European Union challenged about the Middle East's biggest prison for journalists

Reporters Without Borders today addressed an open letter to the European Union asking about the EU delegation that was in Tehran on 14-15 June taking part in a dialogue about human rights with the Islamic Republic. The organisation criticised the continuing threats against members of the news media and the deterioration in the situation of imprisoned journalists.


Reporters Without Borders today addressed an open letter to the European Union asking about the EU delegation that was in Tehran on 14-15 June taking part in a dialogue about human rights with the Islamic Republic. The organisation criticised the continuing threats against members of the news media and the deterioration in the situation of imprisoned journalists.

"This dialogue, launched in 2001, has not yet led to any decrease in repression but it allows the Iranian regime to maintain 'good relations' with the European countries," Reporters Without Borders secretary-general Robert Ménard pointed out in his letter.

"Reporters Without Borders would like to ask you in future to take account of the reports and recommendations provided by the independent and representative organisations of Iranian civil society," the letter said, urging the European Union to adopt a "firm position" with the Iranian authorities as regards putting a stop to the repression.

"We point out that 120 newspapers have been banned since 2001, more than 50 journalists have been detained and 11 are still in detention, making Iran the biggest prison for journalists in the Middle East," the letter continued. "One wonders what to make of the Iranian government's remark on 20 June that it is the European Union that should learn from Iran about human rights."

Eleven journalists are currently in prison :

Akbar Ganji, a journalist with Sobh-e Emrouz, held since 22 April 2000
Hassan Youssefi Echkevari of Iran-e Farda, held since 5 August 2000
Hossein Ghazian of Norooz, held since 31 October 2002
Abbas Abdi of Salam, held since 4 November 2002
Ali-Reza Jabari of Adineh, held since 17 March 2003
Siamak Pourzand, a contributor to several independent newspapers, held since 30 Mars 2003
Taghi Rahmani of Omid-e Zangan, held since 14 June 2003
Reza Alijani, the editor of Iran-e Farda and winner of the Reporters Without Borders-Fondation de France prize, held since 14 June 2003
Hoda Saber, managing editor of Iran-e Farda, held since 14 June 2003
Iraj Jamshidi, editor of the business daily Asia, held since 6 July 2003
Ensafali Hedayat, a freelance journalist held since 16 January 2004.

On 20 June, the lawyers of Reza Alijani, Taghi Rahmani and Hoda Saber addressed an open letter to the head of the Iranian justice system, Ayatollah Shahroudi, protesting against the irregularity and illegality of their clients' arrests, trials and prison conditions. They described the mistreatment and torture undergone by the clients, reporting that, "They were interrogated, insulted and beaten for hours to make them 'confess' to the charges brought against them." The lawyers also said they never had access to their clients' files, they could not talk to their clients and they received no official notification of their clients' conviction.

Reporters Without Borders is also very concerned about the disappearance of journalist Iraj Jamshidi, who was imprisoned on 6 July 2003. There has been no word of him for some time. On the eve of the visit of UN special rapporteur Ambeyi Ligabo from 4 to 11 November 2003, Jamshidi was transferred from his solitary confinement cell in the basement of Evin prison to a communal cell but was subsequently moved back to the basement. He has received only one visit in almost a year, coinciding with the special rapporteur's visit, and he has still not been tried.

Journalists continue to be summoned and arrested despite the European delegation's visit to Tehran. Emadoldin Baghi, a journalist and rights activist, has been summoned to appear today before the Tehran revolutionary tribunal. Sentenced to three years in prison in October 2000, Baghi has been an active press freedom campaigner since his release last year and has created an organisation that defends prisoners of conscience. As he was given a one-year suspended sentenced on 4 December 2003, he is in danger of being re-imprisoned.

Iranian journalists in exile in Europe continue to be subject to pressure from the Iranian judicial authorities. Such is the case of Sina Motallebi, a journalist with the reformist daily Hayat-e Now and moderator of the website www.rooznegar.com, now in exile in the Netherlands. Motallebi was arrested and held in solitary confinement from 20 April to 12 May for allegedly "jeopardizing national security by means of an artistic activity."

