Saturday, 25 April 2009

• The Case of Roxana Saberi

  Hilary Clinton is talking about it. President Obama is talking about it. Even Jesse Jackson is talking about it. It has been a headline on the scroll bar for CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC. It has been one of the top headlines on homepages of Yahoo, Hotmail, and AOL. Unless you have been purposely avoiding it, I am sure you know who Roxana Saberi is. In case you don't, she is an Iranian-American journalist, living in Iran, that was recently arrested and tried on charges of spying and sentenced to prison for eight years. This has sent waves of outrage through the United States about unfair treatment, unfair trial, and sympathy for Ms. Saberi.
  
  I'm sorry, but I am of a different point-of-view.
  
  Ms. Saberi had a career in newspaper and television before she decided that she was going to go Iran to study and work on a book about the Iranian people and culture. Since her father was born in Iran, she has Iranian citizenship. While in Iran, she became a freelance reporter for such agencies as NPR and BBC. In 2006, her press credentials were stripped from her, however she continued to report for those agencies. She was finishing up her work on her book there and planned to return to the United States later this year when she was arrested. Initially, she told her father that she was arrested for purchasing wine, something illegal in Islamic countries. The news came out, however, that she was arrested for reporting without government press credentials. And then when she was charged, it was because of spying. She was charged to eight years, unprecedented for an Iranian journalist. She has now begun a hunger strike until she is released.
  
  As a journalist, there are many things with this story that don't sit well with me, based on facts that I know to be true about the job, particularly when reporting from a foreign country. As someone that can hold dual citizenship with another country, there are things that don't sit well with me. Again, things that I know be true. Finally, as someone who has actually traveled in the Middle East and has been to Islamic countries, there are even more things that don't sit well for me.
  
  

  • 1. She was reporting without proper press credentials in a government not known for fairness. When you are in a foreign country reporting,  you respect their rules and regulations. If they tell you to give them the tape, you give them the tape. If they tell you that you cannot report from a certain location, you do not report from that location. If they take your press credentials away, despite who you may be freelancing for, you become an every day citizen and not a member of the press.
  • 2. Because both of my parents are immigrants, I can hold dual citizenship in two other countries: Ireland and England. In my research on holding dual citizenship, which includes speaking with government officials of these countries and exchanges with others who also hold dual citizenship, one thing I know to be true is if I go to that country, I am a citizen of that country. My ignorance to their laws and their regulations is not excused because I am an American. Ireland and England are not nearly as oppressive as Iran, I know this, however the same holds true. When in Rome, do as the Romans do.
  • 3. The year after 9/11, I traveled to the Mid East with a research group studying the affects that living in an Islamic country had on women's perception of themselves. It was one of the most enlightening experiences of my lifetime and one that I am forever grateful for. You see, as Americans, we often think our way is the only way, but being around other cultures and religions, it made me see that as much as we think our way is the only way, others think the same thing. While there, I knew what the risks were. Besides knowing what the risks were, I also knew what rules I needed to follow because I was in their country. They are very strict on dress code, on recreational activity, and on the woman's role in those areas. I was there for a few weeks. Ms. Saberi has been living there for several years. She knew that buying wine was illegal. She knew that reporting without press credentials was illegal. She showed disregard for their laws.

  
  As an American, I would expect an Iranian visitor to be held to our laws. I would expect a Mexican visitor to be held to our laws. I would expect a Canadian  visitor to be held to our laws. You all would, too. They are our laws and in place for a reason. I would expect even more from someone who is a citizen of this country, and unfortunately, in this country, when you don't follow that laws, you get sent to jail or prison. In some jails, like Orleans Parish Prison, people die there. Guards beat the inmates. In Guantanimo Bay, prisoners were waterboarded. That's also all over the news. The arguments about her being an American mean nothing to me, because she is also an Iranian. The arguments about her simply buying wine mean nothing to me, as it is illegal in Islamic countries. The arguments about her reporting mean nothing to me, because she was reporting illegally. The arguments about what may happen to her in prison over there mean nothing to me, because our own prisons contain much of the same thing and we have treated inmates from other countries nearly as bad.
  
  I would also like to point out that she confessed to charges of espionage. Some say she was tricked into it. Some say she only told the Iranians what they wanted to hear so she would be released. Understand that most journalists that have been arrested there have been held a few days and then released without formal charges being placed upon them. This case is very different than the other ones.
  
  In some countries, when you report on the government without having their permission to do so, that is considered spying. And if that is the definition that Iran uses, then she is indeed guilty of the crime she is being charged with.
  
  The bottom line is that actions of a very foolish girl put her in the position that she is in. Her professor spoke to her about the dangers of going to a country like Iran before she left and she understand and accepted them. She told her father on many occasions that she knew she was being watched and listened to, yet she continued to report without credentials and then purchased wine, giving them a reason to arrest her. While under their care, she lied about her involvement to be released. The fact that Iran is treating this so much differently than other journalist leads me to believe that where there is smoke, there is fire. One could argue that they are trying to push President Obama to see exactly how far he will go, however, why has this not happened with the change of every president since our problems with Iran have started?
  
  The other side of the story, and you can put as much worth into this as you want, deals with the book she was writing. There are many in the journalistic world that believe that she was arrested for buying wine purposefully to include information about the Iranian prison system in her book. Some say she was a highly intelligent woman that knew she was being watched, and since journalist haven't even been brought to trial in that country before, perhaps she thought a few days would give her insight and make a rather sensational platform for her book, not only on content but also on sales. Us media types are douche bags and have been known to do far crazier things than that for a story.
  
  Ultimately, though, I do not think that the United States should be getting as involved in this as they are. This deals with international law and it deals with citizenship. The US Constitution doesn't fold up and sit nicely in your passport. Especially when you are considered a citizen of another country and intentionally break their rules.
  
  Sorry, Roxana, but I am under the belief that you did break Iranian law, that you are guilty, and that any hunger strike you may be on is futile.
  
  
  
  

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