Electronic Frontier Foundation: Internet Activists in Iran Continue to Be Imprisoned

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has pointed to the censorship of electronic media in Iran and the ongoing repression of bloggers in the country, accusing Hassan Rouhani's government of failing to fulfill its electoral promises. This non-governmental organization based in the United States stated in a statement on Friday, July 5, that as Rouhani approaches the second anniversary of his government, his promises of reforms remain unfulfilled. The statement mentions Rouhani's and some of his cabinet members' use of social media, such as Facebook, while these platforms are filtered in Iran. It notes that the moderate stance of many members of Rouhani's government has raised the possibility in the past two years that the ban on many social media platforms in Iran might eventually be lifted. However, the EFF emphasizes that the Iranian government's treatment of some of its citizens who use social media reveals another aspect of the situation. The statement then refers to instances of repression against bloggers and social media activists, mentioning that in late winter last year, 12 Iranian Facebook users were arrested on charges of 'spreading corruption and [carrying out a mission to] change family lifestyles.' Additionally, last year, eight other Facebook users were arrested on various charges, including insulting sacred beliefs, propaganda against the ruling system in Iran, and insulting the Supreme Leader, with Iranian courts sentencing them to prison terms of 7 to 20 years. Soheil Arabi is specifically named in the EFF statement, which recalls that he was sentenced to death last year for 'insulting the Prophet of Islam' on Facebook. Mehdi Alizadeh Fakhrabadi, a satirical blogger, Atena Farghadani, a cartoonist, Atena Diami, a children's and civil rights activist, and Saeed Malekpour, among others mentioned in this statement, have received heavy sentences from the courts for their activities on blogs and Facebook, with the highest being the death sentence for Saeed Malekpour, a computer programmer accused of 'creating a pornographic website.' The EFF reminds that most of these internet activists have been forgotten after their arrests, and their voices are not heard. The statement concludes that while Rouhani's government may still have a reformist approach to the internet issue and still has two years left, any reforms that lead to lifting censorship must still defend the freedom of expression of internet activists, including the rights of those currently imprisoned for this reason.