The Iranian authorities have been embarrassed by the accounts of his personal experiences which Motallebi has given since leaving Iran. He has not hesitated to talk about his arbitrary arrest, the ban on his access to a lawyer, the confessions that were extorted from him, and the fact that he was held in secret for several weeks in Evin prison. Motallebi spoke at a press conference on 8 June at Reporters Without Borders headquarters in Paris. The account he gave of his imprisonment was reported by the print media and the Franco-German television station ARTE. His father was summoned by the judicial authorities in Tehran the next day. The authorities have said that if Motallebi does not turn up for his trial, set for 19 July, his father will be required to pay on-the-spot bail of 30 million tomans (about 30,000 euros at the official rate).

Reporters Without Borders:Payam-e mardom- e Kurdestan shut down

Payam-e mardom- e Kurdestan shut down
Four journalists threatened with arrest

A court in Sanandaj, Iranian Kurdistan banned the weekly Payam-e mardom-e Kurdestan, which has Kurdish and Persian language editions. Editor Mohammad Sadegh Kabovand and three journalists were threatened with arrest for "disturbing public opinion and spreading separatist propaganda".

Reporters Without Borders said it was very concerned about this "new crackdown that is looming over the Kurdish-language press" and urged the local authorities to stop harassing the weekly's journalists and to lift the ban.

The court ordered the closure of Payam-e mardom-e Kurdestan on 27 June for "spreading separatist ideas and publishing false news". Journalists Ejlal Ghavami, Omid Bighizadeh and Arash Saleh were threatened with arrest.

The editor had been previously arrested on 15 June and taken before the court in Sanandaj for the same reasons. He was released on 19 June after putting up bail of 80 millions rials (about 7,500 euros) while awaiting trial.

Elsewhere, Bahram Valibeyghi, director of the Kurdish Cultural Institute and editor of the daily Ashti, published in Persian and Kurdish, was arrested on 22 June while on his way to Iraq.

Evidence of the wide, planned and systematic violation of Human Rights in Iran 20th March - 19th April. Report by IHRAG

According to an Amnesty International report: in the calendar year 2003, the Iranian regime has carried out 108 executions. This is the second highest number of executions carried out by a regime in the world.
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Prohibition of torture `absolute', binding on all states, in all circumstances,

United Nations
17/06/2004

Press Release
SG/SM/9373
OBV/428*
Following is Secretary-General Kofi Annan's message on the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, observed 26 June:

The International Day in Support of Victims of Torture is an occasion for the world to reaffirm that torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment is unacceptable and cannot be tolerated. It is a day to renew our commitment to denounce such acts and seek justice for torture victims. Above all, it is a day for governments to ask themselves whether they are doing enough to prevent acts of torture, assist their victims, punish the perpetrators and ensure that they are not repeated.

Sadly, experience shows us that torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment remain all too common in too many countries. Yet the prohibition of such acts is not ambiguous: it is absolute. It is binding on all States in all territories under their jurisdiction or effective control. It applies in all circumstances, in times of war as in times of peace. Nor is torture permissible when it is called something else. Euphemisms cannot be used to bypass legal obligations.

States must honour their obligations, including that to vigorously combat the impunity of perpetrators of torture. Those who conceive of or authorize any form of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, and those who commit such acts, should not go unpunished. Independent bodies must prosecute those responsible, and the punishment must reflect the seriousness of the offence.

The obligations of international customary law have been voluntarily accepted by the many States that have ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. Today, I call on all States to ratify these two core human rights treaties, as well as the Optional Protocol to the Torture Convention. And I call on them to issue an open invitation to the Special Rapporteur on torture, as well as to other relevant human rights mechanisms, to visit their country.

On this day, I also pay tribute to all those who work throughout the world to relieve the suffering of torture survivors and their families. The United Nations Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture assists many non-governmental organizations to provide victims with medical and psychological care, legal and social aid, and financial support. I express my gratitude to those governments and other contributors who make that assistance possible, and I call on all members of the international community to support the Fund.

The United Nations was founded to reaffirm faith in the dignity and worth of the human person; to create better standards of life in larger freedom. We cannot get anywhere near fulfilling that pledge unless we wipe the scourge of torture from the face of the earth. On this International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, let us rededicate ourselves to that mission.

