Iranians find their voices on Clubhouse ahead of poll

As Iran gears up for a presidential election, people from across the political spectrum are taking to the audio appClubhouseas a rare forum for debate inside the country.

Chat rooms have been sprouting up every dayonthe invitation-only social media platform, some of them attracting thousands of listeners.

Politicians from opposing factions have foundtheirway to the app, along with an array of analysts, journalists andIraniansboth at home and abroad.

"Clubhouse's main draw card is that it has created an opportunity for dialogue between people who could not bear talking to each other before," said Farid Modaresi, an analyst close to the moderate camp of incumbent President Hassan Rouhani.

The hot topicontheirlips has been the hopefuls who have been coming forward and registering to be candidates for the June 18 presidential election.

Modaresi said a combination of factors has helped to make the app popular amongIranians, including a restricted domestic media, the Covid-19 pandemic and a sizeable diaspora eager to tap into the discussions.

"There was demand, and this is the supply," Modaresi said, noting that both conservatives and reformists are presentonthe platform.

Those hoping to stand for president started throwingtheirnames into the hatonTuesday, launching the battle to succeed Rouhani who must leave office after serving two consecutive terms.

TheClubhousefervour contrasts with a rather quiet public sphereaheadof official campaigning that startsonMay 28.

Reformist journalist Mostafa Faghihi said the app has helped to open up "multilateral dialogue" in Iran.

Such public discourse has been elusive in the country due to the conduct of "media giants with public budgets... that have turned into one-sided and factional tribunes".

Top draw cards

Alongside Instagram,Clubhouseis one of the few major social media applications still largely accessible in Iran without the requirement for virtual private network (VPN) software to circumvent censorship.

Eshaq Jahangiri, first vice president to Rouhani and considered a potential candidate, has been one of the highest-ranking officials to appearonthe platform.

Taking questions, he strongly defended the administration's track record in the face of a US "economic war", saying it stood up for internet freedoms, and denied links to one of his brothersontrial for alleged corruption.

Faghihi said the presence of prominent figuresonClubhousecould play "a very important role" to get messages across to voters.

He touted the "close to 110,000" people who tuned in to a chat room that hosted Faeze Hashemi, the outspoken daughter of late president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani.

"I won't vote, as our maximum effort results in (someone like) Mr. Rouhani!" she declared during the debate.

When the room reached the maximum number of listeners, several others were created to enable more to hear the discussion, before it was streamed live to thousands of othersonInstagram and Twitter, Faghihi explained.

Yet IranianClubhousemoderators have come in for criticism for not allowing allvoicesto be heard.

One such instance occurred when Modaresi invited Iran's social media-savvy foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, to a chat about Iran's controversial 25-year agreement with China, its nuclear deal with world powers and his stated intention not to run for the presidency.

As the panel took shape, it emerged that the chat room featured both Iranian officials and journalists from foreign-based Persian media outlets deemed hostile by the Islamic republic.

Modaresi said the latter were not allowed to ask questions "due to foreign ministry protocols" which he had to accept.

'Positive role'

Clubhousehas drawn criticism primarily from ultraconservatives over its lack of content oversight and the usual concern of being hosted abroad, with some calling for domestic alternatives.

In an editorial in April, the ultraconservative news agency Tasnim said Iran's foes could cause "security, social and political problems" for the country throughClubhouse.

It warned against the app's potential for "identifying the elite, networks, tracking, data stealing, large-scale leaks of information" and breaking the taboo of "direct talks" with hostile media.

Later that monthClubhousewas temporarily blocked without explanationonmost networks, and despite assurances from Rouhani's administration, the app was inaccessibleonat least one major mobile carrier.

This raised concerns that it might meet the same fate of other social media officially banned in Iran, including Facebook and Twitter.

But for Iran's conservative-dominated Guardian Council, charged with validating parliamentary legislation and monitoring elections, the application did not seem to be a threat.

In an interview with AFP, the council's spokesman Abbas Ali Kadkhodaee said the influential body sawClubhouseas potentially constructive as long as no "crimes" were committed.

"In my opinion, cyberspace can have a positive role, for people to have better and faster access to information.Clubhouseis no different" than other social media, he saidonMay 5.