Online journalist freed but two others still held
posted by Anonymous at 2:23 AM
4 comments
Saturday, September 25, 2004
Thursday, September 23, 2004
Wednesday, September 22, 2004
OJR article: Iranian Bloggers Protest Government Crackdown on Reformist News Sites
posted by Anonymous at 9:41 AM
2 comments
Monday, September 20, 2004
Iranian Journalists Urge President To Probe Case Of Arrested Reporters
posted by Anonymous at 1:48 PM
1 comments
Thursday, September 16, 2004
Canadian Journalists for Free Expression urge the Iranian authorities to release all the journalists and internet provider staff involved
September 13, 2004
His Excellency, Dr. Seyed Mohammad Ali Mousavi, AmbassadorThe Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran245 Metcalfe St.Ottawa, OntarioK2P 2K2 Canada
Excellency,
I am writing on behalf of Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE), a non-profit, non-governmental organization that works to promote and protect press freedom and freedom of expression around the world.
CJFE is alarmed at the Iranian government's attempts to suppress the right to inform the public via the Internet. Not only have several news websites been closed or blocked but also journalists associated with these sites have been arrested.
Babak Ghafori Azar of the financial daily Hayat-e now, Shahram Rafihzadeh, head of the cultural section of the newspaper Etemad, and Hanif Mazroi, a former journalist with several reformist publications, were imprisoned on September 7 and 8. It is presumed that these arrests were in connection with the shutdown of Rouydad (www.rouydad.info).
This incident comes at time when Iranian judicial authorities have cracked down on a number of news sites, especially those with reformist leanings.
We call on the Iranian government to respect the right to free expression and to cease obstructing the running of independent websites. We urge the Iranian authorities to release all the journalists and internet provider staff involved.
I look forward to receiving your prompt reply.
Yours truly,
Arnold Amber President Case file number: PL-O422
C.C.: The Hon. Pierre Pettigrew, Canadian Minister of Foreign AffairsMr. Philip MacKinnon, Ambassador, the Canadian Embassy to the Islamic Republic of Iran
posted by Anonymous at 9:41 AM
3 comments
Wednesday, September 15, 2004
Scoop: Int. observers must have access to labour trial
Wednesday, 15 September 2004, 10:03 am
Press Release: International Confederation Of Free Trade Unions
International observers must have access to labour trial, says ICFTU
Brussels, 14 September 2004 (ICFTU Online): The international trade union movement is renewing its calls on the Iranian authorities to grant entry to international observers for the trial of 7 Iranian labour activists.
Mahmoud Salehi, Mohammad Abdipour, Esmaeel Khodkam, Mohsen Hakimi, Hadi Tanoumand, Jalal Hosseini and Borhan Divangar are due to appear before court on 23rd September 2004 on various charges including "organising the First of May event" when the 7 were arrested following peaceful celebrations to mark May Day.
"Establishing an illegal workers' council", "attempting to hold an illegal gathering" and "preparing a cost of living index for a family of 5 in Iran" are also charges which the 7 labour activists face. Furthermore, the 7 are accused of fraternising with a banned political organisation 'Komala' - the very basis of this charge has been called into question by the ICFTU.
"The charges constitute a flagrant breach of Iran's international obligations as a member of the International Labour Organisation" said Guy Ryder, General Secretary of the world's largest trade union organisation, the ICFTU. "Iran has voluntarily accepted to respect a number of fundamental workers' rights guaranteed by the ILO, such as the right to freedom of association, which covers the right of all workers to establish and join organisations of their own choosing for the protection of their interests. All of the above-mentioned charges, in fact, contradict these fundamental principles".
"The attendance of international observers is an important step towards ensuring the fair judicial process of the labour leaders and therefore granting their entry is in the interest of the Iranian authorities. Undoubtedly this trial has raised serious concerns within the international labour movement about the respect for human rights and trade union rights in Iran, not least since any prosecution would be for activities which are considered legitimate across the world".
Previous attempts to secure visas for ICFTU international observers to the trial have unfortunately been unsuccessful. In fact, the ICFTU's earlier appeal to the Iranian authorities for the guaranteed access of international observers remains unanswered.
