Hardliners Adamant To Restrict Internet In Iran, Critics Warn
A bill introduced last year in Iran’s parliament to further restrict access to Internet did not get support, so the governing hardliners found an alternative way.
A bill introduced last year in Iran’s parliament to further restrict access to Internet did not get support, so the governing hardliners found an alternative way.
Mohammad Saleh Jokar a hardliner lawmaker told the media on Monday, that that the bill has been handed over to the Supreme Council of Cyberspace and nothing can be done about it.
Jokar, who is an IRGC general, called on other lawmakers not to follow the case any longer as "this is a job done" and that "there is nothing to be followed up about the case." He said the bill is no longer on the agenda of the Majles.
To dissuade lawmakers from following up the matter, he added: "The bill is now like a dead man who is buried. What are you looking for now?"
The Siyanat (Protection) plan is a draft bill from June 2021 by ultra-hardliners titled “Legislation to Protect Cyberspace Users’ Rights”. An ad hoc parliamentary committee in February approved the outlines of the Siyanat bill which will result in broad restrictions on social messaging platforms and access to the global net.
Many Iranians on social media have expressed concern over the handover of the case to the Supreme Council of Cyberspace which operates under the supervision of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
Moderate website Rouydad24 quoted Mohammad Keshvari of the council as saying that the bill has been already approved and the executive bodies involved have been duly notified.
Explaining the process lawmaker Jalal Rashidi Koochi said some of those who initiated the motion to restrict Internet access at the Majles, are also present at the Supreme Council of Cyberspace. So, when they found out that the Majles is against the bill, they took it to the council for approval.
Former lawmaker Ali Motahari had said in a September 10 tweet: "According to the Constitutional Law, no institution other than the parliament (Majles) is entitled to make laws." He added: "The recent resolution by the Supreme Council of Cyberspace is in fact the same as the former bill to restrict Internet access that remained inconclusive at the Majles."
Motahari pointed out that "This is some kind of legislation and therefore, it is not valid." He warned that it is time for the Majles to defend the people and its own rights."
Meanwhile, another former lawmaker, Soheila Jelodarzadeh, said in an interview on Monday, "What is the role of the Majles if councils are going to make laws?" She further called on lawmakers to defend the authority of the parliament.
Ms. Jelodarzadeh added that the bill to restrict Internet access was sent to the Majles several times before and it was rejected it every time. “This means that restricting Internet access is not something the people of Iran want." She further stressed that "The revolutionary Majles should uphold and safeguard the rights of the nation."
She stressed that "In the age of communication we should be moving toward expanding access to cyberspace rather than trying to restrict it," adding that the people of Iran do not like the idea of creating a closed network inside Iran and restrict people's access to the outside world.
Earlier, in a statement released in March 2022 The US State Department criticized Iran over its plans to tighten Internet access and urged the government “to allow its citizens to exercise their right to freedom of expression and to freely access information.” The statement also said that the so-called “User Protection Bill" aims to further limit Internet access, increasing censorship and restricting free speech online.”
Moderate conservative news website Qarn-e No [New Century] in Iran says the widespread belief among Iranian politicians about the end of Raisi's political career in 2025, has given rise to speculations about former Majles (parliament) Speaker Ali Larijani as a candidate for the next presidential election.
The website said that Larijani, a moderate conservative by Iranian standards who was disqualified as a candidate for the 2021 presidential election, will have a chance to run again, particularly now that according to rumors Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is thinking to appoint Larijani to the key post of arbitrator among the three government branches.
Following Larijani's disqualification in 2021, Khamenei had said that the Guardian Council's decision to disqualify him was "unfair" and called on the conservative dominated council to compensate for its mistake. However, so far nothing has been seen to that effect.
Larijani’s disqualification was widely seen as move to eliminate all serious candidates who could endanger Raisi’s victory, a quest supported by all hardliners loyal to Khamenei. Therefore, despite the Supreme Leader’s comforting words for Larijani, it was never clear if the order to eliminate his presidential candidacy came from Khamenei’s office.
Whether or not these reports and speculations are true or not, Larijani as an adviser to Khamenei, is now enjoying a solid power base.
