Criticism from Rouhani's Legal Deputy on 'Dual Treatment of Press and Media Inequality'

The legal deputy of the Iranian president criticized the dual treatment of the press and 'media inequality', stating that Hassan Rouhani's government considers itself 'obligated to support freedom of expression and protect media freedom' and stands 'with all its power against all factors limiting their freedom'. According to ISNA news agency, Majid Ansari said on Sunday, November 7, at the press exhibition that 'the volume of destruction and attacks against the government and the president is in no way comparable to previous governments'. He accused some opposition media of 'sowing seeds of despair, hatred, and immorality in society' and 'pumping poison into the community with various labels and lies'. According to Ansari, Hassan Rouhani has repeatedly emphasized that in dealing with critical media, restraint should be exercised in cases where 'the issue of the president is raised', but in cases of 'public anxiety, disturbing social peace', and heavy 'accusations', the government has filed complaints against some media. The legal deputy of Hassan Rouhani called for 'fair treatment' of the media, adding that 'unfortunately... insults, slander, and destruction of the executive branch and the president are completely free' and 'unfortunately, some of these newspapers are fed by the people's and the system's money'. According to Ansari, if something is said to some media that is 'thinner than a flower', they are immediately dealt with and those media are suspended. He also thanked the 'fair and supportive media' that, according to him, 'support the government and the president in the unequal media campaign against some destructive currents'. Hassan Rouhani, the president of Iran, has also previously criticized the 'permanent immunity' of opposition media, including the Kayhan newspaper, without naming them. For instance, on Sunday, November 7, 2015, at the press exhibition, he referred to some media as 'secret police' and said that from their writings one can understand 'who will be arrested tomorrow'. Rouhani also stated on Saturday at the press exhibition: 'How does a newspaper know about a case before the head of that branch? Information rent is a plague for our society'. During Hassan Rouhani's government, some opposition publications, including the weekly 9 Dey, managed by Hamid Rasai, and the publication 'Yalasarat al-Hussein', the organ of Ansar Hezbollah, were suspended by the Press Supervisory Board, but after a while, they resumed publication by court order. This is while in previous years, publications that were revoked by the Press Supervisory Board were usually permanently banned from publication. In the eleventh government, several independent publications close to reformist groups, including Bahar, Mardom Emruz, and Aseman, have been suspended, and some suspended publications like the Women Today magazine and the Law newspaper resumed their activities after being suspended. Reporters Without Borders also criticized the 'pressure on media' and the detention of journalists in Iran in September this year, ahead of Hassan Rouhani's presence at the United Nations General Assembly, and criticized the government's performance in this regard. In the latest ranking by this international organization defending media rights and media activists, Iran was ranked 169 out of 180 countries in terms of press freedom. 'The government has not banned anyone from being depicted' The legal deputy of the Iranian president, in response to a question about the banning of images of Mohammad Khatami, the former president of Iran, said that this action was not taken by the government. He added: 'However, we hope that there will be no image bans in the country and the publication of news images of all individuals should be free, as our revolution's slogan was independence and freedom'. The ban on publishing news and images related to Mohammad Khatami was announced at a meeting of media managers with the Tehran prosecutor in the winter of 2014. After that, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, the spokesperson for the judiciary, explained that after the protests against the results of the 2009 presidential election, the 'secretariat of the Supreme National Security Council' banned Mr. Khatami from being depicted based on powers derived from the council's resolution 298. However, Hassan Rouhani, as the head of the Supreme National Security Council and a member of this council during the 2009 protests, emphasized that this council did not have a resolution in this regard, and if it did, 'it would have been illegal'. Eshaq Jahangiri, the first vice president, stated on March 16 of the previous year that both the secretariat of the Supreme National Security Council and the head of this council have announced that there is no resolution in this regard.