Last week, the authorities or Iran shut down Zanan, the country's premier women's magazine. President Ahmadinejad said that Zanan showed Iranian women in a "black light" and was a threat to the psychological well being of Iranian society. Zanan had long argued that the legal discrimination suffered by women in Iran is not mandated by Islamic law and that therefore it can and should be changed.
Zanan was established in 1992 by Shahla Sherkat, who continues to serve as its managing director. There have been 152 issues of the magazine spanning 16 years. The magazine regularly ran articles dealing with women's health, parenting, and legal issues and was one of the most popular publications in the country. Staff members of the magazine have been targeted for harassment in the past and I now fear for their safety.

On January 29, 2008, Zanan staff was notified by authorities from the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance that their license was to be cancelled immediately due to the psychological threat the magazine posed to Iranian society. According to reports, the specific article that caught the authorities' attention discussed the rape of a woman by two members of Basij Resistance Force, a paramilitary group with strong ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard.

In the past two years, nearly 40 Iranian publications have had their licenses revoked or been banned by the government-run Press Supervisory Council. The revocation of Zanan's license thus represents a growing trend of censoring the press and silencing those publications that provide space for the discussion of the human rights situation in Iran.
Please visit the Human Rights First http://action.humanrightsfirst.org/campaign/Zanan and sent a message to Iranian government to:
Cancel the order to close the magazine Zanan and reinstate its press license.
Ensure the safety of the staff of Zanan.
Urge all branches of the government to respect the right to freedom of expression and the importance of a free and independent press.

". President Ahmadinejad said that Zanan showed Iranian women in a "black light" and was a threat to the psychological well being of Iranian society."

That argument sounds familiar. Why yes, it sounds exactly like a Christian demanding conservatism on social issues and various forms of entertainment, such as gay rights.

The women of Iran get it very tough; I have spent some time there and saw some bad stuff. I would be happy to lend my support but don't know how. What do you recommend?

I recommend you become an Iranian citizen before speaking about their domestic affairs.

Why? Should we shut up about apartheid in South Africa, genocide in Darfur, torture in China, and suicide bombers in Israel?

Iranian authoritiess won't care, whether we are citizens or not. The most well-defined national characteristic of Persia is bloody-minded stubbornness.

The Iranian government is going to listen to foreigners when it doesn't doesn't care about its own citizens?

What naive rubbish.