Iranian blogger Omidreza Mirsayafi died March 18 under mysterious circumstances in Tehran's notorious Evin prison. The official word is suicide, but close observers strongly suspect foul play.
Mirsayafi ran a cultural blog called Rooz Negar, but in totalitarian states the cultural is the political, and a revolutionary court gave Mirsayafi two years in prison for “insulting” the Islamic Republic's leaders, and tacked on an additional six months for “publicity against the government.” Mohamed Abdel Dayem of the Committee to Protect Journalists told The Washington Times that this case illustrates how Iran “actively violates the rights of journalists and bloggers.” His organization is calling for a full and transparent investigation into how Mirsayafi died, but Iran is not known for admitting its crimes against humanity.
American bloggers can snark with impunity, but in many countries blogging is hazardous to your health. Take Syria, which Reporters Without Borders recently named an “enemy of the Internet” along with Iran and 10 other countries. Read more ...
Mirsayafi ran a cultural blog called Rooz Negar, but in totalitarian states the cultural is the political, and a revolutionary court gave Mirsayafi two years in prison for “insulting” the Islamic Republic's leaders, and tacked on an additional six months for “publicity against the government.” Mohamed Abdel Dayem of the Committee to Protect Journalists told The Washington Times that this case illustrates how Iran “actively violates the rights of journalists and bloggers.” His organization is calling for a full and transparent investigation into how Mirsayafi died, but Iran is not known for admitting its crimes against humanity.
American bloggers can snark with impunity, but in many countries blogging is hazardous to your health. Take Syria, which Reporters Without Borders recently named an “enemy of the Internet” along with Iran and 10 other countries. Read more ...
Source: The Washington Times
H/T: J.R.
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