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Hossein Derakhshan

Blogger sentenced to death, reports say

globalvoicesonline.org, Hamid Tehrani: A reliable source has told Global Voices that Tehran's prosecutor is seeking the death penalty for jailed Iranian blogger Hossein Derakhshan (also known as “Hoder”). The presiding judge, named Salavati, has not yet ruled in the case. Derakhshan has been accused of “collaborating with enemy states, creating propaganda against the Islamic regime, insulting religious sanctity, and creating propaganda for anti-revolutionary groups.” He was arrested 22 months ago, and his trial began in June 2010.

The reasons for Hoder’s initial arrest upon his return to Iran from Canada in 2008 remain unclear, but many speculated that his two (highly publicised) trips to Israel were the primary reason.

Derakhshan holds a Canadian passport, but Iran does not recognize dual citizenship and visiting Israel is frowned upon by the government.

Confusing in this case, is that Hoder gained worldwide notoriety as a leading Iranian blogger and free speech activist (even blogging for Global Voices in 2004 and 2005). Later he changed tacks and wrote favorably of President Mahmoud Ahmedinajhad's policies regarding the United States, nuclear weapons, Israel, and even intolerance for public dissent from human rights activists >>>

20-Sep-2010
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Rosie.

Sargord, jj

by Rosie. on

Sargord, you wrote: 

Unconfirmed details from an anonymous source.

Before we get our feathers all ruffled and start clucking away like hens in a hen house, let's first let the actual facts emerge- shall we?

You were right in advising caution, especially if it was about people possibly construing that the death penalty had actually been meted out. This is explicitly stated (obviously unintentionally) in the subtitle above. And although it appeared in quotes on the homepage, it still could have led people to that conclusion. (And here, Jahanshah, sorry but I have to say that that was careless and irresponsible, regardless of whether you were swept up by the shock of the moment. As was I, but I am not the owner and I'm not a professional journalist. Now back to you, Sargord, and please read carefully).

Sargord, there was every reason in the world to 'start clucking away' over the mere possibility that the prosecution was arguing for the capital penalty.. I still don't know if it was true but if you were familiar with the case you would have known, as I explained in my first post here, that it was somewhere on the table. If you weren't familiar, well, you should've been.

I don't mean to beat a dead horse, but Sargord, it never dies, so I am going to refresh your memory about the events of several weeks ago. You accused Jahanshah (sorry, j., this is about him, not you...) of at very least having a bias in favor of Zionism as well as of having had the option to have screened out that IDF -related ad. As is often the case, you were both right and wrong.

I categorically proved to you that the site is not biased pro Zionism by digging up a link to the news section during the invasion of Gaza because you wouldn't do it yourself. And you didn't admit it. But here you tell people not to get 'all ruffled' until 'facts emerge'. At the same time you turned out to be right that the ad could've been screened, but someone else went and found out, because when I told you to corroborate with google advertising you wouldn't do it--despite the seriousness of your allegation. Well, in fact, Hoder just got 19.5 years. As you know. So have you started clucking yet? I wonder.

So let's think about this, 'shall we'?

(As corollary, Jahanshah, I guess it wouldn't really be fair to Sargord unless I mentioned that you never did address that serious issue on Sagord's thread properly. There. Done.)

Robin 

 


Rosie.

I should apologize to everyone /Sargord, 'jj'

by Rosie. on

for the extremeness of my comment below. I hope you can understand the extent of my distress upon seeing this. I do want to discuss the Hoder issue and there are--and hopefully will continue to be--ample opportunities throughout the site to do so. (I do have a couple of things to say right here to Sargord--and'jj' as corollary--though). I do still find the relative lack of interest since his arrest through the announcement of his trial until now--a span of almost two years--upsetting and hypocritical in terms of the site membership taken as a whole. But, again, I apologize to any individuals I may have unfairly offended.

Robin 

 


spatima

why was my post deleted?

by spatima on

and exactly why was my post deleted?

too liberal for JJ's taste?

