International Federation of Journalists Criticizes Whipping Sentences for Two Journalists in Gilan

The International Federation of Journalists, in a statement, described the whipping sentences for two journalists in Gilan as 'inhuman' and urged the authorities of the Islamic Republic to 'immediately' stop issuing such sentences against journalists. Philippe Leruth, the president of the International Federation of Journalists, said: 'We are astonished by the issuance of such extraordinary and oppressive sentences for Iranian journalists.' According to the statement published on Monday, February 1, on the website of the International Federation of Journalists, Philippe Leruth also called the issuance of this sentence 'oppressive, inhuman, humiliating,' and 'a blatant violation' of 'international human rights laws.' He added: 'We call on Iranian authorities to adhere to their international commitments within their borders and to stop their actions aimed at silencing independent media.' Reports indicate that Mostafa Barari and Arash Shoa Shargh, journalists for the websites 'Gilan Novin' and 'Gilan No,' were sentenced to whipping and fines in a criminal court in the city following a complaint by Gholamali Jafarzadeh Imanabadi, a representative from Rasht in the parliament. The charges against the two journalists were 'spreading falsehoods' and 'publishing a newspaper without a license,' with the court issuing a sentence of 114 lashes for Mostafa Barari and 40 lashes for Arash Shoa Shargh. On January 5, a sentence of 40 lashes was also executed against Hossein Mohammadi, a journalist for 'Najafabad News,' who had mistakenly reported the number of eight confiscated motorcycles belonging to students of a vocational school as 35. Despite apologizing, he was sentenced to 40 lashes following a complaint from the police. Morteza Kazemian, a journalist in Paris and a member of the Iranian Press Freedom Association, stated in an interview that 'such severe and harsh sentences are issued with the support of the security institutions of the Islamic Republic and with the oversight of senior regional officials.' He identified the purpose of these sentences as 'restricting information dissemination in the counties' and emphasized that such incidents occurring in Iran's counties receive less media coverage. Hanif Mazrouei, a journalist and civil activist in international journalism organizations in Belgium, also commented that 'counties in Iran are not as visible as Tehran, and information about such incidents in the counties is less reported, making it easier for such ruthless sentences to be issued by the courts.' The execution of whipping sentences for journalists in Iran has previously drawn reactions from several international human rights organizations, including Amnesty International. The Human Rights Defenders Center, chaired by Shirin Ebadi, an Iranian Nobel Peace Prize laureate, criticized the issuance and execution of whipping sentences for journalists, deeming it 'an attack on the dignity of journalists.' In this context, Mohammad Mostafaei, a lawyer in Norway, stated in an interview that the purpose of these sentences is 'revenge' against journalists and that these sentences are issued 'under pressure from security institutions on judges' so that journalists fear writing. He emphasized that 'in such cases, a judge can decide based on the character and social status of individuals,' and issuing whipping sentences for them 'can be illegal.' In January of this year, Mostafa Sharif, the manager of the website 'Shahrud News,' was also sentenced to 40 lashes after being tried in one of the criminal branches of the judiciary in Shahrud County, and he did not request a retrial in protest against the absence of a jury in the court and the issued verdict. Reporters Without Borders also, in July 2016, described a sentence of 444 lashes for Mohammad Reza Fathi, a journalist and blogger from Saveh, as a 'medieval ruling' and called for the cancellation of this 'inhumane corporal punishment, which is contrary to human rights and international law.' Whipping sentences have also been executed in the past against workers and labor activists. The latest example of this was the whipping of 17 dismissed workers from the Agh Dareh gold mine in West Azerbaijan Province, which led to widespread protests and prompted expressions of regret from the government spokesperson and the Minister of Labor and Social Welfare. However, at that time, the spokesperson for the judiciary defended the execution of these sentences.