Unjust Sanctions on Science and Technology Target People, Not Government
Unjust Sanctions against Technological Communities
For several years now, the United States and other European countries, as holders of technology, have imposed economic sanctions against their hypothetical opposing countries or enemies, aiming to deter the governments of those countries. These sanctions have prevented technology from advancing in those countries, ultimately strengthening the dictatorships and weakening their populations. Isn’t it time to introduce exemptions or even change the way these sanctions are imposed? In the following, we will examine the sanctions imposed by the United States against science and demonstrate how these sanctions have been against human rights and in the interest of the rulers of the sanctioned countries.
Iran, the Hardest Hit by Sanctions against Human Civilization
Let’s start with an example from Iran. The majority of sanctions against Iran were imposed after the 1979 revolution, following the hostage-taking at the United States embassy in Tehran. These sanctions intensified following the challenge over Iran’s nuclear program. Some countries imposed sanctions against Iran to prevent the Islamic Republic from building nuclear bombs. According to experts, these sanctions have not been effective on Iran’s nuclear program; instead, they have had negative effects on Iran’s economy. These sanctions cover various areas, including economic, scientific, political, and the sale of arms and ammunition. U.S. officials have referred to the sanctions imposed on Iran as the toughest and most crippling sanctions in the history of human civilization.
Negative Impacts of Technological and Scientific Sanctions on Countries and International Communities
In 2017, it became impossible for software companies like NVIDIA, AMD, Adobe, AVG, AVAST, Symantec, McAfee, MATLAB, and some Google services, some Microsoft services, and Oracle to receive software files through the main gateways by Iranian IP addresses. In addition to these companies themselves blocking their websites in Iran, some technology companies also closed their mother servers to Iranians. Later on, many small and large technology companies also imposed severe sanctions against the people of Iran.
These sanctions actually had no deterrent effect on the ruling government in Iran and only made the Iranian people, who themselves did not agree with the ruling government of the country, weaker and unable to take social action against their rulers.
These sanctions also led to a reduction in media and cultural literacy in Iran to the extent that Iranian people claimed that the United States had imposed sanctions not to deter the government and support the Iranian people, but to empower the ruling government and weaken the general public.
Although small springs of technology were still hopeful for the people, allowing them to connect with the outside world and demand accountability from officials for the wrong policies implemented in the country, and violent actions of the government against the people circulated on social networks, further fueling public anger. Protests in Iran in 2019 and 2022 can also be assumed on this basis.
Getting Rid of Unjust Sanctions
Every individual is responsible wherever an unjust sanction is imposed. Although the U.S. Department of the Treasury has considered exemptions for technology, it is still preferable for foreign individuals not to work with the people of Iran. Iran, with its thousands of years of civilization, has always been at the forefront of scientific industry and has had many innovations. It is worthy that the rights of all citizens of the world be equal in international communities and racial prejudice be eliminated.
Any website or company that you see imposing sanctions contrary to human rights laws can be politely informed through letters and emails that technological sanctions include exemptions and it is the right of people to benefit from modern knowledge. When the number of requests is high, perhaps the owners of those businesses will think about changing their policies. Hopefully.
Sanctions are detrimental to companies in the fields of science and technology production.
Sanctions have multiple impacts on companies and various industries, and one of the negative effects is the increase in software piracy in sanctioned countries. This issue can be examined for several reasons:
- Limited Access to Legal Products: Sanctions can restrict access to legal software, making it difficult for individuals and companies in sanctioned countries to obtain official and legitimate versions of software. As a result, people turn to alternatives such as pirated versions.
- Reduced Revenue for Software Companies: When users cannot access legal versions, the sales and revenue of software companies decline. Consequently, the revenue that could have gone to these companies instead ends up in the hands of individuals and groups who crack and illegally distribute the software.
- Strengthening the Illegal Market: Sanctions strengthen the illegal software market. Opportunistic individuals exploit this situation by selling or freely distributing cracked software online. This not only harms the software companies but also forces users to rely on insecure and non-standard software.
- Security Issues: Using pirated software versions can create serious security problems for users. These versions may contain malware and malicious code that can lead to data theft and damage to users’ systems.
As a result, sanctions not only harm software companies but also increase security and legal problems for users in sanctioned countries.
Conclusion
For years, dictatorships have benefited from unjust sanctions. For example, the sanctions against the Iranian government have only targeted the people and have not harmed the government at all. On the contrary, it has targeted the people who are against the government’s policies. Hopefully, steps will be taken to amend laws, including scientific and technological sanctions, and everyone will take steps in this area to the best of their ability.