The Iranian government harasses, imprisons and tortures journalists on a daily basis, just for exercising their fundamental right to freedom of information and expression.
Journalism is not a Crime was set up to support these jailed journalists. The site, which was launched on June 9, documents cases where journalists have been unfairly arrested, and aids reporters and their loved ones by providing legal and psychological assistance.
As part of the launch, IranWire spoke to Afsaneh Rigot of ARTICLE 19, an international organization that defends free expression as a fundamental human right.
From Article 19's perspective, what is the press freedom situation in Iran today?
At present, following President Hassan Rouhani's election, press freedom has been increasingly under attack in Iran. We are seeing an increase in arrests of journalists and bloggers, and a clampdown on online expression. At the beginning of January 2015, there were at least 30 bloggers and journalists behind bars. These have all been arrested for their legitimate reporting under Iran's vaguely worded laws for “national security” and “propaganda against the state.” Press freedom in Iran looks like it's going down a very bumpy road. We're waiting to see what happens with the Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian's case.
Other than Jason Rezaian, what cases have you focused on recently, and why did they stand out?
We have focused on Jason Rezaian's case mainly because we know a lot about him, and we can verify the information we get. Unfortunately there are so many unnamed journalists imprisoned at the moment who aren't getting the same attention from organizations such as ours because there isn't enough information. So now we're looking at Jason Rezaian, we've looked at the case of Atena Farghadani, an artist who also did some journalism and video blogging. The main reason we focus on them is because of the verified information we have about their cases.
What role does Iranian civil society play in advancing the cause of journalists?
In the diaspora the civil society movement has been very strong. For example, civil society activists have been very active in the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) processes at the United Nations Human Rights Council, which has made the government of Iran accept a number of recommendations that guarantee, at least on paper, the right of free expression for journalists. Having Iran involved in the UPR processes is important because it is one of the only processes that the Iranian government takes, to an extent, seriously.
For example, Tunisia, which received some memoranda from civil society activists, gave a recommendation at the United Nations Human Rights Council guaranteeing a favourable environment for activities of journalists and human rights defenders. Iran accepted them in March of this year. Similar recommendations were given by Norway and Senegal and were accepted by Iran. Even though these are minimal, and probably are not going to be put in place by the Iranian government, they represent a move made by Iranian civil society to bring attention to the plight of Iranian journalists inside Iran.
Putting these sorts of recommendations to the government, which ask for greater freedom of expression and a free press, is really a step forward to try to hold Iran accountable to its legal obligations and the recommendations it has accepted. Iran is party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and it should be held accountable to its obligations, which it's avoiding by using vague laws. By being more involved with these international processes, we can slowly hold the system accountable for all its violations, especially against the journalists.
Within Iran, it's more difficult for civil society activists, because they are being repressed and muzzled so vigorously by the Iranian government. But it's those movements from inside Iran that help the movements from outside work harder. From what we see, there is a big, deep wish for change inside Iran. I think you saw that after Iranian society and civil society activists reacted to Foreign Minister Javad Zarif's comments that Iran doesn't imprison people based on their opinions.
Civil society in Iran can have a huge impact, but it has been highly repressed. The term “non-governmental organization” (NGO) took on political connotations post-2005 and are still seen as a threat by the Iranian government. This is evidenced by the proposals for the Establishment and Supervision of NGOs bill that looks to further halt the work of civil society in Iran.
President Hassan Rouhani came to power in part by promising greater press freedom. Why do you think that hasn't materialized?
The political situation in highly complex. However, making such a promise means that you think you may have the power to provide that to the people. We are aware that the separation of powers in Iran does not provide sufficient power to the president to protect journalists and civil society activists from attacks from the judiciary and security forces. Unfortunately, for many it now looks like Rouhani may have made only token gestures. That's been disappointing for many people, both inside and outside Iran.
It's unclear why we haven't really seen Rouhani make many moves, but from an outsider's perspective, and my own perspective, it looks like there are these tensions in Iran between the moderates and the hardliners. It seems that the hardliners within the Iranian government want to give a message to President Rouhani and his moderate administration that their line should be quite cautious moving forward, and that their diplomatic missions outside the country should be more cautious as to what they're trying to promise the people of Iran.
To learn more about issues affecting journalists in Iran please visit: journalismisnotacrime.com
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