Press Law Not Implemented In Iran
Iran Daily: Association of Iranian Journalists (AIJ) in a statement Sunday protested the non-implementation of the Press Jury Law.
Parliament approved the urgency of a bill, which if ratified will replace the existing Press Jury Law with its predecessor for one year.
Lawmakers who proposed the bill say sufficient funds have not been allocated for selecting members of the Press Jury. IRNA quoted part of the statement as saying that, “Amending press laws during the last days of the Fifth Majlis imposed many restrictions in terms of press activities.
Meanwhile, efforts of the Sixth Majlis for reverting to the press laws ratified in 1985 also did not bear fruit. The only accomplishment of the Sixth Majlis was the measures they adopted for implementing Article 168 of the constitution.”
Based on that article, political and press offenses are attended in open courts and in the presence of a jury while members of the jury are selected on the basis of Islamic tenets.
The statement went on to say that, “It is obvious the verdicts of these courts would be legitimate only when a jury is present. However, some 18 months after the ratification of this law, its implementation has been delayed for various reasons. The core issue is that
the jury can be effective when its members are selected and not appointed.”
The statement urged the legislators not to support
the bill and hence allow the law that necessitates the presence of a press jury be implemented.
