Iran: Journalists leave the country
Persecution by the Iranian government is forcing media professionals critical of the regime to flee their homeland. The number of reporters, photographers, and bloggers who are currently leaving the country or planning to do so is the highest since the Islamic Revolution in 1979.
The background to this is the consistent persecution by the government under President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad since the controversial presidential election in June. Dozens have since been sent to prison, as the organization Reporters Without Borders (ROG) reports. The devastation of homes and the oppression of family members are also commonplace. "Journalists should actually only be arrested on the basis of the press law. Nowadays, however, they are simply accused of endangering national security because they took part in certain meetings and demonstrations or wrote newspaper articles," criticizes ROG.
