Freedom of the press
DW-Director of Limbourg calls the end of Internet censorship in Iran
In the run-up to the elections in Iran has DW Director Peter Limbourg to the leadership in Tehran appeals, with the Opening of the country to get Serious. In Iran it was meanwhile an Opposition candidate is being attacked.
Young Tehran in a Cybercafé in the capital
The artistic Director of the Deutsche Welle, Peter Limbourg, before the elections on Friday in Iran, the government in Tehran to an end of Internet censorship is called. “The people in charge in Tehran have the people finally got the free access to information,” he said. Instead of the hoped-for political and social Opening up of the country after the end of the Atomstreits was Internet censorship there, next on the agenda.
Already since 2009, blocked the Website of the DW on Farsi was since mid-January, even on the of the Auslandssender provided Umgehungssoftware is hardly attainable. “This massive intervention in the freedom of the Internet is obvious in the context of the upcoming elections and with a view of the broad and balanced election coverage, DW,” said Limbourg.
DW Director Peter Limbourg
The Deutsche Welle has for the users of the Farsi-offer a special page set up with information, analyses and opinions to the parliamentary elections and the elections of the so-called Expertenrats. By the Blockade, the traffic on the DW deal on Persian, according to the Director General in January compared to the previous month dramatically. Deutsche Welle put everything in mind, an alternative means of access to create, said Limbourg. On the ranking of the press freedom organization “reporters without borders” the Islamic Republic is on place 173 of 180 countries.
Reformers attacked
In Iran it was, meanwhile, a Reformkandidat and his family attacked. As the Agency Ilna reported, set fire to the Islamists, the car of Massud Namasi, the for his constituency Schabestar in the West of the country campaigning. Moreover, it was his sister-in-law with a knife threatened. “Here, so You can never go back to the thoughts come against us to compete”, have the message of the attacker to read differently. According to unofficial Reports, is Namasi in the polls, far ahead of the candidate of the hardliners, in Schabestar in the province of Azerbaijan-East to his re-election fears.
Cell phone photo of the car from Massud Namasi after the attack
The Supreme leader of the country Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in the meantime, he believes that the Parliament elected will be ready, compared to the USA to stand up. “A List of our enemies is to the false image of a divide between a Parliament to draw against and for the government,” said Chanmeni at a rally in Nadschafabad. The Nation wants but neither the one nor the other, but a “strong and faithful Parliament, his duties knows and from the U.S. will not be intimidated.”
According to President Hassan Rohani, in contrast, want the Iranians to their country politically “clean out” and reform. Rohani said at a Meeting with representatives of the civil aviation authority. The term “mucking” is in Iran, especially when Frühlingsputz before the Persian new year at the 20. March used. The parliamentary elections in Iran this Friday, and thus before the new year set. Reformer, the Rohani support, to use during their campaign rallies the term “mucking” as a metaphor for a detachment of the hard-liners in the Parliament, after twelve years. Rohani called for the ruling Elite to the people, nothing to pretend. “As a politician you should, therefore, the people never give the impression that you have your intelligence insulted,” said Rohani, according to the news Agency ISNA.
In the parliamentary elections on Friday in Iran to fight the reformers to President Hassan Rohani, Conservative and hard-line to the 290 seats. After twelve-year-old dominance in the Parliament fear the hardliners, the reformers, after the Rohani negotiated Atomabkommen and the lifting of economic sanctions replace.
stu/kle (epd, kna, dpa, rtr)