The following piece was written by David Levine, an armchair human rights activist focused on Iranian human rights issues. Mr. Levine, based in Santa Monica California, is a firm believer in the freedom of expression and fights for the right to the freedom of expression.
Arrested almost 2 years ago, Hossein Derakhshan, a controversial Canadian- Iranian blogger, better known as ‘Blogfather’, was sentenced to jail in Tehran’s Evin Prison for 19.5 years. Derakhshan launched one of the first Farsi-language blogs and became recognized for sparking a revolution in his use of the internet to advocate for a social and political reform in Iran.
Derakhshan has been detained in Iran since 2008 and allegedly convicted of, “collaborating with enemy states, creating propaganda against the Islamic regime, insulting religious sanctity, and creating propaganda for anti-revolutionary groups”. (CNN)
In oppressive regimes like Iran strict censorship laws prohibit the publication and dissemination of any information that might contest government views. After the disputed 2009 election, blogging became a popular tool, enabling the opposition to report freely about taboo subjects, like torture and false imprisonment, when other means of communication were restricted.
Bloggers became essential and a credible source for the public to access free information in Iran.
It is estimated that there are about 700,000 Iranian blogs mostly based in Iran. “…the Persian language is ranked as the second -most -popular language in the entire blogosphere.” (Wikipedia )
The government’s persecution of bloggers and journalists freedom of expression cancels out their commitment to Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Iran is a signatory. This is one of the most atrocious sentences ever ruled against any Iranian Journalist or Blogger. Once again, the Iranian government has been accused of violating rights of the Iranian people. It is not surprising that the U.S. signed sanctions targeting for the first time ever Iran’s human right abusers.
Iran’s inexcusable violation of rights calls for the recognition of human dignity and the universal human rights for the people of Iran. I suspect that these sanctions will increase pressure on the Islamic regime and hopefully call upon the release of those unjustly sentenced and detained in prisons in Iran.
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