Index on Censorship weekly round-up
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Friday, 19 April 2024
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Women, Life, Freedom protests after the murder of Jina "Mahsa" Amini in 2022. Photo: Samoe Safaie/CC BY 4.0 DEED
Iran seems determined to cause outrage on all fronts this week.
The country responded to an Israeli strike on an Iranian diplomatic compound in Syria that killed seven Iranian officials on 1 April with a massive attack on Israel involving more than 300 drones. Israel has since responded with its own attack on Iran's Isfahan nuclear facility, which it argues is being used to process uranium to be used for nuclear weapons. Little good can come of either attack and diplomats from other countries have been mounting a huge initiative to defuse the situation. Let's hope for all of our sakes sense prevails.
While Iran has been busy internationally, it has been ratcheting up pressure on critics at home too.
The Iranian leadership under Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has been using the conflict in the region to cover up its crackdown on protests that erupted after the murder of Jina (Mahsa) Amini in 2022.
Speaking to us this week ([link removed]) , the exiled Iranian film-maker Vahid Zarezadeh said “The fear of reprisal, particularly the death penalty, has tempered the public’s willingness to protest as openly as before.”
Human rights group Hengaw says that 102 people have been executed ([link removed]) in the first three months of 2024. In the previous year, Iran executed at least 853 people ([link removed]) , more than half of which were for supposed drug-related offences.
The country’s morality police are also implementing September 2023’s new “hijab and chastity” legislation ([link removed]) with brutality, as evidenced by countless videos on social media under the hashtag #جنگ_علیه_زنان ([link removed]) ("war against women"). The hashtag is growing in prominence despite the risks.
Others who joined the protests are being punished further too.
Yesterday, Index on Censorship Freedom of Expression Awards winner Toomaj Salehi returned to court. He had been jailed last year for his overt support for the protests. After he was released on bail, he spoke publicly about his torture in prison, a move that angered the authorities further.
Two weeks ago, the Supreme Court quashed some of his convictions which seemed like good news. However, the court in Isfahan reinstated charges upon which he has already been acquitted. How is that free and fair?
Yesterday's court appearance related to eight charges in total, including “insulting the founder of the Islamic Republic”, “communication with hostile countries” and “corruption in the world".
We believe the charges are fabricated and Toomaj should be released.
On his return to court, Toomaj told his supporters via his official X account ([link removed]) : “The baseless and fundamental accusations against me and my arrest since 09/09/1402 [30 November 2023] and the continuation of this illegal arrest are a confirmation that my arrest and trial are not based on the law but on the will of the intelligence agencies."
Toomaj's family is very concerned about the deteriorating state of his health and told us. “They are putting Toomaj under enormous mental pressure to force him to give up and break him down. And if he doesn’t get the right treatment as soon as possible the pain, limping and fractures of fingers which were broken under torture will be permanent.”
If Iran operates from its now finely honed authoritarian playbook, the omens do not look good. We will do everything we can to keep up pressure on the authorities to turn back from this worrying path.
Mark Stimpson, associate editor
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** India’s hate speech trackers are being blocked
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Various law enforcement agencies have frequently attempted to erase Hindutva Watch and India Hate Lab’s documentation of hate crime and speech towards minorities, primarily on the pretext of violating India’s controversial Information Technology (IT) Act 2000. In January, Hindutva Watch was banned from X. As the Indian elections begin, these are worrying times for freedom of expression in the country, says Hanan Zaffar. Read the story here ([link removed]) .
** Why we cannot afford to look away
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Operations in eastern Ukraine after the invasion of Crimea. Photo: Ministry Of Defence Ukraine, Дмитрий Муравский
It is imperative that we keep the spotlight firmly fixed on Ukraine, ensuring that the atrocities committed do not fade into obscurity, says our CEO Ruth Anderson ([link removed]) . Through relentless advocacy, robust journalism, and unwavering solidarity, we can make a difference. Let us not forget the lessons of the past, nor forsake our responsibility to act in the face of injustice.
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** Thursday 2 May | The long reach: How authoritarian governments silence critics abroad
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Join Index on Censorship at the University of Exeter ([link removed]) for an evening discussing the growing – and worrying – trend of transnational repression. Transnational repression takes many forms: from UK residents being poisoned by Russian agents, to a Saudi dissident being murdered in Turkey, to a Polish art gallery being subject to attempted acts of censorship by Chinese diplomats, to UK-based BBC Persian journalists being threatened and harassed by Iranian authorities. John Heathershaw, Professor of International Relations at the University of Exeter, and Belarusian poet Hanna Komar join Index’s magazine Editor-in-chief, Jemimah Steinfeld, for a discussion about the extent and impact of states silencing their critics abroad and the fundamental right to free expression. Get a free ticket here
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** From the Index archives
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** Iran in the British media
by Farzaneh Asari
May 1989
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Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei came to power 35 years ago. Back in 1989, an exiled Iranian writer wrote for us ([link removed]) on how Iran is portrayed in the British media, saying the press was fundamentally complicit in furthering the Islamic Republic's self-image.
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Index on Censorship defends people's freedom to express themselves without fear of harm or persecution. We publish censored writers and artists, monitor and campaign against censorship, and encourage debate.
We rely on donations from readers and supporters. By donating ([link removed]) to Index you help us to protect freedom of expression and to support those who are denied that right.
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