The iron fist of censorship strangle the net and repression for now appears to have won in the streets. But it is difficult to know what is really happening in Iran now, because all the national and foreign press has been silenced. The police chief of Iran meanwhile has released some official data about 20 deaths during the protests and 1032 people arrested. No police officer killed, but 500 were wounded. The number of injured among the demonstrators rather strangely has not been reported.
The police chief claims that most of those arrested have already been released, while those still in prison will be tried by revolutionary courts. The real justice of these trials raise many concerns on the part of organizations that defend human rights, and today the Jerusalem Post reported that according to some sources within the country 6 Mousavi supporters have already been hanged, even if there is no confirmation of the news.
Mousavi urges people not to surrender, while the government argues that the partial vote recount has been completed and the elections were fair. But even if it was true it's difficult to think that they could have a good explanation for the brutal repression carried out against peaceful demonstrators and the murder of at least 20 people.
Mousavi urges people not to surrender, while the government argues that the partial vote recount has been completed and the elections were fair. But even if it was true it's difficult to think that they could have a good explanation for the brutal repression carried out against peaceful demonstrators and the murder of at least 20 people.
On social network meantime bounce calls to other protests and a general strike against the government. On internet people ask for the boycott of Nokia and Siemens, which would have provided the Iranian government the means to intercept telephone conversations and so would have allowed the arrest of many participants in the protests. The two companies defend themselves by saying that the technology that they have sold is the same that is used in Western countries and has nothing to do with the censorship of the Internet.
And in fact choose the two telephone companies among the many European companies trading merrily with Iran of the Ayatollah seems a bit absurd, given that the European Union itself is very good with the Iranian government and is looking forward to compliment it for the way they solved the problem peacefully. Just kill the opponents silently and European states, perhaps with the exception of Great Britain, will return friends of the regime as before.
And in fact choose the two telephone companies among the many European companies trading merrily with Iran of the Ayatollah seems a bit absurd, given that the European Union itself is very good with the Iranian government and is looking forward to compliment it for the way they solved the problem peacefully. Just kill the opponents silently and European states, perhaps with the exception of Great Britain, will return friends of the regime as before.
But to have hopes that Western governments will seriously fight in defense of human rights on the other hand is pure naivety. The people of the web instead are doing something for Iran, at least try to keep high the attention on what happens in the country and there are many initiatives underway to help the Iranians to communicate, despite the censorship. The interest of the regime obviously is to bring down silence and darkness on all the protests and continue as before and worse than before, and many others are the governments in the world who'd love to silence the net. We must show them that they will never succeed.
Francesco Defferrari
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