Iranian authors publish banned works on the internet

Shahrzad News: The book publishing industry is now experiencing its own revolution. The internet and other forms of information technology have opened up unprecedented new channels of communication. Independent Iranian writers have been quick to make good use of these new opportunities, publishing banned titles online where readers can easily access them.

More and more Iranian writers have announced that they are publishing their banned titles online, after the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance rejected licence applications for printed versions. This courageous move, bypassing the regime’s draconian publishing regulations at the click of a mouse, benefits both writers and readers.

The year before the 1979 revolution, renowned Iranian historian Baqer Momeni boldly ignored contemporary censorship rules to publish Writers’ Grievances via the Goethe Institute in Tehran. He announced: “My book contravenes neither the three articles of our country’s constitution that refer to the International Charter of Human Rights, nor amendments aimed at protecting the rights of artists, authors, and publishers. Consequently I see no reason to apply to the censorship office for a licence to publish it.”

The book sold out within seven days, and a few weeks later the Touka publishing house decided to re-print it in its original version, again without applying for a licence. It set a trend, with other Iranian writers and publishers defying the repressive organs of the former Imperial regime in similar ways. The publication of so-called “white cover books” is now recognised as a proud chapter in the history of the Iranian people’s struggle for freedom of speech.

This hard-won freedom did not last long. The Islamic Republic regime which came to power after the revolution was responsible for yet harsher and more repressive censorship, and there was a brutal crackdown on intellectuals and writers. For the last three decades Ministry of Islamic Guidance assessors have been busy round the clock, stamping “Unsuitable For Publishing” on thousands of books which they claim are incompatible with Islamic ideology and values. These assessors are concerned, not just with content, but also with the character and background of the writers. The names of many renowned Iranian authors are enough to ensure that they will never be granted a licence. Thousands of manuscripts are gathering dust in the ministry’s basement, waiting for some junior official to decide if they are fit for publication.

In recent years even ‘Islamist’ writers loyal to the regime have become involved. Many such people, who once sat behind ministry desks denying hundreds of authors the right to publish their works, are themselves publicly complaining about the harsh censorship rules.

The book publishing industry is now experiencing its own revolution. The internet and other forms of information technology have opened up unprecedented new channels of communication. Independent Iranian writers have been quick to make good use of these new opportunities, publishing banned titles online where readers can easily access them. As soon as a writer fails to acquire a license he or she turns to the magic of the internet, and the trend is expanding rapidly.

Take for example The Colonel, by leading writer Mahmoud Dolatabadi, who was already a dissident under Iran’s previous regime. Three years ago the novel was published online in German, after the Ministry of Culture failed to grant it a license. His works have now been translated into several languages, and he is well-known internationally as well as at home.