The Cost of Not Staying Silent
Behrouz Javid Tehrani, an Iranian journalist and former student activist, describes the conditions and experiences of his imprisonment in Iranian jails between 1999 and 2011. In particular, he discusses the treatment he and others endured at Rajaee Shahr prison — where he spent the majority of his more than 11 years long imprisonment.
Watch his video testimony here
Read his witness statement here
A Father’s Statement About His Son on Death Row
In recent days, there has been renewed concern that the implementation of the death sentences for Zanyar and Loghman Moradi, two ethnic Kurds on death row since December 2010, may be imminent. The Iran Human Rights Documentation Center (IHRDC) has followed these cases carefully as part of itsongoing effort to document abuses against Kurdish activists in the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI). Now, IHRDC releases a previously unpublished witness statement from Eghbal Moradi, the father of Zanyar Moradi and a former Komala member. In his statement, Eghbal Moradi maintains that his son is innocent of all the charges against him and that Zanyar has been targeted because of his father’s previous political opposition activities.
By Madeline Schiesser Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe
HRODNA, Belarus – Three Belarusian human rights activists were fined for participating in an unauthorized demonstration on December 10: International Human Rights Day. Oddly, none of them were arrested at the demonstration, but only days later, once a photo of their protest appeared online. An Index on Censorship Report published this month found that even as the Internet becomes more accessible to a greater portion of the Belarusian population, the government continues to find new ways to silence and track dissidents.
The photo of Uladzimer Khilmanovich, Viktar Sazonau, and Raman Yurhel posted on Viasna’s website (Photo Courtesy of Viasna via RFE/RL)
The activists, from the western city of Hrodna, were not questioned by police until December 18 for their involvement in the demonstration. The photo which caused Uladzimer Khilmanovich, Viktar Sazonau, and Raman Yurhel to run afoul of authorities showed the men with posters and a shirt showing Ales Byalyatski, Viasna’s chairman who was jailed last year for 4.5 years in tax evasion charges, which supporters say are politically motivated.
In a 150 minute trial on January 5, a Leninski District Court judge in Hrodna found the three guilty of staging an unauthorized demonstration and fined each 1.5 million rubels ($170). No evidence of their guilt was presented beyond the photograph and the accusations were based only on the police’s reports and “speculation,” Viasna says, and is also calling the trial politically motivated and absurd.
“In truth, I understood, I was convicted for what I advocate, for having engaged in activities not prohibited by law,” said Sazonau. “I was convicted for what I had done: cooperation with Ales Byalyatski.”
Belarus, Europe’s last dictatorship, has tightened its laws on protest in recent years. In October 2011, the Parliament amended the Law on Mass Activities to prohibit protest organizers from announcing a gathering before it had received government sanction and to ban Internet organized protests.
Therefore, while the Internet has allowed activists and defenders of human rights to better spread their message in repressive states (where Internet use is growing rapidly, e.g. there are half a million new Internet users every year in Belarus, and in the past two years access to broadband increased from 10% of uses to 70%), unfortunately the increased exposure has also handed these states more evidence to use in criminal prosecutions to stifle speech.
The U.K.-based Index on Censorship’s Report found that the Belarusian government uses “a repressive legal framework, including draconian laws such as criminal libel, legal prosecution, and the misapplication of the Criminal Code” to crackdown on opposition.
In addition, the government, which also owns most mainstream media, has found “new tools” in its pursuit to stamp out dissent on the Internet. These tools include web filters on multiple government controlled WiFi networks, surveillance technology allowing authorities to intercept web traffic, the removal of secure access to particular websites (e.g. Facebook), and fake versions of popular dissident websites such as Charter97. The report also explains that websites critical of the government are often targeted by Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks, which overwhelm a targeted site with requests for information, temporarily paralyzing the site and taking it down.
Andrei Aliaksandrau, the Index on Censorship’s Belarus program manager, said: “[Belarusian president] Alexander Lukashenko has significantly expanded his government’s control over the internet in the last two years. Few people in Belarus realize the level of state surveillance now being carried out by Lukashenko’s security services. This poses a huge threat to internet activists in Belarus.”
The report also discussed new legislation that would widen the government’s power to censor online content. Particularly, a “catch-all” ban on “distribution of illegal information” would be put in place, as well as “mass surveillance of citizens’ activities online.” Researchers also found that the government “is spending heavily on the development of software that will allow the tracking of nearly all the activities of every internet user in the country” and that western technology companies had likely sold the government the equipment and software to be used in this tracking.
