Iran International
A new move in the parliament to restrict freedom of access to global Internet and popular social media platforms has outraged Iranians from every walk of life.
"You have no right to treat people as if they aren't able to make decisions for themselves or as if they are mentally incapacitated…Representatives of people have no right to act against the wishes of their constituents. You can't impose something if people don't want it, even if it's against what you deem beneficial to them," Masoud Pirhadi, chief editor of conservative Resalat newspaper tweeted Tuesday in reaction to the approval of the general outlines of a bill to enforce restrictions on the internet and access to various apps and platforms.
An ad hoc parliamentary committee on Tuesday approved the outlines of the controversial bill ironically entitled 'Legislation to Protect Cyberspace Users'. The legislation results in broad restriction of social messaging platforms and access to the global net, in addition to extensive blockage of thousands of websites and most social media platforms.
Hours later, the parliament's own Regulations and Bylaws Division in a statement said the committee had broken the law in ratifying a different version of the bill referred to it for examination and approval.
Those behind the hasty approval of the outlines of the bill, however, are adamant that their move was legal.
The committee's move added salt to the wounds of many who have been affected by the growing plunge in the speed of internet in the past two months. The slow internet has affected many areas of life from navigation of taxis and cars to tens of thousands of large and small online businesses that rely on Instagram, as well as government and public online services.
Slow speed also disrupts access to circumvention software and VPNs which an overwhelming majority of Iranians routinely use to access blocked websites and applications including platforms such as Facebook and You Tube and messaging applications such as WhatsApp.
Authorities also appear to have. simultaneously reduced the bandwidth for Instagram and WhatsApp which makes them very hard or impossible to access.
Speaking at a cabinet meeting Wednesday, President Ebrahim Raisi tried to calm the public by saying that the communications ministry must provide "safe, high quality, and fast internet" to the people.
Many immediately took to social media to tell Raisi that "safe" is only another word for "censored", as the government and parliament have used the term in Persian. They republished remarks by Abdolnaser Hemmati, Raisi's rival, during the election debates in June about the president's vision of "safe internet": " Iran is not North Korea, Mr Raisi. Your 'safe internet' means shutting down Instagram!".
Criticism of the parliament and government's plans for restricting internet freedom is not limited to the opposition. Resalat newspaper, the mouthpiece of the Islamic Coalition Party (Motalefeh), in an editorial Wednesday criticized the plan. "Tyranny is haram in Islam," the editorial said, meaning religiously forbidden.
"How can we expect people not to be afraid of wide-ranging filtering [of websites]? How can we expect people not to be reminded of November 2019 [anti-government protests]?" the editorial asked in a clear reference to the nearly complete internet blackout for over a week during the protests.
"The rulers must not impose something on people even if it is reasonable, which in this case it definitely is not, and people are strongly against it, which in this case they definitely are, and should surrender to people's will even if it is a misstep," Resalat wrote.
"Raisi, Ghalibaf, This is the last call. Teachers' movement is prepared for an uprising", teachers chanted in protests in Shiraz, Fars province (video), and Shahr-e Kord in Chahr Mahal province (video), as well as Ilam in Ilam province, and around 50 other cities.
The same slogan appeared on banners and posters in all rallies, including Tehran where teachers protested in front of the parliament.
There were also chants against the state broadcaster (IRIB), which has not covered earlier protests. "Enough Oppression and Injustice. There's Nothing on Our Tables" and "The Country Has Become A Thieves' Den. Sanctions Are Only an Excuse," chanted protesters in Najafabad in Esfahan province, dismissing any notion that Iran’s economic troubles were anything to do with United States ‘maximum pressure’ imposed in 2018.
A female teacher in Anzali (video), Gilan province, lambasted Iran’s authorities for teachers’ ills. "We weren't the ones who looted the Melli (National) Bank, we weren't the ones who pillaged the Teachers' Savings Fund, we weren't the ones who looted the Development Fund. We don't own villas and gardens in Canada [like some former officials]. We weren't the ones who smuggled important national documents out of the country. We are right here, beside you. We are easy to find, we are in schools, classes and with your children, brothers, and sisters.”
And it didn’t stop there. "Taking the teachers by the neck, dragging them on the ground, kicking them, is nothing you could be proud of,” she opined. “You must take the looters and pillagers if order in the country is important, if security in the country is important.” A teacher in Esfahan said in her speech Tuesday who also said that after thirty years of service she now must work as a cab driver to make ends meet.
Equal pay with other civil servants
This was the fifth nationwide protest by teachers in the past two months as they demand implementation of decade-old legislation that would bring the salaries and pensions of 750,000 teachers in line with other civil servants.
The budget bill that President Ebrahim Raisi presented to parliament December 12 proposes a 14-percent increase in the education ministry's budget but does not earmark resources for a teachers’ pay rise.
Food prices have risen by more than 60 percent this year, on top of high inflation in the four years since a jump from 9.6 percent in 2017 to 30.2 percent in 2018 and around 40 percent in 2021.
Some scuffles were reported during the demonstrations on Tuesday and security forces arrested at least two more teachers, Solmaz Feyzollahzadeh in Karaj in Alborz Province and Ali Hasan-Bahamin in Shiraz in Fars Province.
Teachers, whose rallies are organized by the Coordination Council of Iranian Teachers’ Union, also demanded the release of colleagues arrested in earlier protests. Shabnam Baharfar, a teacher arrested in Karaj Saturday, is still in custody but others arrested the same day have been released. Some scuffles were reported during the demonstrations on Tuesday.