Amnesty International - Campaign Against Torture

'WHEN TORTURERS CAN'T HIDE, THE TORTURE STOPS'

Torture always thrives where it cannot be seen.

That's why one of the most effective ways to prevent torture and to improve
conditions is to ensure that police stations and prisons receive regular and
unannounced inspections by international monitors.

The best way of ensuring these inspections take place is by making sure that every
country in the world signs up to the Optional Protocol to the UN Convention against
Torture.

Many states have already signed; many others have not.

26 June is the United Nations International Day in Support of Victims of Torture.
Please mark this occassion by taking action in support of the Optional Protocol.

Take action! http://ai-stoptorture.c.topica.com/maacnzlaa7TL1bdnqcqb/


ALSO ON AMNESTY.ORG

The international community should have the courage of its convictions and apply the
strongest pressure on the government of Sudan to end human rights violations in
Darfur. Act now: http://ai-stoptorture.c.topica.com/maacnzlaa7TL2bdnqcqb/


MAKE A DONATION

Help Amnesty International end human rights violations wherever they occur.

Visit http://ai-stoptorture.c.topica.com/maacnzlaa7TL3bdnqcqb/ and show your support.

ITALY. HOC PRESENTS 2004 REPORT ON THE DEATH PENALTY WORLDWIDE

www.handsoffcain.org/
June 18, 2004: The report is edited once again by Elisabetta Zamparutti and published in Italian by Marsilio.
The presentation of the 2004 report will also be a platform to relaunch HOC’s campaign for a worldwide moratorium on executions through a UN General Assembly resolution. HOC’s campaign is currently placing a special emphasis on Africa.
The launch will take place on Wednesday 23rd June 2004 at 10.45 CET in Via di Torre Argentina 76, Rome.
Section Iran
Iran, again in the top three
Iran, along with China, regularly features among the countries that execute most people in the world. Though China remains by far the most prolific executioner, Iran, in proportion to its population, applies capital punishment just as much. In 2003, 154 executions were recorded in Iran, including a woman and a minor. This total is significantly less than in 2002, when 316 executions were registered, including a woman stoned to death, but as with other illiberal countries, the real number of people put to death by the state is probably much higher. Iranian authorities do not issue official statistics on the death penalty, and HOC´s total is based on news reports by Iranian media, that very likely do not carry news of every single execution.
Iran does not limit itself to the death penalty. Its interpretation of Sharia law prescribes whippings for sexual relations before marriage, lashings for drinking alcohol and amputation of hands and feet for petty thieves. more

stop.censoring.us: Iranian government spent more than 8 Million US$ for filtering

According to an Interview by Shargh newspaper, the government has spent this huge amount of money to import a US made filtering system which is becoming more and more out of use as the users improve their skills in passing it. Guess how many people could be provided with reasonable on-line access with this money that was wasted for filtering. This article highlights the fact that such decisions are showing officials ignorance to great speed of technology development that is focusing in easier access for the users.

REPORTERS WITHOUT BORDERS. ANNUAL REPORT

SECTION IRAN
The Iranian regime censors thousands of websites it considers "non-Islamic" and harasses and imprisons online journalists. Internet filtering was increased in the run-up to the February 2004 parliamentary elections, at which the hardliners strengthened their grip on the country. But despite this, the Internet is flourishing, with fierce debate and weblogs ("blogs") sprouting up all the time.

The Internet has grown faster in Iran than any other Middle Eastern country since 2000 and has become an important medium, providing fairly independent news and an arena for vigorous political discussion for more than three million users.
Websites, like the press, reflect the split between reformists and hardliners in the regime, which has a hardline Supreme Guide of the Islamic Revolution (Ayatollah Ali Khamenei) as head of state and a reformist president (Mohammad Khatami) whose power is quite limited.
Though the authorities crack down hard on freedom of expression, civil society remains active and keen to debate the country's affairs. But the 20 February 2004 parliamentary elections, which gave all power to the hardliners, may reduce Internet users' freedom to discuss social issues.

