The people of Iran are banned from using Twitter or other social networks—everyone except for their new president, Hassan Rouhani.
Last night, Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey tweeted President Rouhani, directly asking him, sarcastically, if the citizens of his country were able to read his tweets:
@HassanRouhani Good evening, President. Are citizens of Iran able to read your tweets?
Surprisingly, President Rouhani responded to him (he has 94,000 followers compared to Dorsey's 2.4 million), and gave a small sign that the ban could be lifted sometime in the future.
Rouhani recently had an interview with CNN where he explained to Christiane Amanpour that it could take a few months before his citizens are able to connect with the Internet "comfortably." Rouhani first tweeted back in May, which led to a video that announced his run for presidency. In the one month's time he's been president, he has also tweeted US President Barack Obama. Supporters of his (who were outside of the country or had a work around) used social media during his presidential run, and it's not like they went quiet once he became president. "I always welcome their views on these networks as well as those who criticize me, because the government does need to be open to criticism," Rouhani said.
"There are large social networks at a global level around today and I believe that all human beings have a right, and all nations have a right, to use them."
Time will tell.
[via The Verge]