 

 

In hope of a Free, Independent and Secular Iran


humanbeing

gesture

by humanbeing on

i think ic as a cybersite owes it to the ultimate iranian blogfather and most visible and outspoken iranian cybersymbol (sorry jj, no disrespect) not only to voice a tepid sympathy, but to make an unequivocal bid for freedom of bloggery and voice it assertively. and to do this even if ic members are not in love with the nuances and vacillations of the hoder phenomenon.

the world must understand that this regime is threatening to kill a man for blogging. an analog of stoning a woman for 'adultery'.

the ic community -- a community of bloggers -- must symbolically (even at the risk of seeming to go for a mere gesture, such as a petition) distance itself from such a practice, and cannot afford to do an equally despicable thing, that is to complacently condemn hoder to death for indecent exposure, bad etiquette, or inconsistent ideology; if it does so or complicitly wallows in inaction, ic is compromising its own legitimacy, imho.

 i think hoder did some despicable things, just as i have and many of us have,  for which none of us deserve to be put to death. 

please sign, and split hairs later.

 

ps rosie this is very important, thank you keeping us aware. 


Roozbeh_Gilani

political bargaining, Islamist style.

by Roozbeh_Gilani on

He is being used to exert pressure on his father who happens to be in so called "reformist, opposition camp". His blogging activity is just a conveniet excuse. Doubt very much if he'd be executed. There are Tens of thousand of jailed  Kurdish, baloochi, student , women and workers activists who "deserve death" many times more in the eyes of islamist regime.


Rosie.

If everyone thinks this is so horrible

by Rosie. on

how come people had so little to say about it before? Ten weeks ago I wrote a blog about him which  provided many links on about him.

//iranian.com/main/blog/rosie/hossein-derakhshan-hoder

You can see by the counter it was widely read but few people commented. If anyone clicked on one of those links they sure didn't tell me. Humanbeing and Niloufar were there commenting and I had e-mailed them and asked them to. I said in the blog that there was a time when Hoder was still a Reformist and had gone to Israel but his views on Ahmadinejad were changing. And at that time he represented a microcosm of this entire website--of the Greens, the 'pro-IRI' people so-called, and the Those Who Call People Pro-IRI camp. That he was in a certain way you. That HE IS ONE OF US and HE IS ALL OF YOU. And that you all needed to talk about this because it doesn't get any closer than this and the feelings must be so deep yet so ambivalent. You can see only one comment is even really sympathetic (beyond Hb's and Nilou's).And the Iranians of the Day (which I linked) don't show a great outpouring of concern either.

The possible death penalty sentence at the time had not been announced but I was very aware that the charge would involve some kind of espionage which could lead to that. That is what I tried to imply, and did so more strongly in one post to Nilou, but she did not think it would be that serious. I wanted to believe her but I knew inside I was right. I tried to find out more information after that but couldn't. I was disheartened after the first blog to really continue since it was so hard to find. I know Darius has been consistently vocal about his concern for Hoder here but somehow he did not comment on my blog. As I said I felt that conversation was very important, because of the deep but ambivalent feelings attached to him. Well, pretty no one I didn't invite had a thing to say, so now people who disparaged or ignored him after his arrest can use him as their poster child against IRI. I don't want anyone to answer this post, especially not anyone who read my blog and said nothing (at least to help give me the strength to continue working on his case here) because my answer would be go to hell. Well, anyway, if anyone wo really wants to beat their breasts should read the last comment Humanbeing wrote on my thread. The more carefully read, the better.

psdearRosiewhyRUsuchadramaqueen?


alimostofi

This regime lives in the

by alimostofi on

This regime lives in the media JJ, so that is what good it does.  They view that they have to take us on.  We bloggers, or even those who were doing this before blogs were around (your truly) were nothing for a long time, as the internet in those days was dismissed.

Now people are using amazing tools like tumblr that use mobiles to create web pages.  The hits we are getting are more than the main media outlets.  The print press that brought the Ayatollahs is dead.  No one reads their articles.  Citizen Iran Journalist has won.

The end is there for them.  We need RP to get the cultural theme going.  We need no-political, non-business, non-religious movement that is united along cultural lines.  Culture comes before democracy even.  Culture is sacred.

 

Ali Mostofi

//www.alimostofi.com

 


ghalam-doon

Reliable source?

by ghalam-doon on

The timing of this "announcement" is dubious. It coincides with Ahmadinejad's trip to New York

It seems there are people within the establishment who try their utmost to embarrass Ahmadinejad, not that he really cares. They give ammunition to Western countries to hammer Iran for its Human Rights abuses. I wont be surprised if the American delegate to the UN would bring up the case of Hoder.

Who runs the country? God only knows but the establishment has many sides which often do not coexist.

