NCRI – In addition to extensive suppressive measures in cities across Iran, the mullahs have resorted to psychological warfare and deceptions on the internet to clampdown on dissent during the upcoming Fire Festival (Chaharshanbe Souri) celebration.
In a bid to encourage the youth to keep silence and remain inactive during the Fire Festival, the Iranian regime's intelligence organs that oversee these actions have distributed deceptive guidelines asking the participants to be silent in order “not to give excuses to those who seek violence (the Iranian regime's suppressive force),” “not to raise our (protesters) expectations,” and not to chant slogans targeting the foundations of the regime. They even distributed messages calling for the “boycott of Chaharshanbe Souri” to astray and pacify the youth.
After weeks of failed propaganda to portray the celebration as superstitious and contradictory to Islamic teachings, the regime recently has resorted to a new tactic of trying to highlight the so-called positive aspects of the event. By doing so the regime's news media encourage people to refrain from having fireworks and protests and instead cook soups and observe other traditional customs.
Meanwhile, the Telecommunications Company of Iran which is controlled by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has already started filtering the internet such that since Tuesday the lines have become very slow and disrupted.
According to instructions by Tehran Province Logistical Council, on the day of celebration, in the city's districts that clashes may occur, mobile network will be turned off and Internet bandwidth will be diminished to its minimum level such that access to news websites and email communications are limited and spread of news of protests are prevented. The instructions emphasize that the internet should not be completely blocked but it should become so slow that users would spend a lot time on it.
Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran
March 10, 2010