Carnival-goers parade with a float proclaiming “free Iran”, in Düsseldorf, western Germany, on February 20, 2023. This photo is taken against a backdrop where Iran is experiencing strong repressions from the regime. THILO SCHMUELGEN / REUTERS
Iranian authorities on Monday suspended publication of Sazandegui, a reformist newspaper known for its critical stance towards the government, state media said.
Founded in 2018, the daily is the organ of the reformist Sazandegui party formed by technocrats close to the former moderate president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani.
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“Disturbance to public opinion”
The newspaper has denounced the government’s economic management in recent weeks, accusing it of having “sold public property at auctionto finance its budget deficit. The press supervisory board closed Sazandegi “due to its insistence on posting fake content” and for “have troubled public opinion in recent months“, announced the Irna agency, without further details.
The newspaper has in particular criticized in recent months the morality police, responsible for overseeing the Islamic Republic’s strict dress code for women. As a political party, Sazandegui indicates on its site to militate for the “country development” and an “rational management of government affairs“.
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Iran has been rocked by a protest movement since the death on September 16 of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurd who died after being arrested by vice police, who accused her of breaking the strict dress code of the Islamic Republic.
In November, the economic newspaper Jahan-é Sanat was briefly shut down after accusations against the security forces. According to the Association of Journalists of Tehran, there are still 10 journalists imprisoned in connection with the demonstrations triggered after the death of Mahsa Amini.
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