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October 9, 2011
Marzieh Vafamehr
October 9, 2011
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OCT — Actress Marzieh Vafamehr Sentenced

Actress Marzieh Vafamehr was sentenced to one-year in prison and 90 lashes. After international protest, this sentence was reduced to three months with no lashes.Maziar Vafamehr was arrested for appearing in the film "Tehran for Sale" without hejab, but with her head shaved. Appearing in films without hejab was not unprecedented in Iran.
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October 6, 2011
October 6, 2011
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Featured Issue: HIV/AIDS

Since the middle of the 1980s, Iran, like most other countries in the world, has grappled with a growing number of citizens diagnosed with the Acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). In a series of articles, we will be looking into the ways in which civil society organizations and activists have worked to bring more awareness to the disease, curb its growth, and work with governments to improve policy. In this first article, we will be providing a brief history and prevalence of AIDS in Iran.A 2011 report by the United Nations Development Program in Iran claims that HIV/AIDS was brought to Iran in two waves – the first wave in the mid-1980s and the second wave in the 1990s. According to the report, the first wave is attributed to transmission of the virus through blood transfusions of blood infected with the virus. The second was noted in prisons where unsafe practices led to infection.Over the past few years, though, the use of illicit drugs in Iran has compounded the problem. Almost 2.8% of Iran’s population are addicted to opiates.
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October 5, 2011
October 5, 2011
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Help Us Learn More: Tell Us What You Think

Click here to take the survey. Arseh Sevom is conducting a survey to gain an understanding of how organizations and civil society activists get started and overcome obstacles. You can help us learn more by filling out this survey. If you would rather we talk to you over the phone, please contact us using the form here.This questionnaire is the first in a series. We hope that you will continue to share your experiences and knowledge with us over time.The goal of this survey is to learn more about how to face and overcome challenges. We plan to publish a selection of the responses on our site and use the results to develop toolkits. You can choose to remain anonymous or you can choose to associate your responses with your name and organization. It's up to you.
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October 5, 2011
October 5, 2011
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Are You a Civil Society Activist?

What is Civil SocietyClick here for the complete post.Before trying to delve deep into a practical definition of a “civil society activist” let us see what is exactly meant by a “civil society”.According to Jeffrey C. Alexander – one of the thinkers who has helped us understand this rather abstract idea – civil society was conceived in the 18th century in a positive way. It was in the words of the philosopher Immanuel Kant, “a burgher, city dweller’s society.” Later, more complex ideas were annexed to the endless definitions and as per a recent version, civil society is “a basic configuration in which society stands apart from the state, develops autonomously and becomes increasingly conscious of such autonomy at both the individual and the collective levels.” All that would translate into an active society wherein citizens take matters related to their community, neighborhood, rights and etc. into their own hands – “civilly”. These activities might include forming associations, clubs, organizations, developing networks and raising awareness on their issues of concern.
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September 27, 2011
September 27, 2011
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Remembering Wangari Maathai, I Will Be a Hummingbird

“I have always believed that, no matter how dark the cloud, there is always a thin, silver lining, and that is what we must look for.” – Prof. Wangari MaathaiArseh Sevom remembers the Nobel Prize winning activist, Prof. Wangari Maathai who died recently of ovarian cancer.For many of us, she is a hero, someone who is not daunted by even the largest of problems. As one of our staff says, "It’s tough to imagine Prof. Maathai being no more. True, she never looked like she was 71 and I have seen people much younger than her be consumed by that affliction. But still, there are people that you don’t ever wish to think of as mortal. For me, Maathai was one such person."Maathai was the founder of the Green Belt Movement. She began the movement in 1977 in order to respond to environmental degradation. It all began with the planting of trees.Read more
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September 24, 2011
September 24, 2011
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SEPT — House of Cinema Issues Statement in Support of Detained Documentary Filmmakers

The House of Cinema issued a statement in support of several filmmakers detained for contact with the BBC. They question the legal basis for the arrests, pointing out that the government itself has contact with international news organizations.An excerpt from the statement reads:"In all parts of the world governments support sale and export of films and artworks by offering a variety of incentives to artists. Iranian artists do not expect the government to help them; they only expect that sale of films to television networks is not treated as serious security offense, and are not announced by the media as confirmed violations of law even before the offense has been considered at the court."Read more...
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September 7, 2011
September 7, 2011
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Was Your Gmail Account Safe?

More than 300,000 Iranians have had their Gmail accounts compromised. From the report by the investigative firm Fox-IT, the security firm hired to investigate the stolen DigiNotar security certificates, it is clear that as early as July 28, the company was aware that falsified security certificates were in use in Iran. This is one month earlier than the first public notice, which was made by a Google Chrome user in Iran. (Read more background information.)The report, Operation Black Tulip (pdf), states:
They used both known hacker tools as well as software and scripts developed specifically for this task. Some of the software gives an amateurish impression, while some scripts, on the other hand, are very advanced. In at least one script, fingerprints from the hacker are left on purpose, which were also found in the Comodo breach investigation of March 2011.
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September 6, 2011
September 6, 2011
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Cultural Censorship in Iran

The Small Media Foundation has published the report, Cultural Censorship in Iran: Iranian Culture in a State of Emergency. This report looks at government pressure on and censorship of publishing, music, theater, and film, demonstrating an increase since the disputed 2009 presidential elections.The findings of the authors, Mostafa Khalaji, Bronwen Robertson, and Maryam Aghdami, show the efforts of the regime to make the barriers towards public culture even higher by pulling previously approved books off the shelves, controlling funding and licenses for films, denying musicians and theater groups access to their audience, and other acts of suppression.The publishing industry has been especially hard hit. The independent writer's organization, The Forum of Iranian Writers, is being supplanted by the deceptively named, Pen Association of Iran, a government-sponsored organization. The regime financially supports like-minded authors and publishers and purchases mass quantities of their books. In that way they can claim that the number of books published remains high. Bookstores are being shut down at an alarming rate.Read more...
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