 

 


Simorgh5555

You know what I'm going to say..............

by Simorgh5555 on

Please support military action. Target assassinations of all Sepah,  Basijis and ministers of the Islamic Republic.

Kill them using a satellite guided missile just after they drop their child to school and on their way to work. Make sure there car explodes in full public view so every one can see. Maximum impact.

If their bodies can be located then parade their bullet riddled bodies on TV so everone can see just like Saddam's sons Uday and Qusai.

terror= counter terror 

Death to the Islamic Republic. 


Mohammad Ala

I am against death penalty

by Mohammad Ala on

I am against death penalty.

 


default

international community

by I Voted Ahmadinejad on

It is like father to iranian diasporas opposing Iran. it gives them money, feeds them, provides them with material support..... Oh without international community this bunch will actualy have to work. I wonder, why dady is not buying them a ticket to Iran to overthrow the regime??? 

ram jams


default

it is long way to go

by I Voted Ahmadinejad on

سیزده بدر 6 ماه دیگر است.

ram jams


statira

We all need to save him

by statira on

from death row in any possible way.I wonder how the case of Sakineh Ashtiani got so publicized. We need to do the same for Hossein Derakhshan.


Nader Vanaki

یا فیلمه یا کشکه

Nader Vanaki


مثل همه خبرهای مثل این.  پٌست استراکچرالیزم در و دیوار زندان اوین رو عشق است.  چه فیلسوفی این بیاد بیرون! عینهو خود ارشمیدس!

Benyamin

This is sad

by Benyamin on

I guess he is a confused individual.


Sargord Pirouz

Unconfirmed details from an

by Sargord Pirouz on

Unconfirmed details from an anonymous source.

Before we get our feathers all ruffled and start clucking away like hens in a hen house, let's first let the actual facts emerge- shall we?


persian westender

I really can not believe

by persian westender on


that he will be executed. It is a total disgrace and madness. Let's hope it's not true.  

 


Souri

Very sad news

by Souri on

I never liked him, nor  did I agree with his opinions, but sending a journalist to death just because he expressed his ideas, is inadmissible.

I wish he will be released. 


Ehsan karimi

JJ, what are you laughing

by Ehsan karimi on

JJ, what are you laughing at? This isn't funny.

Why everyone here is asking world and international community to help him? What about you?


کلاه مخملی

مریضن واقعا .. !

کلاه مخملی


..

 

 


Disenchanted

Naah...I don't think so!

by Disenchanted on

 

       It aint gonna happen! But again what was he thinking?! Traveling to Israel and publicizing it and then going back to Iran?!!Expecting what?! A warm welcome?! 

       I think he'll survive this and come out with more celebrity status that gives him a wider platform to spread his ideas whatever they're worth!!

        Lets wish him best!

      


default

.

by Shepesh on

.


Darius Kadivar

Christian Amanpour should have also asked about his predicament

by Darius Kadivar on

I hope this sentence will prove false and won't be carried out.

This is absolutely ridiculous all the more that Hossein was staunchly a supporter of the regime which has decided to imprison him.

Christian Amanpour should have also asked Ahmadinejad about his predicament 

I wish him well ...

 


bihonar

Amazing

by bihonar on

I have never heard of any dictatorship in the course of the modern history to be this harsh and barbaric.

But I guess I have been underestimating the evil of Islam.


divaneh

More publicity

by divaneh on

will save him. This is proven that they don't go crazy in publicized cases such as Ashtiani's and some other high profile detainees. I however agree with JJ and don't think that they would pass such a crazy sentence.


Simorgh5555

Jahanshah

by Simorgh5555 on

If the reported stroy is true then you can be certain they WILL kill him.  Or like our beloved Omid Reza Mirsayafi he will be murdered in prison and blame it on 'natural causes'. They will get their way and the world will condemn it. Nothing will change.


Onlyiran

The world should come to his rescue and voice their

by Onlyiran on

outrage.  I really didn't like the majority of what Hoder used to write.  But he has the right to free speech, and he is going to be killed because of his writings.  Barbaric...


Jahanshah Javid

Pathetic

by Jahanshah Javid on

I doubt he will be executed, unless his captors are crazier than we imagine. And I know they can. Blood keeps them going.

Putting a blogger, the most famous blogger, to death on baseless, fabricated charges? The death sentence alone is ridiculous enough. What kind of government does that?

Jailing bloggers, journalists, activists, critics... what good has it done?

Tyrants... so pathetic.