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EU "gravely concerned" over human rights violations in Iran

www.eubusiness.com
20 June 2004

The European Union remains "gravely concerned" over the human rights situation in Iran, according to a damning statement released after the latest round of discussions on the issue between the European bloc and the Islamic republic.

"The European Union continues to be gravely concerned at the continued and numerous violations of human rights in Iran," said a statement issued by Ireland, the current holder of the EU presidency.

"These include unequal rights for women; the use of torture in prisons and other places of detention, and a culture of impunity for perpetrators," said the statement released by the Irish embassy here.

It also pointed to "the lack of an independent judiciary, the use of the death penalty, as well as reports of the continued use of amputations and other cruel punishments; a continuing campaign against journalists and others who seek to exercise their freedom of opinion and expression, a flawed electoral process which impedes the democratic choice of the Iranian people, and discrimination on religious grounds."

The statement stems from the fourth round of talks between the EU and Iran which took place here nearly a week ago.

Iranian Human Rights Activists Groups in EU and North America: Letter to E.U leaders regarding the round of talks wih Iran on human rights issues

The letter

AFP> Iran, EU end latest round of rights talks with "no concrete results"

TEHRAN, June 16 (AFP) - Talks between Iran and the European Union on human rights have concluded their latest round with "no concrete results" but have nevertheless been classed as "constructive", European Union diplomats said Wednesday.
"Before the talks, we passed a list of specific cases and issues that we wanted resolved. So in terms of concrete results at this point, there is nothing," said a European diplomat close to the discussions.

"We have also yet to set a fixed date or venue for the next round of discussions. However, in general terms, the talks have been useful and the atmosphere has been good and constructive," said another diplomat.

He added that "engaging Iran on human rights is a long process". No further details, notably those on specific cases raised, were immediately available. The embassy of Ireland, the current holder of the EU presidency, said it hoped to release a statement on the talks on Thursday.

An Iranian judiciary official also classed the talks as "positive", but warned the EU against trying to lecture the Islamic republic. "We do not accept liberal and secular lectures on human rights," said Mohammad Javad Laridjani, a deputy head of the hardline-run judiciary charged with international affairs.

He told the state news agency IRNA that the EU delegation had notably raised the issue of ill-treatment of detainees, but he hit back by asserting "this is not something that is just applicable to Iran."

And while he said the EU team had raised the cases of certain political prisoners, he added that such a class of detainees did not exist here. The discussions here on Monday and Tuesday were the fourth round of an EU effort, started in December 2002, to engage Tehran's clerical rulers on human rights.

Ahead of this week's talks, the pressure group Human Rights Watch issued a pointed message to Brussels, calling on the EU to set concrete benchmarks to end abuses.

In its latest report on Iran, the group documented cases it said showed how political detainees had been tortured in the presence of judges, held for weeks in solitary confinement, and denied basic due process rights.

Arab Times>Iran says unmoved by EU opinion on human rights

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Senior Iranian judiciary officials said on Wednesday they paid little attention to European opinions on human rights, undermining European Union efforts to encourage reform in the Islamic state.

"We neither shiver at their statements nor thrill at their encouragement," Mohammad Javad Larijani, the judiciary's head of international affairs, told state television after two days of talks with EU officials on human rights.

The Tehran talks -- the fourth round since an EU-Iran rights dialogue began in late 2002, are part of an EU effort to engage with Iran over a range of issues including nuclear proliferation, the Middle East peace process and terrorism.

In return for progress on these issues, the EU is offering Tehran the prospect of a potentially lucrative trade and cooperation agreement with the European bloc.

EU officials have expressed frustration at slow progress in the rights talks and are under pressure from rights activists to get tougher with Iran on issues such as political prisoners, discrimination against women and lack of free speech.

EU diplomats say Iran appears content to drag out the talks while failing to address the issues raised by the Europeans.

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aljazeerah: Human rights talks continue despite lack of results

Jordan Times, Monday, June 14, 2004

TEHRAN (AFP) — The European Union and Iran are to hold a fourth round of talks on human rights here this week, as EU diplomats admit their efforts to engage the Islamic republic have so far failed to stem widespread abuses. The dialogue, which began in December 2002, is part of an ambitious EU bid to engage the clerical regime on a string of sensitive topics, including nuclear proliferation, the Middle East peace process and terrorism.