All this is taking place against a backdrop of political turmoil in Raisi's cabinet particularly after his government’s poor handling of the annual mass pilgrimage to shrines in Iraq on Arbaeen. Thousands of people marching to Karbala became ill or dehydrated with no transportation and a place to stay, despite weeks of government propaganda encouraging people to take up the pilgrimage and promises of assistance along the way. Hundreds of thousands of people became stranded at the border crossings and slept in the streets in Iraq.
Other reports say that Raisi will have to fire his road minister Rostam Ghassemi for his shortcomings and one of his Vice Presidents Ensiyeh Khazali after revelations about her son's immigration to Canada with millions of dollars to establish a company there.
In another report, the Qarn-e No wrote that the divide between the government of President Raisi and the people is the widest since 1979 when the Islamic Republic was established. This, the report says is a result of Raisi's failure to fulfil the obligations he undertook and the promises he made to the nation during his election.
In the meantime, Iranian lawmaker Mojtaba Mahfouzi, a member of the Majles Cultural Committee, said in an interview with Didban Iran website on Sunday that "The Raisi administration is obstinate and arrogant, adding that members of his government do not know anything about executive work.
These are probably some of the facts based on which Qarn-e No has concluded that Raisi is likely to be the first Iranian President to serve for only one term.
Mahfouzi said that the Majles is determined to summon and question Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi for the Arbaeen pilgrimage fiasco.
Meanwhile, Mahfouzi charged that the Raisi administration does not accept any advice from the parliament, and said, “this is no way to run a country.”
Reports in newspapers, websites and in social media indicate that the President Ebrahim Raisi’s administration might be pondering a new round of gasoline price increase, as some say Iran’s daily production has dropped from 107 million liters to 101 million.
The government that controls the distribution of energy and fuel in the country has been offering perhaps the world’s cheapest prices to consumers, with subisdized gasoline going for as little as 22 US cents a gallon.
A similar move to raise prices in November 2019 led to days of nationwide protests and the killing of at least 1.500 protesters.
A hardliner political figure, former lawmaker Hossein-Naghavi Hosseini, said this week that former President Hassan Rouhani should be put on trial for the 2019 nationwide protests.
At the time, the government was criticized by politicians and media for the way it handled both the price rise and the ensuing dangerous unrest that quickly turned into an anti-regime uprising.
In an interview with Didban Iran website on Saturday, September 10, Naghavi Hosseini added that Iran's Supreme Council of National Security was also responsible for the events that followed the price hike.
Naghavi-Hosseini further charged that one of Rouhani's ministers without naming him and said the minister was waiting for a regime change in Iran.
The ex-lawmaker, who is the former spokesman of the parliamentary committee for national security and foreign policy, reiterated that some of Rouhani's ministers were utterly enjoying wat was happening.
Naghavi-Hosseini added that Rouhani should have increased the gasoline price gradually year by year. But he waited for seven years and suddenly tried to make up for his inaction in the seventh year of his presidency.
Vice President Solat Mortazavi on Saturday [September 10] said that President Raisi will under no circumstance allow any increase in the price of gasoline. However, he added that the promise not to raise prices is for up to the end of the current Iranian year on March 20, 2023.
Earlier, Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi had also denied the rise in the price of gasoline. Vahidi added that "some people spread rumors about an imminent rise in the price of gasoline and the reduction of subsidized gasoline quota, but I deny those rumors."
The denial came while many media reports in Iran said that gas stations sell only 30 liters of gasoline at the subsidized price of 15,000 rials per liter every month and anything beyond that should be bought at 30,000 rials per liter (about $1 or $2.5 per gallon). Meanwhile, many drivers complained on social media that 30 liters of gasoline per month is not enough for them.
An Iran International report in June predicted that Iranians will most likely experience their next shock when the government reduces fuel subsidies and prices rise dramatically, pushing inflation even higher. The report said that the government is once again thinking of raising gasoline prices although officials and members of parliament continue to deny that it will happen this year.
Official estimates in Iran put the total annual subsidy of cheap energy and fuel as high as $60 billion, which is more than the country’s oil export revenues.