Warning from 18 Representatives Regarding the 'Illegal' Actions of the Judiciary Against Student Publications

Eighteen members of the Iranian Parliament issued a warning to the Minister of Justice regarding the 'illegal' and 'repeated' actions of the judiciary against student publications due to the publication of students' comments and the mention of the name and image of Mohammad Khatami, former President of Iran. They urged him and the President of Iran not to be 'indifferent' to the 'repeated violations' of students' rights. Meanwhile, according to a report on Thursday, November 6, the newspaper Shargh stated that representatives of student associations criticized issues such as 'illegal interference by individuals and entities in the university and unqualified non-university officials in content' and 'supervision and control of student publications before publication' during a meeting with several representatives from Tehran in Parliament. According to ILNA news agency, the 18 representatives stated in their warning to Mostafa Pourmohammadi, the Minister of Justice, that according to existing laws and regulations, the supervision of student publications 'is the responsibility' of the committee overseeing publications and the student disciplinary committee. These parliamentarians described the judiciary's interference in matters related to student publications as 'illegal' and criticized the 'repeated' actions of public and revolutionary prosecutors against students for their comments and for mentioning the name and printing the photo of the former President of Iran in student publications. In this warning, the Minister of Justice and the President are called upon as responsible for enforcing the Constitution to defend students' rights and not to be 'indifferent and silent' in the face of repeated violations of their rights. Alireza Mahjoub, Parvaneh Mafi, Ghasem Mirzaei, Mohammad Javad Fathi, Mohammad Baqer Saadat, Bahman Taherkhani, Tayebeh Siawoshi-Shah-Enayati, Zahra Saei, Soheila Jaloudarzadeh, Farideh Oladghobad, Fatemeh Saeedi, Fatemeh Zolghadr, Mohammad Sadegh Hasani, Abolfazl Mousavi, Behrouz Farhangi, Ahmad Mazani, Mehdi Sheikh, and Mohammad Ali Vakili signed this warning. In recent months, reports have emerged regarding the crackdown on political and cultural activities of students at universities. Meanwhile, 92 student organizations criticized the continuation of the 'climate of intimidation and threat' and the 'security' atmosphere in Iranian universities in a letter to the President of Iran in August, protesting the cancellation of student organizations' programs and 'illegal and extralegal interventions' in holding them. In February 2016, 813 student publication activists also requested in a letter to Mr. Rouhani to prevent the 'growing trend of illegal actions' against these publications with a 'decisive order' to higher education managers. At the same time, several representatives of student associations emphasized in a meeting with several representatives from Tehran in Parliament that the government has not been 'faithful to its commitments' regarding the freedom of political and social activities of students at universities. Ali Motahari, a representative from Tehran, also stated in this session that 'the government could have prevented many events with the excitement that arose after the 2013 elections, but unfortunately, it did not do so and backed down.' He pointed out the students' request for the approval of new laws regarding student activities, predicting that if these laws are approved in Parliament, 'supervisory institutions' will prevent their approval. He added: 'Of course, we should invite the Minister of Intelligence and ask him by what authorization these interferences in university affairs are taking place and why some illegal actions are occurring.' Mahmoud Sadeghi, a representative from Tehran in Parliament, also stated that 'a significant portion' of the problems facing student activities 'is due to an imaginary fear among officials.' He emphasized that 'there is no longer tolerance for the government' and that students' demands must be pursued. Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, during his election campaign and presidency, repeatedly announced his support for the political and cultural activities of students, promising that his government would strive to distance universities from a 'security atmosphere.' In contrast, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, has asked university administrators to seriously prevent academic centers from becoming what he called 'places for the activities of political currents.' The activities of student organizations and the issuance of permits for some new organizations were among the reasons for the impeachment and dismissal of Reza Faraji Dana, the former Minister of Science, on August 20, 2014.