On human rights, the dialogue has been credited with paving the way for a de facto moratorium on stoning as well as unprecedented visits by United Nations human rights rapporteurs.

But the wider picture appears to be just as grim as it was when the talks began some 18 months ago and when Brussels dangled a carrot — in the form of a potentially lucrative Trade and Cooperation Agreement — to Iran's clerical rulers in exchange for such talks.

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EU-Iran Human Rights Dialogue to take place in Tehran on 14 / 15 June

EU Presidency
Date: 11 Jun 2004
Policy Area: General Affairs and External Relations
Content Type: Press Releases

An EU delegation will travel to Tehran this weekend to participate in the fourth session of the Iran-EU Human Rights Dialogue on 14/15 June. The EU delegation will comprise officials and representatives of the civil society, including academics, NGOs and national experts.

The EU continues to have serious concerns about the human rights situation in Iran and has identified progress in this area as one of the elements essential to the development of its relationship with Iran. This structured dialogue, the first session of which took place in December 2002, provides a forum for highlighting and discussing issues of concern to the EU and for an exchange of views between the two sides.

The dialogue will consist of a round-table discussion, which will focus on the Administration of Justice and the Enhancement of International Cooperation and Solidarity in the Field of Human Rights, and an officials-only meeting involving the EU Troika, the Iranian Government and Judiciary which will focus on the full range of human rights issues.

The EU looks forward to a successful outcome to the talks.

globeandmail:Nobel laureate barred from representing Kazemi

Tehran — Nobel peace laureate Shirin Ebadi has apparently been barred from representing the family of Iranian-Canadian photojournalist Zahra Kazemi who died in custody, a spokesman for her human rights centre said Saturday.

Mohammad Ali Dadkhah, one of four lawyers representing Ms. Kazemi's family, said an invitation from the court to attend a hearing next month did not mention Ms. Ebadi's name.

“That Ebadi's name is not among the list of lawyers invited for the next hearing means that the judiciary has barred her from representing the family at the court,” Mr. Dadkhah said.

In November, a criminal court had accepted Ms. Ebadi's request to represent Ms. Kazemi's family.

Judiciary officials and Ms. Ebadi were not available for comment Saturday.

Ms. Ebadi won the 2003 Nobel peace prize for her advocacy of human rights and democracy in Iran.

The two other lawyers invited by the court were Mohammad Seifzadeh and Abdolfattah Soltani.

Ms. Kazemi, a Canadian of Iranian origin, was arrested June 23, 2003, while taking photographs during a protest by families of prisoners outside a Tehran jail. She died nearly three weeks after the arrest.

Authorities had initially denied that Ms. Kazemi was killed, claiming she had died of a stroke. Later, however, a presidential-appointed committee found that Ms. Kazemi had died of a fractured skull and brain hemorrhage due to a blow to the head.

Intelligence Ministry agent Mohammad Reza Aghdam Ahmadi was charged with beating her to death. His trial opened last October but the second session has been postponed several times for reasons not made public.

Mr. Dadkhah, who is also a spokesman for the Centre for Protecting Human Rights co-founded by Ms. Ebadi, said the second session is now scheduled for July 17.

Ms. Kazemi's son, Stephen Hachemi, who lives in Montreal, said last month he believed Ms. Ebadi would be powerless to ensure justice for his mother and called on the Canadian government to get more involved.

He has repeatedly urged the federal government to pressure Iran to allow an independent Canadian court monitor to observe the trial.

Canada criticized the handling of the Kazemi case and threatened to impose sanctions. It withdrew its ambassador to Iran after Ms. Kazemi's body was buried in Iran against the wishes of her son and Canadian authorities. Canadian Ambassador Philip Mackinnon later returned to Iran and attended the opening of the trial.

Human Rights Watch Iran: Europe Needs Tougher Stance(Brussels, June 11, 2004) -- European Union officials should take a much stronger approach in the upcoming E.U.-Iran human rights dialogue than they have in previous meetings with the Iranian government, Human Rights Watch said today.

