Rouhani: I Will Strive to Implement the Constitution Even If It Is Unpleasant for Some

Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, emphasized on Tuesday that he will make every effort to implement the Constitution, even if it is 'unpleasant' for some. His spokesperson also stated that the government's objection is to the 'safe haven for offenders.' Iranian news agencies reported on Tuesday, November 9, Rouhani's position on his Twitter account, which stated, 'The President is responsible for implementing the Constitution and will exert all his efforts for its implementation, even if it is unpleasant for some.' Rouhani did not provide further explanation on his Twitter account, but a tweet from his political deputy was shared, emphasizing the difference between 'freedom of expression' and 'freedom of lies and slander.' Hamid Abutalebi, Rouhani's political deputy, in a tweet published on Monday after critical remarks from the head of the judiciary regarding Rouhani's stance on freedom of expression, noted that 'freedom of expression and freedom of lies and slander are two different concepts and the propagation of lies and slander cannot be called the propagation of freedom of expression.' He added that 'the former (freedom of expression) should be prioritized, and the latter (freedom of lies and slander) should be suppressed.' Article 24 of the Islamic Republic's Constitution emphasizes the freedom of publications and press in expressing opinions, unless these opinions 'disrupt the foundations of Islam or public rights.' This article also leaves the details of this matter to the law. However, for nearly four decades of the Islamic Republic's existence, critics have consistently protested the non-implementation of some constitutional principles, including this article. On Tuesday, news agencies also reported statements from Mohammad Baqer Nobakht, the spokesperson for Rouhani's government, emphasizing that 'if a media outlet acts outside the legal framework or makes accusations and insults or promotes something in society as an incorrect action, the government must refer it to legal authorities.' These statements can be seen as the government's response to the harsh remarks from the head of the judiciary. Sadeq Larijani, on Tuesday, accused Rouhani without mentioning his name of having 'verbally or in writing' called for action against certain newspapers while publicly 'crying for press freedom.' Larijani stated, 'Your esteemed brother has verbally or in writing, directly or indirectly, repeatedly asked why action is not taken against such and such newspaper or website or complained to the Supreme Leader about why the judiciary has not acted against such and such newspaper. However... you cry for press freedom among the press and media.' These comments were a response to Rouhani's statements at the opening of the press exhibition, where he emphasized that mouths should not be closed with 'baseless excuses,' 'nothing can be done with a broken pen and a sealed mouth,' and 'security is not maintained only with guns.' Larijani considered the audience of these statements to be the judiciary and labeled it as a type of 'slander' and 'insult' to the judiciary and an attempt to 'weaken' this authority. However, the government spokesperson stated that 'the President is clear and believes that media professionals should have freedom of expression, writing, and criticism. Of course, all of this must be done within a legal framework.' Nobakht also referred to the necessity of referring illegal media behaviors to judicial authorities but added that 'you can see the number of complaints the government has made against the media, while at the beginning of the government's term, a committee was approved that withdrew many of the existing lawsuits because the government is committed to freedom of expression and opinion.' Rouhani has previously criticized the 'permanent immunity' of opposition media, including Kayhan newspaper, and has referred to some media as 'secret police' from which 'one can understand who will be arrested tomorrow.' Additionally, Majid Ansari, Rouhani's legal deputy, has recently criticized the dual approach to the press and 'media inequality.' According to Ansari, some media outlets that receive government funding are 'completely free' in 'insulting, slandering, and undermining' the government, but if something is said to some, 'even softer than a flower,' the media is immediately shut down. The verbal war over the issue of freedom of expression among officials from the executive and judicial branches of Iran comes at a time when Reporters Without Borders criticized the 'pressure on media' and the arrest of journalists in Iran, and overall criticized Rouhani's government in this regard. In the latest ranking by this international organization defending media rights and activists, Iran was placed 169th out of 180 countries examined regarding press freedom.