Reporters Without Borders Condemns Summoning of Internet Activists and Recent Website Filtering in Iran

Reporters Without Borders has condemned the "summoning and detention" of more than "800" social media users in the field of "modeling," the filtering of several news agencies and websites, and the launch of the first phase of Iran's national information network. In a statement published on their website on Tuesday, September 6, the organization referred to the national information network in Iran as "halal internet," where the identity of all users is "verified" and "data and content are controlled." According to Reporters Without Borders, "the connection of this internal network to the global internet can be cut off at any time and anywhere the authorities wish." The first phase of Iran's "national information network" was inaugurated on September 7 with the presence of Es'haq Jahangiri, the first vice president. A week after the unveiling of this network, Mohammad Hassan Entazari, a real member of the Supreme Council of Cyberspace, announced that the information traffic exchange center (IHTP) had actually been opened, and members of the Supreme Council of Cyberspace believe that "the operationalization of this phase should not be considered as the national information network." The Iranian government has been working for years on a plan to separate the internet from the global web, but critics are concerned that the government will use its control to further monitor users. In its statement, Reporters Without Borders also referred to the filtering of several news sites due to "criticism of the double standards of the judiciary in the fight against corruption" and reports about the transfer of municipal properties in Tehran, as well as reports about the detention of social media users for their activities in the field of "modeling." Reza Moieni, head of the Afghanistan and Iran section of Reporters Without Borders, stated that "the organization's objection is not to Iran's right to combat online crimes" but rather to the definition of these "crimes" in the laws of the Islamic Republic of Iran and their implementation, which are both "incompatible" with international legal standards, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Mr. Moieni emphasized that the Islamic Republic claims that the purpose of "censorship and repression" in these areas is to "protect the people from immoral and criminal content," but these actions have also extended to political and religious information and websites defending women's rights. On September 14, the Iranian judiciary blocked two news agencies, "Moj" and "Borna," and several news websites including "Pouyesh," "9 Sobhe," and "Persian Khodro," with Mohammad Mobin, the CEO of Moj news agency, stating that the reason for the filtering of these media was the publication of reports about the "illegality" of transferring municipal properties. In recent months, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and judicial officials have reported on the "crackdown" on hundreds of managers of "modeling" groups on social media and users of these groups in the provinces of Tehran, Fars, Kurdistan, Semnan, and Ardabil. Meanwhile, Reporters Without Borders announced that since December 2015, it has counted "more than 800 summons and detentions" across the country. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, has referred to the "cyberspace" as a "real battlefield" and stated that "clergymen and students must be armed and ready to enter the arena to confront doubts and erroneous and deviant thoughts." He also said on Tuesday that "the enemy is trying to divert faithful and healthy youth from the essence of religion and tear down the veils of modesty through the production and promotion of doubts and also the production of anti-morality content, and today this work is being done in cyberspace." On September 14, 2015, in the decree appointing new members of the Supreme Council of Cyberspace, he assigned missions such as "cleaning up cyberspace," "accelerating the establishment of the national information network," and "preventing cultural and social damage" to this council. In this context, two news agencies Moj and Borna, and several news websites were blocked. The Iranian Minister of Culture stated that judicial officials have filtered websites and news agencies, and "we are not responsible." The center affiliated with the IRGC reported the arrest and summoning of managers of 450 pages and channels on social media. The "Greenland recreational complex" in Shiraz was closed on charges of "participation in a modeling project."