Iran’s culture minister wants ban on social media lifted

Iran’s Culture and Islamic Guidance Minister Ali Jannati wants Iranians to be able to waste time like the rest of the world on social-networking sites like Twitter and Facebook.

"Not only Facebook, but also other social networks have to be accessible, and there should be no legal constraints to access them," he was quoted as saying by the Islamic Republic News Agency.

Iran blocked social-networking sites in 2009, after activists used them to organize post-election protests.

A growing number of senior Iranian officials, including Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Marzieh Afkham, have Facebook and/or Twitter accounts. President Hassan Rouhani’s Twitter account has more than 122,000 followers.

Jannati noted that, in spite of the ban, ordinary Iranian citizens are still able to access information. Many access social media sites via virtual private networks (VPNs) on computers located outside Iran. It’s estimated that about 2 million residents of Iran have Facebook accounts.

Jannati said the social media ban would have to be overturned by Iran’s "Filtering Committee,” which oversees Internet bans.

In September, a computer glitch allowed Iranians to freely access Facebook and Twitter for a few hours before a Web firewall went back up again.