Arrest of a Rapper and Several Civil Activists on Charges of Opposing Government 'Elections'

In recent days, security agencies have arrested social media activists and ordinary citizens critical of the Islamic Republic and the government's 'elections' to replace Ebrahim Raisi. This election has been described by many critics and opponents of the Islamic Republic as a 'circus election' or 'election show'. In one of the latest developments, reports indicate that Vahid Naimati, an Iranian rapper, was arrested for creating a music piece about the daughter of Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, and his Instagram page was blocked. The news website Hrana, the news organ of human rights activists in Iran, reported: 'This Instagram blogger reacted to daily events with humorous productions.' Additionally, Iranian media reported yesterday, citing the Chief Justice of Kerman, that 8 people were arrested in connection with the elections. Hrana also reported, citing the governor of Astara, that several citizens were arrested in this county after burning banners of Ebrahim Raisi. Published reports indicate that the Islamic Republic's crackdown on social activists and journalists has intensified in recent days. Accordingly, Atefeh Rangriz, a women's rights activist residing in Damghan, was arrested again yesterday. Also, Nasrin Hosseini, a journalist who had been granted leave, was arrested on Friday, July 8, before the end of her leave and transferred to Bojnourd prison. Alongside these arrests, the Ministry of Interior has imposed restrictions on the activities of critical journalists. In this regard, reports have emerged indicating that the Ministry of Interior opposed the presence of journalists from government-affiliated 'reformist' newspapers at the election headquarters on voting day. The Ministry of Interior also informed some media outlets, including the newspapers Shargh and Ham-Mihan, that the inquiries regarding their journalists were negative and that they must introduce new journalists. The head of Tehran's cyber police also reported on July 2 that 4 individuals had been identified and summoned regarding the publication of online polls, which he claimed were 'false and fake'. Davood Moazami Goudarzi stated that cyber police monitoring teams had begun their actions in cyberspace long ago and would deal with any violations they observed in this area. According to the head of cyber police, issues such as the dissemination of incorrect information or 'any form of insult, humiliation, and character destruction, fake polls, and calls for boycotting the elections' are among the matters that will be addressed. The head of Tehran's cyber police also declared the publication of materials against candidates as a crime. Moazami reported the arrest of some administrators of Telegram channels and emphasized that several of these individuals were identified for publishing 'offensive polls' that used 'inappropriate titles' for some candidates or designed the poll options in a way that led people towards 'non-participation in the elections and, in other words, discouraged people from the results.' The premature holding of this round of 'elections' for the presidency in the Islamic Republic was accompanied by many sensitivities, including the death of Ebrahim Raisi, widespread boycotts of the elections by opponents of the Islamic Republic, low public participation in the previous parliamentary elections, and public indifference towards the holding of elections. These sensitivities led the social and crime prevention deputy of the Tehran judiciary to announce on June 20 that specialized prosecutors in Tehran, in cooperation with the cyber police, would monitor cyberspace for potential election-related crimes. In this context, the Iranian Press Supervisory Board also declared that any content aimed at encouraging and persuading people to boycott or reduce participation in the elections, unauthorized protests, strikes, and sit-ins would be considered criminal content. Yesterday, the Ministry of Interior of the Islamic Republic announced that none of the candidates for replacing Ebrahim Raisi managed to obtain the required votes, and Massoud Pezeshkian and Saeed Jalili advanced to the second round of voting. According to alleged official statistics, about 77% of eligible voters in Greater Tehran and over 60% of eligible voters nationwide refrained from voting for government candidates for the presidency. The nationwide participation rate, based on these disputed statistics, was reported at 40%, which is considered the lowest in the history of the Islamic Republic. Meanwhile, independent observers and sources believe that the Islamic Republic manipulates election statistics to report voter participation as higher than the actual level. According to government announcements, the second round of the Islamic Republic's 'elections' will be held next Friday, July 15, to determine a replacement for Raisi among the two candidates favored by the government. Ebrahim Raisi was the thirteenth president of the Islamic Republic, who was killed in May of this year following a helicopter crash during his third year in office. Jala Ejadi: The elections showed that the Islamic Republic is clearly isolated. Social media users wrote about the failure of the government's 'election' campaign. Rasool Nafisi: Raisi's disastrous record forced Khamenei to open up the election space. Alireza Kiani: The Iranian people were the initiators of the election boycott; Khamenei and his supporters' efforts have failed. Citizens' indifference to the government election ballot box after Friday prayers in Zahedan. 77% in Tehran and 60% in Iran said 'no' to government candidates; the voting was extended to the second round with Pezeshkian and Jalili. Social media users wrote about the failure of the government's 'election' campaign. Reactions to the weak public turnout in the Islamic Republic's government voting.