Jadi Mirmirani, considered to be one of Iran’s leading technologists and a defender of digital rights, has said that he has been sentenced to six years in prison for comments he posted on social media.
Mirmirani announced his sentencing in a video address posted to his Twitter account, and said he hopes the ruling will be overturned on appeal.
The activist HRANA news agency reported that Mirmirani was detained in October during Iran’s ongoing nationwide protests and was sentenced by the Tehran Revolutionary Court on charges of illegal assembly and collusion against national security, which are punishable by five years’ imprisonment.
Mirmirani received an additional year in prison on charges of propagandizing against Iran’s clerical regime, according to the news agency.
Following more than two months of detention Mirmirani was temporarily released pending the outcome of his case.
Iran’s authorities have faced protests across the country since the September 16 death in police custody of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who was detained for an alleged violation of the state-mandated requirement that women wear a head scarf.
The wave of demonstrations in solidarity with Amini, and against the hijab requirement and the clerical establishment, have evolved into the biggest threat to the Islamic government since it took power in the 1979 revolution.
Amid the protests, the Iranian government imposed a near-total shutdown of the Internet. Mirmirani has been vocal in informing the public about the involvement of Iranian providers in shutting down Internet access. At least four other digital activists are believed to have been detained for protesting Internet shutdowns.
Rights groups say that the government’s violent crackdown on the protests has resulted in the deaths of nearly 500 people, including 62 children.
Tehran blames the West for the demonstrations and has vowed to crack down even harder on protesters.
Several prominent Iranian public figures — including athletes, film stars, lawyers, and musicians — have been summoned by the police or arrested for their alleged involvement in the demonstrations.
Source: RFERL
