Iran lifts block on Facebook
Good news: the Iranians can now surf on Facebook.
Iran restored access to Facebook Tuesday after blocking the popular website for four days.
As it’s often the case with the Iranian government, nothing is clear with this story.
The government didn’t say why it blocked access to Facebook last Saturday. It didn’t say why it decided to lift the block on Tuesday. And didn’t say if this lift is permanent or not.
Many people think the government blocked Facebook for electoral reasons. The electoral campaign is running strong right now in Iran, and the reformist opposition is massively using Facebook to reach the young Iranians (more than half the population of Iran was born after the 1979 Islamic Revolution).
In any case, this block should be seen as another sign of the control-freak regime put in place by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Iranian authorities often block websites what are considered going against the Islamic Regime.
Let’s just hope this ungracious strategy ends up going against those who used it to control their citizens and restrict their liberties.
Contributed by PHILIPPE MERCURE
