A
Glimpse of Regime’s
Repressive Record in Regards to the Press
May 3rd of each year is the world day of
free press, the day of praising the important role of the press as the
fourth pillar of democracy, and the day of appreciating the journalists
and writers who carry the heavy burden of getting knowledge across and
informing world citizens. If
in the developed world, the countries that enjoy their established
democracies, people are celebrating such an important day and cherish
journalists and the press for their hard efforts and endless service to
humanity, in our dictatorized Iran, ever since the first newspaper was
published (May 1st 1837), journalists, those fearless
intellectuals -- who except their pen do not possess anything else to
defend themselves -- have been under continious threat, imprisonment,
torture, terror, … and oppressed by the authoritarian rulers.
Intellectuals such as Mirza Salih Shirazi set the
basis of journalism in Iran with the publication of the first newspaper,
and other notable individuals such as Molkom Khan, Mirza Ali-Khan
Akhoond-zadeh, Ali Akbar Deh-khoda, Jahangir Khan Soor-Esrafil,
Malak-Ashoarae Bahar, Mirzadeh Eshghi, Sayied Ashraf-aldin Hoseini, and
etc…through publishing newspapers and journals such as Serate
Mostaghim, Watan, Sobhe Sadegh, Kashkol, Nedae
Siasi, Zabane Melat, Habl-almatin, Soor Asrafil, Nasim
Shomal, developed fruitful seeds of journalism before and after the
constitutional movement with their hard works and good efforts.
The story of Iranian journalism is filled with tears,
blood, prosecution and torture. It
consists of bloody story of thousands of freedom-loving writers who as Siavash
crossed the pile of fire to show the truth to the Iranian civilian
population. They were
prosecuted in torture houses of today and yesterday’s tyrants, and were
sent to the death rolls group by group, but still remained faithful to the
true path they had chosen.
Together, in short we will only review a glimpse of
this bitter history during the tyrannical ruling of the regime of Islamic
Republic.
Execution
of writers in the first year after the Revolution:
1.
Ali Asghar Amirani, publisher of the periodical
Khandaniha, age over 75, shot to death in 1980.
2.
Hamid Noori, publisher of the newspaper Dod,
age over 75, shot to death in 1980.
3.
Nawab Safawi, internal chief editor and
columnist for the newspaper Enghelab Eslami, shot to death in 1981.
4.
Manuchehr Behzadi, chief editor of the
publication Mardom, shot to death in 1983.
5.
Faraj-ollah Mizani, Columnist for the
publication Mardom, shot to death in 1983.
6.
Rahman Hatifi, chief editor of the newspaper Keyhan,
and publisher of Nawid
before and after the Revolution, shot to death.
7.
Saeed Sultanpour, poet and journalist, was
detained and shot to death in the night of his marriage ceremony (March
1980).
8.
Dr. Sayhoon Farzadi, chief editor of Jhournal
in Tehran and reporter for the French news agency in Iran, shot to death.
9.
Karim Dashti-zadeh, chief editor of magazine Film
u Cinema, shot to death.
10.
Ismail Raeen, was attacked by the vigilant
Hizbollah and was killed on site.
11.
Ali Dashti, journalist, captivated and tortured
in his 80s in Evin prison, died due to broken bones and joints
after being released.
12.
Dr. Mozaffar Bagheri, chief editor of the
newspaper Shahed, died in prison due to excessive torture.
13.
Taghi Roohani, chief editor of News Radio
Section, was attacked by vigilant Hizbollah and died right away.
Also
hundreds of other journalists and writers were displaced and fled the
country following the period of repression and fear starting in 1980s.
Following this period, the distribution
of newspapers Bamdad whose
chief editor was Mansur Rahbar, and Enghelab Eslami were banned and
their staff were detained. Following
the destructive Iran-Iraq war, publishers and publications became the
propaganda centres of aggressive rulers and led to the disappearance of
independent political publications. The
magazine Adineh, Gardoon, Donyayeh Sokhan, and the
scientific journal of Farad, were closed and their staff were
incarcerated and sentensed to imprisonment following the raid on their
office by vigilant groups.
