University student publication suspended

Iran Press News: The Amir Kabir University newsletter reported on Saturday, September 23rd, that on the first day of the new academic year, in an unprecedented and dogmatic move, the regime’s gurads and secret police collected and suspended the Amir Kabir polytechnic University’s student publication, entitled DOCHAR (Blight).

In it’s first issue, the magazine published an article entitled “I am being suffocated” which conveyed the confined atmosphere of the university, criticizing the University superintendency, the article had called for a free and open atmosphere for student activities be advocated.

The editors of DOCHAR who had received their permit after passing all the legal procedures of the universtiy publications supervisory committee, announced that the commander of the disciplinary guards had unconstitutionally claimed that the permit was illegal and proceeded to remove it; the disciplinary guards however are not granted authorization that would extend to such measures.

On the following day after the removal of DOCHAR’s permit, the second student publication entitled VAWZHEH was faced with the same problem. Vazheh journal has more than 7 years of a track record of excellence and is the best-known publications for students, professors and employees of Amir Kabir polytechnicUniversity.

A large number of disciplinary guards began conifiscating the publications from around the campus at around noon. The students who were unaware of the situation and who were busy distributing the publication were confronted with the violent and confrontational conduct of the disciplinary guards, to the point where the encounter lead to clashes. University students then lodged a complaint against the guards with representative of the regime in charge of student publications.

Subsequently however, in a probe lead by the cultural management of the university, the regime’s representative expressed no knowledge of the situation and appologizing to the editors of VAWZEH, promised that no such thing will occur again. He also said that the publication can once again begin distribution and any damages incurred by the tossing of the offices of the publication that would have happened at the hands of the guards will be financially covered. However no such steps were taken for DOCHAR publication.

In the midst of the destruction of the offices of the student association however, the files of 74 student activists were ordered to be blocked by the regimes’ representative; this action is only legally permissible by the order of the university president. When asked, Dr. Rahaii, the president of Amir Kabir University, feigned ignorance.