The US laws outlaw or stop US companies from conducting any trade with anybody, both corporates and individuals in countries under US sanctions.  While this is an understandable proposition, it sometimes is very difficult to judge if this is really promoting democracy and free speech or it is curtailing democracy.

Bluehost, which hosts wordpress blogs in Iran is about to start taking them down.  Bluehost which incidentally hosts the CPB site, is doing this to conform with US legislature.  The flip side of it is that these blogs are the only form or uncensored news and opinion in the Iranian society.  To take this blogs down would inadvertently be to the advantage and would be supporting the Iranian regime.

Bluehost has cited its Terms of Service in these actions and the fact that most blogs are hosted by it would see, lots of blogs which we depend on to get information out of Iran shutting down.

CPB asks Bluehost to reconsider, shutting or taking down these blogs would be to the detriment of free speech and open discussions in Iran.  It would be ‘assisting Iran’s censorship activities, if I can call it that.  Other hosts are starting todo the same and at this rate, we’ll have no blogs posting from Iran.

Ethan Zuckerman wrote about Bluehost taking down the Kubatana blog network from Zimbabwe and we hope that by writing on this we will at least get Bluehost to rethink their policy.

For any Iranian blogger who would like an alternative, we sugget that you get in touch with Esra’a at Mideastyouth to see if they can find a way of helping you out or to check out this list of free speech webhosts though we dont vouch for any of them.