Human Rights Watch urged the EU delegation going to Tehran on June 14-15 to demand that Iran meet concrete benchmarks to end abuses.

In a 73-page report released on June 7, “Like the Dead in Their Coffins: Torture, Detention, and the Crushing of Dissent in Iran,” Human Rights Watch documents how political detainees have tortured in the presence of judges, held for weeks in absolute solitary confinement, and denied basic due process rights.

In recent weeks, hundreds of student protesters have been summoned to court around the country or sent to university disciplinary committees for punishment. Last month, a number of political detainees on one week of medical leave received harsh prison sentences for articles they had published.

“Given the human rights climate in Iran right now, a timid ‘dialogue’ in Tehran would send the wrong message,” said Sarah Leah Whitson, executive director of Human Rights Watch’s Middle East and North Africa Division. “The EU must publicly condemn the crackdown that is currently underway.”

An increasing number of Iran’s independent newspapers have been shut down by Iran’s judiciary, and numerous journalists and intellectuals have been prosecuted under the provisions of the Press Law and Penal Code.

This meeting will mark the fourth round of the EU-Iran Human Rights Dialogue. Three similar meetings have taken place since December 2002.

Human Rights Watch urged the EU to clearly convey the message that Iran’s failure to address these serious and systematic violations of basic human rights will have negative consequences for other areas of the EU-Iranian cooperation. The EU should make further dialogues and trade negotiations contingent on clear and concrete improvements in Iran’s human rights record; and call on Iran to carry out these measures before the next dialogue, including:

• release all political prisoners currently held for the legal exercise of their right to free expression, association, and assembly, including prominent dissidents whose health is currently at risk such as Hashem Aghajari, Siamak Pourzand, Akbar Ganji, Abbas Abdi, and Ahmad Batebi;

• create specific enforcement mechanisms for its recently adopted anti-torture laws, including accountability for judges and interrogators who torture detainees;

• conduct a thorough investigation of its secret prisons, granting full access to international observers;

• provide for independent investigation of judges and prosecutors who violate Iranian and international law relating to the rights of the accused, freedom from ill-treatment, and freedom from torture;

• invite legitimate and independent non-governmental organizations to this round of the dialogue, such as the Center for Human Rights Defenders headed by Nobel Laureate Shirin Ebadi, rather than those with significant ties to the government.

Reporters Without borders
Iran 9 June 2004
Journalist imprisoned for online articles
Reporters Without Borders called today for the immediate release of Abbas Kakavand, who was imprisoned on 7 June for allegedly disseminating "false news" in articles he wrote for the website gooya.com since February after leaving the conservative newspaper Ressalat. His articles criticised corruption and the political payments received by many conservative leaders.

The organisation described the jailing of Kakavand as "flagrant evidence of the systematic violation of press freedom in Iran," and pointed out that "it came just a few days before talks on human rights are scheduled to get under way between the Islamic Republic and the European Union".

"The EU has apparently not yet realised that the situation of free expression has got much worse since this so-called "constructive dialogue" with Iran began more than three years ago", Reporters Without Borders said.

"No journalist is protected from repression, not even those who have worked for one of the most pro-government newspapers. Farsi-language websites, which play a major role in disseminating news, are being monitored more and more closely. The Islamic Republic continues to claim that it adheres to international human rights standards, in which case it should therefore immediately release the 13 journalists currently imprisoned in Iran," Reporters Without Borders said.

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TehranTimes.com
Iran-EU to Hold Dialogue on Human Rights in Tehran
TEHRAN (MNA) -- An Iranian diplomat close to the European Union said on Wednesday that arrangements have been made to hold a session among Iranian and European human rights groups next month in Tehran.

The diplomat in an interview with the Mehr News Agency rejected the news reported by western media on secret consultations between Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi and EU officials concerning threats or warnings against Iran.

These media have always taken antagonistic stances toward Iran’s policies and this is not a new issue, he said.

Speaking from Western Europe on condition of anonymity, the diplomat went on to say that EU officials have not put any precondition for continuing debates with Iran.

