Summoning of Approximately 150 Students to University Disciplinary Committees

On Saturday, March 13, the newspaper Shargh reported the summoning of 140 students from the University of Science and Technology and 9 students from the University of Tehran to disciplinary committees, stating that 15 female students from the University of Science and Technology have been sentenced to "written reprimand and record in their files." The report noted that "most" of these summonses were made "by phone," whereas according to the law, all student summonses to disciplinary committees must be done in writing. Some summoned students spoke about the details of their summons using "pseudonyms" and expressed concern that the university environment might "become security-oriented again and return to the days before 2013." One student from the University of Science and Technology stated that "about one hundred" female students were summoned "for reasons such as not adhering to hijab" and 40 male students "for smoking on campus." Officials from the University of Science and Technology have not yet responded to this report. A student from the University of Tehran also mentioned that "last Tuesday, 9 students" were summoned "by phone" to the disciplinary committee. Majid Sarsangi, the cultural deputy of the University of Tehran, denied that these summonses were related to the elections held on March 2, stating that the disciplinary committee has not summoned any student in the past year for "student union activities." He emphasized, "If such an issue has arisen among students in the past year, I will apologize and resign." Mr. Sarsangi also denied the phone summons of students, stating that phone calls were made to inform them to come and receive their summons. He confirmed that five students from the University of Tehran were summoned to the disciplinary committee. According to Shargh, these summonses have led to the reactivation of the "Committee for the Support of Summoned Students," which had been active at the University of Tehran years ago. Reports indicate that during Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's presidency, particularly after the protests against the 2009 presidential election results, hundreds of students were summoned to disciplinary committees, and dozens were arrested, some of whom, including Bahareh Hedayat and Zia Nabavi, are still in prison. Human rights organizations reported that during this period, over a thousand students were deprived of their education. Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, during his election campaign and presidency, repeatedly announced support for political and cultural activities of students and promised that his government would strive to distance universities from a "security atmosphere." In contrast, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, has urged university administrators to seriously prevent scientific centers from becoming what he termed "places for the activities of political currents." In recent months, reports of crackdowns on political and cultural activities of students at universities have also emerged. Meanwhile, 813 student publication activists wrote a letter to the President of Iran on January 30, describing recent months as the "most difficult" for student publications and requesting Mr. Rouhani to issue a "decisive order" to higher education officials to prevent the "growing trend of illegal actions" against these publications. In this context, the execution of "independent" concerts at universities has been banned, and disciplinary committees are dealing with disruptors at universities. Rouhani: We want a safe environment at universities, not a security one. Resistance against pressure groups; the presence of reformists in universities.