Iranian censors clamp down on bloggers

updated 9:02 a.m. ET Aug. 14, 2006

TEHRAN, Iran - Sayeed Habibi considers himself a marked man.  The reason: his Internet blog that challenges some of the policies of Iran's theocracy.

He predicts that someday — perhaps soon — he'll be taken to prison and his site will be shut down.  "And another voice will be silenced," said Habibi, a 34-year-old postgraduate and an unofficial elder statesman for student-led activist movements.  "I fully expect to see the inside of a jail cell."

He's not alone.

Iranian authorities are stepping up arrests and pressure on popular bloggers as part of a wider Internet clampdown launched after hard-liner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad became president last year, ending years of freewheeling Web access that once made Iran among the most vibrant online locales in the Middle East.

The Internet censors are busy.  Their targets include sexual content, international politics, local grumbling, chat rooms and anything else that makes the Islamic leadership uneasy.  Mohammad Ali Dadkhah, a prominent human rights lawyer, estimates at least 50 bloggers have been detained since last year.

The cyber-squeeze, however, is seen as more than a broad slap at dissent.  It shows vividly what authorities can and can't control.

The Islamic establishment is able to filter the Web through its oversight of all Iran's Internet service providers, as well as media, cinema, literature and other arts.

But conservatives have — at least in recent years — essentially given up on street culture.  Women continually push the limits with ever tighter and more revealing scarves and jackets.  Any type of Western music or Hollywood blockbuster is easily available with the right connections.  Satellite dishes are officially restricted, but sprout up everywhere.

The Internet is still up for grabs.  Web surfers can use peer-to-peer sites — sometimes called "data havens" — that bypass the state-controlled servers.  So far, the authorities are struggling to keep pace.

"It's the classic Iranian battle of freedom against controls," said Isa Saharkhiz, a member of the Iranian branch of the Committee to Protect Journalists.  "The crackdown on bloggers is part of a growing censorship policy by the state."

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