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www.barnettimes.co.uk
EU is following the plight of the 'Barnet Two'
By Tom Spender


The European Union is 'closely following' the plight of two borough-based refugees languishing in an Iranian jail, Chris Patten, European Commissioner for External Relations, has said.

In a letter to Theresa Villiers, Conservative MEP for London, Mr Patten said his priority was to ensure Ebrahim Khodabandeh, from Barnet, and Jamil Bassam, from Hendon, are being well treated.

The pair were arrested in Syria last April before being flown back to Iran and imprisoned - a move which broke the Geneva Convention on refugees.

The Iranian government claims the men were caught on the Syrian border with Iraq with US$1million. The men's families say they were in Syria to meet relatives from Iran.

Mr Patten wrote: "The commission continues to follow these specific cases. While the cases are complex and delicate - involving links to the Mujahedin-e-Khalq known as the People's Mojahedin of Iran, a group which opposes the Iranian regime and is on the US and UK's lists of banned terrorist organisations - the wellbeing of these two persons and their right to fair treatment by Iranian authorities obviously remain of interest to us all."
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Iran: Torture Used to Suppress Dissent
Whole report
(Brussels, June 7, 2004) -- The Iranian government has intensified its campaign of torture, arbitrary arrests, and detentions against political critics, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. Iran’s outgoing reformist parliament in May passed legislation to prohibit torture, but without effective implementation, the law remains an empty gesture.

The 73-page report, “Like the Dead in Their Coffins: Torture, Detention, and the Crushing of Dissent in Iran,” provides the first comprehensive account of the treatment of political detainees in Tehran’s Evin Prison and in secret prisons around the capital since the government launched its current crackdown in 2000. Human Rights Watch has documented systematic abuses against political detainees, including arbitrary arrest, detention without trial, torture to extract confessions, prolonged solitary confinement, and physical and psychological abuse.
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/www.rferl.org
HRW Says Human Rights Situation In Iran Worsening
7 June 2004 -- Human Rights Watch (HRW) has accused Iran of intensifying a crackdown against critics of the Islamic republic.


The charge comes in a 73-page report issued today by the New York-based human rights group. The report is based on interviews with journalists, writers, and student activists. It documents systematic abuse against political detainees, including arbitrary arrest, detention without trial, torture to extract confessions, and prolonged solitary confinement.

The report says the Iranian authorities have managed over the past four years "to virtually silence the political opposition within the country." The report said "a small group of judges" accountable only to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei "has shut down public dissent."

The report also notes a three-year dialogue between the European Union and Iran has failed to achieve any tangible results. Human Rights Watch urged the EU to put more pressure on Iran to end its crackdown on political opponents.

(Rueters/AP)

cascfen


Ir: HR Institutions Silent About Murder of Tabesh

MNA, Tehran, 5 Jun 2004 -- Following the progression of defensive strategies to advance human rights in the international community, the world currently faces numerous abuses of this concept by certain institutions and governments that merely mean to achieve their political goals.

Unfortunately, those who claim to advance human rights have always been the main violators of the issue in the world.

Thus, the international community has failed to come up with a proper definition of human rights that would be relatively approved by everyone.

The international community should become developed to the extent that it would prevent abuses of the issue and define human rights in various societies in accordance with the cultural, social, political and economic realities. Governments should avoid accusing one another of violation of human rights.

Meanwhile private and non-governmental institutions are important elements in obliterating misunderstandings and finding common points among human societies regarding human rights. However, the thing is that most of these institutions are developed in the west and unfortunately have turned into elements for western governments to materialize their political goals.

The approaches of non-governmental human rights institutions toward Iran over the last 25 years indicates the fact that instead of regarding the realities in Iran, these institutions have exerted political pressure on the country and aroused public opinion against Iran.
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
Human Rights Watch: Iranian judges have "shut down" dissent

judges have detained and tortured writers, student leaders and political activists in secret prisons and muzzled reform-minded newspapers to "shut down" dissent, Human Rights Watch said in a report Monday that holds out little hope the trend can be reversed.

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"There is widespread agreement that the political environment has become increasingly abusive and defined by force," Human Rights Watch said in a 73-page report based on interviews with former political prisoners.