On Tuesday, 16 of June 1997, the office
of the magazine Zane Rooz was raided and set on fire by the Ansare
Hezbollah. The reason for
the attack was the publication of a model photo that resembled Khomeini.
Aside from these, publications such as Khorasan published in
Mashhad, Khabar Shiraz, Kadeh and Nasim Shomal in
Rasht were also banned, accused of publishing decietful materials against
the regime’s sacreds.
Animosity
towards publishers from 1997 onward
The devastating defeat of the ruling conservative camp
of the regime in the 1997 presidential election resulted in the emergence
of better conditions for publishing newspapers and independent and
pro-reform publications. Despite
the existance of repression and aggression between 1997 and the year 2000,
many new newspapers were born that played a significant role in the
expansion of the process of reform movements among the general Iranian
population.
The regime’s monopolistic ruling camp that blamed
the growing number of publications on the defeat in the presidential,
municipal, and parliamentary elections, set the path for the legal
repression of the publications in the last day of the 5th
Parliament by amending the press law.
From May 2000 onwards, the mass closure of independent newspapers
and publishers supporting reform, and the detainment of journalists
started in an unprecedented way. Here,
we briefly outline number of publishers that have been closed and their
editorial boards detained and imprisoned.
Under the order of the General Court of the province
of Tehran, on the 24th of April 2000, the newspapers:
1.
Gozaresh,
publisher, Mohammad Mehdi Khorami,
2.
Bamdad No,
publisher, Abo-Alghasem Golbaf,
3.
Aftabe Emrooz,
publisher, Faraydoon Amoozadi Khalili,
4.
Payam Emrooz,
publisher, Dawood Bahrami Siavashani,
5.
Fatih,
publisher, Yadollah Eslami,
6.
Arya,
publisher, Mohammad Reza Zohdi (The publication of this newspaper was
banned until May 2001, but its publisher has been prevented from
publishing activities so far).
7.
Asre Azadzgan,
publisher Gafoor Gershasbi, and chief editor Mashala Shams-alwaezin,
8.
Azad,
publisher, Yazdanpana Khodaee,
9.
Ham-Mayhan
publisher, Golam-Hosien Karbaschi,
Also
weeklies Payame Hajar editor A-azam Talaghani, Aaban editor
Mohammad Hassan Alipour, and Arzesh published by Ali Tatari, were
closed.
- Akhbare Eghtesad, publisher Eissa Saharkhizi,
- Mosharekat, publisher Mohammad Reza Khatami,
- Sobhe Emrooz, publisher Saeed Hajarian,
- Awa, publisher Mostafa Izady, and also monthly Iran Farda
publsiher Ezato-alah Sahabi, chief editor Reza Alijani that was the
mouth-piece of Nehzate Azadi party were closed.
These publishers were as usual accused of publishing lies, and
insulting the regime’s sacreds and etc…
During these four years, nearly all of the independent
and pro-reform newspapers and publishers that number more than 50 have
been closed, and their publishers have been imprisoned.
Individuals such as Ezatollah Sahabi, Ali Afshari, Abdullah Noori,
Emadadin Baghi, Mashallah Shams-Alwaezin, Akbar Ganji, Mohammad Reza Zohdi,
Latif Safiri, Reza Alijani, and among the list are dozens of other members
of press family.
Iran under the control of the anti-freedom
regime of Islamic Republic has become the largest prison for faithful
journalists and writers. In
the last several years, the regime on numerous occasions has been
condemned by international organizations due to the oppression that has
been mounted on intellectuals and writers.
It is not a coincidence that Khamanei, the regime’s supreme
leader, this year, on the day of world press freedom was known to the
world as the most oppressive enemy of the press by the International Group
for the Defence of Human Rights.
Article translated from KURDISTAN, Organ of the Central Committee of PDKI
