TV and radio broadcasters, including BBC World Service and Voice of America, are condemning actions of the government of Iran for blocking their signals into the country.
A new wave of jamming occurred during the celebration last week of the 31st anniversary of the Islamic revolution, celebrations that also included protests by Iranians who believe last year’s presidential elections there were rigged to return President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to power.
The jamming is affecting services on the Hotbird satellite, which covers audiences across Europe and the Middle East, according to the Web site Indiantelevision.com.
In a joint statement, representatives of the BBC, VoA and Deutsche Welle said that the jamming violates article 45 of the constitution of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) that prohibits signal interference. The broadcasters have filed a complaint with the ITU against Iran.
The statement notes that Iranian authorities are using satellite services to broadcast in English and Arabic what they want the world to see at the same time they are jamming signals from other broadcasters coming into Iran.
