The Islamic Republic Claims Championship in Restricting Internet Freedom

The Islamic Republic Claims Championship in Internet Freedom Restrictions

The Islamic Republic claims championship in restricting internet freedom. According to Iran Gate, the Islamic Republic is always considered one of the main contenders in the club of authoritarian governments when it comes to limiting and blocking individual and social freedoms, using tools of repression and the blade of censorship to be at the forefront of these areas.

Iran Gate, in a report based on the latest statistics and information published by non-governmental and credible organizations, has taken a look at the state of internet freedom in Iran this time.

The non-governmental organization Freedom House announced in a report that Iran, with a negative five score out of a hundred, had the worst decline in internet freedom worldwide in 2023, and digital repression in this country has intensified.

The report states that the Islamic Republic government, following the death of Mahsa Zhina Amini in the custody of the morality police, had the greatest setback in the evaluation of internet freedom worldwide by cutting off the internet, blocking WhatsApp and Instagram, and increasing surveillance to suppress anti-government protests.

Iran, along with Myanmar, has been introduced as a country whose officials have considered the death penalty for citizens due to online expression, and it refers to the execution of two Iranians for blasphemy after publishing content on Telegram channels.

This report refers to Yousef Mehrdad and Sadrallah Fazeli Zare, two active users on social networks, who were executed by the Islamic Republic’s judiciary on May 8th this year on charges of what was called insulting Islamic sanctities and blasphemy against the Prophet of Islam.

The report states that in terms of the decline in internet freedom in 2023, after Iran, the Philippines with a negative four, and Belarus, Costa Rica, and Nicaragua each with a negative three, are ranked.

In this report, for the ninth consecutive year, China has been named the worst space for internet freedom. It is also noted that during the period of this report’s review, internet access restrictions occurred in at least 16 countries.

According to this report, in 55 out of 70 countries reviewed, citizens faced legal prosecution for expressing opinions through the internet, and in 41 countries, people were physically attacked or killed for expressing opinions online.

Freedom House also announced that the expansion and advancement of artificial intelligence have allowed some governments to use automated systems to enhance online censorship and control the spread of information.

Additionally, governments in 41 countries have used traditional methods to block websites that should be allowed to operate under the freedom of expression standards of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Even in democratic countries like the United States and European countries, restrictions have been imposed on websites or social networks under the pretext of concerns about foreign interference, fake news, and online security.

The report concludes that the decline in internet freedom worldwide has continued for the thirteenth consecutive year because it has worsened in 27 countries and improved in only 22. Freedom House reported last year that Iran imposes the most internet restrictions after China and Myanmar.