Well what did you expect them to say?
An Iranian cleric has called Facebook un-Islamic and sinful (Hat Tip: Memeorandum). ISNA on Saturday broadcast coverage of the response of Ayatollah Lotfollah Safi-Golpaygani, a senior cleric, to the question about Facebook and Iranian membership in the social networking service.Given that Iranian revolutionaries have been using Facebook and Twitter to communicate, is anyone really surprised by this? Does anyone think a contrary answer would have been released to the public?
"Basically, going to any website which propagates immoralities and could weaken the religious belief is un-Islamic and not allowed, and membership in it is therefore haram (a sin)," the ayatollah replied.
"Only the use of websites propagating religious criteria and not leading to any kind of ethical immoralities is of no problem," he added.
According to official figures released last October, 17 million Iranians have a Facebook account, despite heavy restrictions and filtering imposed by the government.
Due to the popularity of Facebook with younger generations, observers believe that the number of real Iranian Facebook users could be much higher than 17 million.
Iran has a population of 70 million, of which than 60 per cent is under the age of 30.
Over 5 million websites are reportedly blocked in Iran, but Iranians use proxy software and virtual private networks (VPN) to access them.
Iranian officials have, for over three decades, been waging what they call a "battle against the invasion of Western culture."
posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 7:35 PM
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