books and other artistic works, criticisms of censorship and the continued prohibition of book publications by writers, poets, and translators remain prevalent. Ali Jannati, the former Minister of Culture, had previously spoken about lifting pre-publication censorship by this ministry and handing it over to publishers, which faced opposition from the Publishers and Booksellers Union. Mahmoud Amouzgar, the secretary of the Publishers and Booksellers Union, at that time stated that publishers do not want to be entrusted with the 'responsibility of censorship' of books. In this context, the publication of 'Darvishiān's Encyclopedia' remains prohibited.