Dozens of Iranian Student Organizations Criticize Security Atmosphere and Summoning of Students

Dozens of student organizations in Iran criticized the summoning of student activists to “entities outside universities” and the suspension of student associations in a letter to Hassan Rouhani, Iran’s president.

In this letter, published on Sunday, April 17 on the Ensaf News website, 72 student organizations referred to the suspension of seven Islamic associations in recent months, the summoning of 50 student activists, and pressure on these organizations as policies of the ninth and tenth administrations regarding universities.

Continuing in this letter, the attempt to build cases, cancellation of previously issued permits without any explanation, creation of an atmosphere of fear and terror, exertion of pressure to change programs, threats and summoning to security institutions were cited among the problems facing student organizations and activists in recent months.

Criticism of the security atmosphere in universities comes at a time when Iran’s president repeatedly promised four years ago during his electoral campaign to remove the security atmosphere from universities. Mr. Rouhani faced difficulties in appointing his minister of science at the beginning of his administration; parliament rejected several of his candidates, and one minister was impeached after two years before Mohammad Farhadi finally assumed this position.

Source: Voice of America