Ataollah Mohajerani

Ataollah Mohajerani served as Mohammad Khatami's Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance from 1997 to 2000, presiding over the most open period for the Iranian press since the revolution. Under his stewardship, hundreds of new newspapers and magazines were licensed, including the reformist dailies that employed journalists like Akbar Ganji and Mashallah Shamsolvaezin. He survived a parliamentary impeachment vote in 1999 with Khatami's backing but resigned in 2000 under mounting pressure from hardliners. He co-authored the 2010 Green Movement manifesto with Abdolkarim Soroush, Mohsen Kadivar, and Akbar Ganji. He has lived in exile in London since 2009.