UANI Applauds Canada's Telesat for Stopping the Broadcast of Iranian Regime Programming

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE November 8, 2012 Contact: Nathan Carleton, press@uani.com  Phone: (212) 554-3296      UANI Applauds Canada's Telesat for Stopping the Broadcast of Iranian Regime Programming   New York, NY - On Thursday, United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) applauded the Canadian global satellite operator, Telesat, for ending its broadcasting of Iranian regime programming. In an October 30, 2012 letter to Telesat, UANI CEO, Ambassador Mark D. Wallace, called on Telesat "to end all business activities in Iran and specifically cease the broadcast of all Iranian regime transmissions via the Telstar 12 satellite, including that of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), the Islamic Republic of Iran News Network (IRINN), and their affiliates." In subsequent discussions with UANI, Telesat pledged that it would refrain from "any direct business relationships with the Government of Iran or entities owned or controlled by that government." Specifically, Telesat informed UANI that it recently severed its relationship with a customer that "resold capacity on Telesat's Telstar 12 satellite (capacity it had contracted from Telesat) to the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting ... [and] terminate[d] IRIB's transmissions to Telstar 12." Added Telesat: "The IRIB, we learned, was transmitting to Telstar 12 in order to make its broadcast signal available to a teleport facility located in Pennsylvania, where the signal was then retransmitted to an Intelsat satellite for broadcast distribution across the United States." Telesat informed UANI that it has disclosed the situation to the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). Said Ambassador Wallace: We applaud Telesat for stopping the broadcast of Iranian regime programming. Any entity committed to free speech must end its ties with the Iranian regime, particularly given the regime's libelous programming that regularly includes hate speech against religious minorities, forced confessions of peaceful dissidents and civil society activists, and show trials of political prisoners. We thank Telesat for its response on this important issue, and its commitment to refraining from future business with the Government of Iran or entities owned or controlled by that government. We call on all media entities worldwide to stop broadcasting IRIB programming and other regime propaganda. UANI recently applauded British telecommunications company Arqiva and European satellite provider Eutelsat for ceasing their broadcasting of regime programming. As part of its "Tech and Telecom Campaign," UANI has succeeded in curtailing the business of international telecom giants such as Adaptive Mobile, Huawei, and Nokia Siemens Networks. Click here to view UANI's letter to Telesat.    ###  United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) is a program of the American Coalition Against Nuclear Iran, Inc., a tax-exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. The prospect of a nuclear-armed Iran should concern every American and be unacceptable to the community of nations. Since 1979 the Iranian regime, most recently under President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's leadership, has demonstrated increasingly threatening behavior and rhetoric toward the US and the West. Iran continues to defy the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the United Nations in their attempts to monitor its nuclear activities. A number of Arab states have warned that Iran's development of nuclear weapons poses a threat to Middle East stability and could provoke a regional nuclear arms race. In short, the prospect of a nuclear armed Iran is a danger to world peace. United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) is a non-partisan, broad-based coalition that is united in a commitment to prevent Iran from fulfilling its ambition to become a regional super-power possessing nuclear weapons.  UANI is an issue-based coalition in which each coalition member will have its own interests as well as the collective goal of advancing an Iran free of nuclear weapons. The Objectives of United Against a Nuclear Iran Inform the public about the nature of the Iranian regime, including its desire and intent to possess nuclear weapons, as well as Iran's role as a state sponsor of global terrorism, and a major violator of human rights at home and abroad; Heighten awareness nationally and internationally about the danger that a nuclear armed Iran poses to the region and the world; Mobilize public support, utilize media outreach, and persuade our elected leaders to voice a robust and united American opposition to a nuclear Iran; Lay the groundwork for effective US policies in coordination with European and other allies; Persuade the regime in Tehran to desist from its quest for nuclear weapons, while striving not to punish the Iranian people, and; Promote efforts that focus on vigorous national and international, social, economic, political and diplomatic measures. UANI is led by an advisory board of outstanding national figures representing all sectors of our country.

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