Mike Harris, the Index on Censorship’s Head of Advocacy said: “State surveillance is yet another way that Lukashenko is compromising freedom of expression in Belarus. Index calls on the government to end online surveillance, release political prisoners and support its citizens’ rights to free expression. The European Union must also act to stop the export of surveillance technology to places like Belarus.”
BEIJING, China – On Monday, hundreds of free speech protestors expressed their ire over China’s censorship guidelines in front of the headquarters of Southern Weekly, a left leaning southern newspaper in Guangzhou, where an alleged government editorial interference occurred.
Protestors outside of Southern Weekly. (Photo Courtesy of LA Times)
“I feel the ordinary people must awaken,” conveyed Yuan Fengchu, one of the protestors, to the Associated Press. “The people are starting to realise that their rights have been taken away by the Communist party and they are feeling that they are being constantly oppressed.”
The protesters are demanding the resignation of the provincial’s propaganda chief after the blocking of a New Year’s editorial urging for greater constitutional rights. In its place was an article praising the communist party’s accomplishments.
Moreover, according to Voice of America, while protests spread online, the protestors in the streets are fighting with communist party supporters.
“Internationally, Southern Weekly is already regarded as the face of China under reform and opening. Domestically, Southern Weekly has spoken with a clear sense of truth, and has spoken on the people’s behalf,” read a letter issued by Chinese scholars. “In light of this we openly advise that the only correct means [of dealing with this matter] is to immediately remove Tuo Zhen from his position as provincial minister of propaganda,” continued the letter.
According to The Los Angeles Times, as for the new party secretary, Xi Jinping, who will become president in March, he has alluded to plans in upholding constitutionally guaranteed rights and fighting corruption within the communist party.
In support of the protestors, Chinese celebrities, journalists, and other public figures have been lobbying in Beijing for free speech.
In addition to the protest, on Monday, Google confirmed that it had shut down a function that warned users about proscribed or sensitive words. Many in response labeled Google’s choice to remove such function as “self-censorship.”
By Ali Al-Bassam Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East
DAMASCUS, Syria — In a deal with Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad, brokered by Qatar and Turkey, a Syrian opposition group released 48 Iranian prisoners in exchange for 2,130 civilian prisoners . On Wednesday, the prisoners were met by the Iranian Ambassador, Mohammed Reza Shibani, in Damascus. They were then flown to Tehran. The exchange was the biggest to occur in the 21-month old Syrian conflict.
Iranian prisoners, released on Wednesday by Syrian opposition groups, met with the Iranian Ambassador to Syria at a Damascus hotel. (Photo Courtesy of Al Arabiya)
“This is the result of months of civil diplomacy carried out by our organization,” said Bulent Yildirim, head of the Humanitarian Relief Foundation, a Turkish humanitarian group who helped broker the deal.
Iranian state television reported that the Iranian prisoners were held hostage by Syrian opposition fighters since last August, and were threatened to be executed. Iran said that the prisoners are Shias who traveled to Syria on part of a pilgrimage. Opposition fighters, however, claimed that the prisoners were members of Iran’s National Revolutionary Guard who came to Syria with the purpose of assisting pro-Assad forces.
The opposition fighters released a video showing Iranian military identification cards, allegedly taken from the captives. “The fighters captured 48 of the Shabiha (militiamen) of Iran who were on a reconaissance mission in Damascus,” said a man in the video, who appeared to be an officer of the Free Syrian Army. “During the investigation, we found that some of them were officers of the Revolutionary Guards,” he said, revealing ID documents taken from a prisoner who was in the background.
The Iranian government denounced the allegations, insisting that the prisoners traveled to Syria to visit the Sayyida Zainab shrine south of Damascus where they were captured. An official at the Iranian Pilgrimage and Travel Organization denied that the prisoners were linked to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, and said that the group, which included college student and public servants, were all civilians.
Of the 2,130 civilian prisoners who were brokered as part of the deal, 73 of them are women, four are Turkish citizens, and one is a Palestinian. The others are Syrian. “Most of the prisoners to be swapperd are Syrian citizens in exchange for Iranians, and there are a few Turks as well,” said Osman Atalay,board member of the Humanitarian Relief Foundation.
Meanwhile, Lakhdar Brahimi, UN Envoy to Syria, said of Assad’s speech last Thursday, where he called on Syrians to fight the “murderous criminals,” was a “lost opportunity to resolve the crisis in Syria.” Brahimi will meet with top US and Russian officials in Geneva next Friday to discuss ways to push through a peace plan which was outlined by the Action Group for Syria.