The report, "Like the Dead in Their Coffins: Torture, Detention, and the Crushing of Dissent in Iran," echoed the pessimism of Iran's reformist President Mohammad Khatami, who has all but conceded defeat in his struggle with hard-liners. Khatami's calls for expanding democratic rights and easing strict Islamic social rules were applauded by many Iranians, but denounced by hard-liners as a betrayal of the 1979 Islamic revolution that toppled the shah and brought clerics to power.

The Iranian judiciary is seen as firmly in the hands of hard-liners, led by Iran's supreme and unelected leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. New York-based Human Rights Watch said the judiciary was "at the center of the human rights violations" documented in its report.

During his first four-year presidential term, Khatami had managed to relax some of the country's strict Islamic laws and allow greater media freedoms. By the time of Khatami's second-term victory in 2001, hard-liners were fighting back, shutting down more than 100 liberal publications and detaining dozens of activists and writers for criticizing unelected hard-line clerics.

"The Iranian authorities have managed, in the span of four years, to virtually silence the political opposition within the country through the systematic use of indefinite solitary confinement of political prisoners, physical torture of student activists and denial of basic due process rights to all those detained for the expression of dissenting views," Human Rights Watch said.

"A small group of judges accountable only to (Khamenei) has shut down public dissent," the group added, saying the judges had vigilantes and security agents at their disposal to detain and interrogate dissidents, hid their activities in secret prisons and shut down newspapers that had spoken up for political prisoners.

Asked Sunday about reports of human rights violations, judiciary spokesman Naser Hosseini said torture had decreased significantly in Iran since the judiciary chief Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi, in April ordered a ban on the use of torture to obtain confessions. Shahroudi's ban was seen as the first public acknowledgment of the practice in the country.

Despite Hosseini's assurances, Iranian reformist lawyer Mohsen Rahami said human rights violations remained a concern.

Human Rights Watch, describing the future as "bleak," said: "The authorities have largely succeeded in their campaign to send a message to the broader public that the costs of voicing peaceful political criticism are unbearably high."

Human Rights Watch interviewed former political prisoners outside Iran. Many were afraid to allow their names to be used or speak openly inside Iran. They described beatings and long stays in windowless, soundproof solitary cells described as "coffins."

One student leader and outspoken critic of the government said he was psychologically tortured by being told during his detention that his parents had had a car accident as they rushed to jail to post bail for him. His father, he was told, had been killed.

"If you had not done this, your father would not have died. This is justice for what you did," the student said he was told. He realized it was a lie only when he saw his parents in court later.

The report was issued a month before the anniversary of a 1999 raid on a Tehran University dormitory that killed one person and touched off days of anti-government protests. The anniversary is usually marked by student protests - and attempts by security forces and pro-government vigilantes to suppress demonstrations.

Human Rights Watch singled out Tehran prosecutor Saeed Mortazavi, a former judge, in its report. As a judge, Mortazavi ordered the closure of scores of reformist newspapers. Human Rights Watch said he "has been personally involved in a number of coercive interrogations, threats against individual arrestees, and has even allegedly given the order for individual arrestees to be physically abused."

Reformists in Iran have publicly accused Mortazavi of illegally detaining a Canadian photojournalist of Iranian origin and then covering up facts surrounding her death in custody last July.

In April, Iran's unelected clerics honored Mortazavi as "best manager" in the judiciary, under whose umbrella prosecutors fall.

news.independent.co.uk
Report condemns 'torture' regime in Iran
By Angus McDowell in Tehran
07 June 2004


Torture, arbritrary arrest and solitary confinement have grown in Iran since the Islamic state started a human rights dialogue with the European Union, according to a report issued by US-based Human Rights Watch.

The report accuses the judiciary and shadowy "parallel" security forces of using the techniques in prisons to quash political dissent.

A student identified only as Hossein T, told Human Rights Watch: ""The second time they took me in there they hung me from my hands. They used a baton to beat my torso. They broke my hand and I fell unconscious. When I regained consciousness, they said, 'if you lied, we will stop.' I could not speak. It is not because I am brave that I did not confess. It's because I couldn't talk," .

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