Looking for Freedom
March of the Bloggers

Oct 2006 – Kianoosh Sanjari 3 mths

Along with hundreds of others detained in Evin prison Sanjari spends three months locked up following his reports on clashes between security forces and supporters of the Shi’a cleric Ayatollah Sayed Hossein Kazemeyni Boroujerdi. He has been arrested for his activities on several occasions previously, the first being when he was just 17 in 1999 for protesting against the closure of a newspaper called Salam.

May 2006 – Abed Tavancheh 16 dys

A student at Tehran university arrested for posting reports and photographs of some of the demonstrations at the university on his weblog.

Dec 2005 – Hossein Abdollahpour 3 mths

Abdollahpour was arrested and imprisoned for allegedly insulting officials on the Expediency Council as well as insulting the former President Mohammad Khatami.

Oct 2005 – Omid Sheikhan 3 mths

Sheikhan maintained a weblog featuring satirical cartoons of Iranian politicians. He also received 124 lashes for his online activity.

Jun 2005 – Ahmad Seyed Saraji 6 mths-ish

Some of the charges brought against the journalist Saraji included ‘propaganda against the Islamic Republic’, ‘conspiracy to topple the government’, ‘insult to the leader of the Islamic Republic’ and ‘apostasy’ (which was later dropped). After 4 months imprisonment and 30 lashes he was freed by division number two of the East Azarbayjan appeal court and eventually escaped to Turkey.

Mar 2005 – Mohammad Reza Fathi 3 dys

Fathi was summoned by the morality squad for his criticism of the provincial government and the mayor of Saveh in his popular weblog. In a letter to President Mohammad Khatami, he voiced exasperation at this ‘scant capacity of civil servants to accept criticism’ but was subsequently arrested. After questioning he was ordered to close down the weblog or face further retribution.

Mar 2005 – Mohammad Reza Nasab-Abdollahi 6 mths

Found guilty of criticising Ayatollah Khameni in an open letter published online. He was charged with with ‘spreading lies’ and ‘insulting the leader’.

Mar 2005 – Najme Omidparvar

A Human Rights activist arrested for reporting on the arrest of her husband (Reza Nasab Abdolahi) on her weblog, Dawn of Freedom. She was also 3 months pregnant with her first child at the time.

Feb 2005 – Mojtaba Lotfi 3 yrs 10 mths

A young cleric accused of posting ‘lies’ on his website regarding Islamic reform, 21st century Islamic jurisprudence and Human Rights abuses by state clerics. He also discussed how to deal with social problems such as drugs and the spread of AIDS. However it was his article called Respect for Human Rights in cases involving Clergy that earned him the sentence.

Feb 2005 – Arash Sigarchi 14 yrs

On February 22nd Sigarchi was handed a 14 year prison sentence for espionage and insulting the country’s leaders. As a journalist he is guilty of weblogging and contributing to American Radio Farda. After a payment of one billion Rials he was released on March 17th 2005 with a three-year suspended sentence agreed in June (although Saigarchi wasn’t notified of this until January). He was then unfortunately sent back to prison in January 2006 four days after he was given this three-year suspended sentence for ‘insulting the Supreme Guide’ and ‘propaganda against the regime’.

Nov 2004 – Farid Modaresi 8 mths

Modaresi was arrested and imprisoned for insulting the former President Mohammad Khatami on his weblog. He was released on a bail charge of 150 million rials yet Khatami never actually pressed charges.

Nov 2004 – Mojtaba Saminejad 18 mths (Total? Death Penalty repealed)

Saminejad’s brush with the authorities is a complicated one. He was arrested in November for reporting in his blog on the detention of three individuals arrested for their online activities. Bail was agreed in January and he was released, however after failing to pay the bail (which was doubled) and publishing another article insulting the prophets he was re-arrested in February 2005.

Nov 2004 – Mahboubeh Abasghalizadeh 23 dys

As the editor of the quarterly women’s publication Farzaneh, Abasghalizadeh was imprisoned for writing for a number of online publications.

Oct 2004 – Fereshteh Ghazi

Another online journalist for Etemad arrested for her contributions to reformist websites.

Oct 2004 – Babak Ghafouri-Azar 2 mths

One of the six online journalists and webloggers targetted in this month’s Internet crackdown. Charged with acting against national security, disturbing the public mind and insulting sanctities he was kept in solitary confinement.

Oct 2004 – Fereshteh Qadi 2 mths

Guilty of contributing to online journals and working as a journalist for Etemad he was held for two months.

Oct 2004 – Omid Memarian 3 mths

Memarian, an active contributor of reformist websites was detained on the order of Tehran Prosecutor’s Office’s Ninth Chamber after a failed attempt to fly to the States for a conference. His charges include: ‘spreading propaganda against the regime’, ‘threatening national security’, ‘incitement to rebellion’ and ‘insulting the leading figures of the regime’. His computer and personal notes were confiscated and ordered to write a letter of repentance as a condition of his 500 million rial release.

Oct 2004 – Masoud Ghoreyshi

An Iranian journalist arrested because of his technical support work for the Organization of Islamic Revolutionary Fighters’ website.

Sept 2004 – Rozbeh Mir Ebrahimi 2 mths

Arrested for his contributions to reformist websites.

Sept 2004 – Amir Mojiri 2 mths

An online journalist charged for Internet activity against the moral codes of the Islamic state.

Sept 2004 – Javad Gholam Tamayomi

Imprisoned on a variety of charges including: the participation in formation of groups to disturb national security, propaganda against the state, dissemination of disinformation to disturb public opinion by writing articles for newspapers and illegal internet sites and interviews with foreign radio broadcasts.

Sept 2004 – Mehdi Derayatai 3 mths

A Rooydad helper committed to solitary confinement.

Sept 2004 – Shahram Rafizadeh 3 mths

A victim of the Rooydad (reformist online daily paper) crackdown.

Sept 2004 – Hanif Mazuri 3 mths

Imprisoned for helping Rooydad, a website close to the major reformist party.

Aug 2004 – Reza Vatanikhah 3 mths

Arrested for acting against national security, disturbing the public mind, and insulting sanctities by posting his musings on a weblog. He spent most of his prison sentence apparantly in solitary confinement.

Feb 2004 – Ahmad Reza Shiri 21 dys

In his blog Shiri called for a boycott of February’s legislative elections and as a result got his blog closed down, his computer confiscated and a suspended one year prison sentence.

Apr 2003 – Sina Motallebi 23 dys

The first person ever to be imprisoned for the contents of a weblog. His political writings led to a 23 day stint in solitary confinement.