via electronic vehicles.’’ Publications must also have obtained ‘‘publication licenses from the Press
Supervisory Board in the Ministry of Cultural and Islamic Guidance’’; otherwise they ‘‘fall out of
the scope of the Press law and become subject to General Laws.’’
33. Deutsche Welle,‘ ‘ Tasveeb-e Layeheye Janjaali-e Eslaah-e Ghaanoon-e Matboo’aat dar Majles’’ [The
passage of the controversial bill of reforming the press law in Majlis], April 15, 2009, http://www
.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,4178392,00.html.
34. Ghalam News, ‘‘The New Decision for the Internet Media by the Parliament,’’ April 15, 2009,
http://www.ghalamnews.ir/news-6261.aspx (accessed June 10, 2009).
35. Ibid.
36. Article 19, ‘‘Memorandum on Regulation of the Media in the Islamic Republic of Iran,’’ March
2, 2006, http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/country,,ART19,,IRN,,475e4e270,0.html.
37. Islamic Penal Code of Iran, May 22, 1996, Article 500 states that ‘‘anyone who undertakes any
form of propaganda against the state . . . will be sentenced to between three months and one year
in prison’’; unofficial translation at http://mehr.org/index_islam.htm.
38. Ghalam News, ‘‘The New Decision for the Internet Media by the Parliament,’’ April 15, 2009,
http://www.ghalamnews.ir/news-6261.aspx (accessed June 10, 2009).
39. Human Rights Watch Report, ‘‘False Freedom: Online Censorship in the Middle East and
North Africa: Iran,’’ November 2005, http://hrw.org/reports/2005/mena1105/5.htm.
40. BBC Monitoring International Reports, citing text of report by E’temad-e Melli, ‘‘Iran Press
Iranian Activists Oppose Regulation of Websites, Weblogs,’’ January 2, 2007. See also Omid Memarian, ‘‘Bloggers Rebel at New Censorship,’’ Inter Press Service News Agency, January 10, 2007,
http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=36123, reporting that prohibited content includes criticism of religious figures, sexual matters, content considered offensive to the Ayatollah Khomeini,
or content slanderous of Islamic law.
41. BBC Monitoring International Reports, ‘‘Iran Press Iranian Activists Oppose Regulation of
Websites, Weblogs,’’ January 2, 2007.
42. One report puts the number of blog registrations at 850.
43. The status of draft legislation is reported in Farsi at http://tarh.majlis.ir/?Report&RegId=121.
44. Cybercrimes Bill, Chapter 6, Article 23, http://tarh.majlis.ir/?Download&Id=2288.
45. Ibid., Chapter 6, Article 21.
46. Ibid., Chapter 3: Articles 3 and 4.
47. Information Technology News Agency, ‘‘Report of an ISP Closure by Judicial System Agents,’’
http://www.itna.ir/archives/article/000665.php; Human Rights Watch, ‘‘Iran: Prosecute Torturers,
Not Bloggers,’’ December 12, 2006, http://hrw.org/english/docs/2006/12/12/iran14824.htm;
Human Rights Watch, ‘‘ ‘Like the Dead in Their Coffins’: Torture, Detention, and the Crushing of
Dissent in Iran,’’ June 7, 2004, http://www.hrw.org/campaigns/torture/iran/.
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Iran
Supervisory Board in the Ministry of Cultural and Islamic Guidance’’; otherwise they ‘‘fall out of
the scope of the Press law and become subject to General Laws.’’
33. Deutsche Welle,‘ ‘ Tasveeb-e Layeheye Janjaali-e Eslaah-e Ghaanoon-e Matboo’aat dar Majles’’ [The
passage of the controversial bill of reforming the press law in Majlis], April 15, 2009, http://www
.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,4178392,00.html.
34. Ghalam News, ‘‘The New Decision for the Internet Media by the Parliament,’’ April 15, 2009,
http://www.ghalamnews.ir/news-6261.aspx (accessed June 10, 2009).
35. Ibid.
36. Article 19, ‘‘Memorandum on Regulation of the Media in the Islamic Republic of Iran,’’ March
2, 2006, http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/country,,ART19,,IRN,,475e4e270,0.html.
37. Islamic Penal Code of Iran, May 22, 1996, Article 500 states that ‘‘anyone who undertakes any
form of propaganda against the state . . . will be sentenced to between three months and one year
in prison’’; unofficial translation at http://mehr.org/index_islam.htm.
38. Ghalam News, ‘‘The New Decision for the Internet Media by the Parliament,’’ April 15, 2009,
http://www.ghalamnews.ir/news-6261.aspx (accessed June 10, 2009).
39. Human Rights Watch Report, ‘‘False Freedom: Online Censorship in the Middle East and
North Africa: Iran,’’ November 2005, http://hrw.org/reports/2005/mena1105/5.htm.
40. BBC Monitoring International Reports, citing text of report by E’temad-e Melli, ‘‘Iran Press
Iranian Activists Oppose Regulation of Websites, Weblogs,’’ January 2, 2007. See also Omid Memarian, ‘‘Bloggers Rebel at New Censorship,’’ Inter Press Service News Agency, January 10, 2007,
http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=36123, reporting that prohibited content includes criticism of religious figures, sexual matters, content considered offensive to the Ayatollah Khomeini,
or content slanderous of Islamic law.
41. BBC Monitoring International Reports, ‘‘Iran Press Iranian Activists Oppose Regulation of
Websites, Weblogs,’’ January 2, 2007.
42. One report puts the number of blog registrations at 850.
43. The status of draft legislation is reported in Farsi at http://tarh.majlis.ir/?Report&RegId=121.
44. Cybercrimes Bill, Chapter 6, Article 23, http://tarh.majlis.ir/?Download&Id=2288.
45. Ibid., Chapter 6, Article 21.
46. Ibid., Chapter 3: Articles 3 and 4.
47. Information Technology News Agency, ‘‘Report of an ISP Closure by Judicial System Agents,’’
http://www.itna.ir/archives/article/000665.php; Human Rights Watch, ‘‘Iran: Prosecute Torturers,
Not Bloggers,’’ December 12, 2006, http://hrw.org/english/docs/2006/12/12/iran14824.htm;
Human Rights Watch, ‘‘ ‘Like the Dead in Their Coffins’: Torture, Detention, and the Crushing of
Dissent in Iran,’’ June 7, 2004, http://www.hrw.org/campaigns/torture/iran/.
558
Iran