Tinder like app allows Iranians to swipe through election censorship

Sandoogh96, a mobile app provides Iranian voters with information introducing the candidates and their stances on various issues including relationship with the West, country’s ailing economy, and the controversial house arrest of opposition leaders. The app also provides up-to-date election news related to candidates and potential candidates for the presidential election as well as the local council elections. Sandoogh96 has a 'find a match' feature allowing potential voters to identify the candidates that are most aligned in six catergories of belief, including economics, culture, women’s rights and and foreign policy. The android app also provides a fact-based history of eleven different presidencies in Iran since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Sandoogh96 was selected through the IranCubator contest and was developed by IranWire and Small Media. IranWire’s access to unique local citizen journalism from all 31 provinces, allows the app users to have the most uptodate election news as well as professional reports and analyses at their fingertips.

“Democracy only works when you have an informed citizenry capable of making educated choices,” explained Firuzeh Mahmoudi, Executive Director of United for Iran. “During Iran’s last presidential election, apps like Telegram were important tools of communication and voter activation. Our hope is that Sandoogh96 will take that a step further, and give the average Iranian voter all of the tools they need to find the candidates that most reflect their beliefs and have a proven record of living up to their promises.”

"Sandoogh96 fills the gap in election coverage in Iran,” explained Maziar Bahari Director of IranWire. “The app enables users to learn the real news about the potential candidates free from any pro or against islamic Republic prejudice. It provides Iranian people a space which their government systematically denies them. Our main aim was to create an app that could inform and entertain the user.”

Sandoogh96 is the fourth app to come out of the United for Iran’s app incubation project, the IranCubator.

Key facts about United for Iran’s IranCubator app development project - The IranCubator:

• United for Iran launched its new app incubation program in June 2016, seeking to match civil society activists with app developers and programmers to build smartphone applications for the 40 million smartphone users currently living in Iran.
• IranCubator provided financial and technical support to winning developers and activists with projects that advance civil society in Iran.
• All submissions were judged by the IranCubator Advisory Board consisting of notable technology and security experts, internet freedom advocates and social entrepreneurs including Allen Gunn, Christopher Allen and Danny Kennedy.
• Ahead of the IranCubator competition, United for Iran conducted an extensive Community Needs Assessment with Iranian activists to determine the specific tools for advancing civil liberties.  Based on those findings, the IranCubator Advisory Judges prioritised apps and ideas that fight against the legal and socio-cultural discrimination against women, immigrants, people with disabilities and LGBTQ communities, as well as projects that promote education for underserved communities.

“Today, there are more than 40 million smartphones in Iran and a million more are added every month. But the number of human rights apps remains close to zero,” added Firuzeh Mahmoudi, Executive Director of United for Iran. “We’ve seen technological advances transform the global human rights movement and mobile-phone apps have the capacity to enable Iranian citizens to more easily and securely organise, assemble, and express themselves. This is why Sandoogh96 has the potential to be such a vital tool for Iranian voters.”