In its letter to the Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Seyed Kamal Kharazi, the ICFTU said that it was of the firm belief that "the Iranian judiciary will not wish to expose the country to a formal condemnation by the ILO's supervisory mechanisms" and called on the authorities to guarantee the entry of Mr M. Landgren of the Swedish Trade Union Confederation (LO); Mr. Raji Sourani of the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights; Ms. C. Brighi of the Italian Trade Union Confederation (CISL) and Mr. J. Kuczkiewicz of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU).
The ICFTU represents 148 million workers in 234 affiliated organisations in 152 countries and territories. The ICFTU is also a member of Global Unions: http://www.global-unions.org
Press Release: International Confederation Of Free Trade Unions
International observers must have access to labour trial, says ICFTU
Brussels, 14 September 2004 (ICFTU Online): The international trade union movement is renewing its calls on the Iranian authorities to grant entry to international observers for the trial of 7 Iranian labour activists.
Mahmoud Salehi, Mohammad Abdipour, Esmaeel Khodkam, Mohsen Hakimi, Hadi Tanoumand, Jalal Hosseini and Borhan Divangar are due to appear before court on 23rd September 2004 on various charges including "organising the First of May event" when the 7 were arrested following peaceful celebrations to mark May Day.
"Establishing an illegal workers' council", "attempting to hold an illegal gathering" and "preparing a cost of living index for a family of 5 in Iran" are also charges which the 7 labour activists face. Furthermore, the 7 are accused of fraternising with a banned political organisation 'Komala' - the very basis of this charge has been called into question by the ICFTU.
"The charges constitute a flagrant breach of Iran's international obligations as a member of the International Labour Organisation" said Guy Ryder, General Secretary of the world's largest trade union organisation, the ICFTU. "Iran has voluntarily accepted to respect a number of fundamental workers' rights guaranteed by the ILO, such as the right to freedom of association, which covers the right of all workers to establish and join organisations of their own choosing for the protection of their interests. All of the above-mentioned charges, in fact, contradict these fundamental principles".
"The attendance of international observers is an important step towards ensuring the fair judicial process of the labour leaders and therefore granting their entry is in the interest of the Iranian authorities. Undoubtedly this trial has raised serious concerns within the international labour movement about the respect for human rights and trade union rights in Iran, not least since any prosecution would be for activities which are considered legitimate across the world".
Previous attempts to secure visas for ICFTU international observers to the trial have unfortunately been unsuccessful. In fact, the ICFTU's earlier appeal to the Iranian authorities for the guaranteed access of international observers remains unanswered.
In its letter to the Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Seyed Kamal Kharazi, the ICFTU said that it was of the firm belief that "the Iranian judiciary will not wish to expose the country to a formal condemnation by the ILO's supervisory mechanisms" and called on the authorities to guarantee the entry of Mr M. Landgren of the Swedish Trade Union Confederation (LO); Mr. Raji Sourani of the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights; Ms. C. Brighi of the Italian Trade Union Confederation (CISL) and Mr. J. Kuczkiewicz of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU).
The ICFTU represents 148 million workers in 234 affiliated organisations in 152 countries and territories. The ICFTU is also a member of Global Unions: http://www.global-unions.org
posted by Anonymous at 8:26 AM
2 comments
IranMania News: Film festival organiser arrested over dressers
LONDON, Sept 15 (IranMania) - The organiser of an independent film festival has been arrested by Iran's moral police following protests over the non-respect of the Islamic dress code in the cinema hall, a colleague said Wednesday, reported by AFP.
According to a police official quoted in the Shargh newspaper, the board of directors of the the Cinema House Festival were all summoned following "repeated protests over the non-observance of the Islamic dress code".
The organisers later told AFP that the director of Monday's event, Abolhasan Davoodi, had been arrested but gave no further details.
The independent film body also promptly issued a statement that acknowledged, "with deep regret", that "some of those invited did not abide by the notices" reminding women to properly cover up.
The annual Cinema House Festival, now into its eighth year, is organised by members of Iran's bustling independent movie scene.
The event shows film clips and then hands out a series of awards. It is often labelled as Iran's answer to the Oscars.
But this year the festival came under fierce attack by two hardline newspapers -- the morning Jomhuri Islami and afternoon Kayhan -- which plastered pictures of several women at the festival wearing flimsy headscarfs, three-quarter length trousers and skimpy coats.
Many of the women were also plastered in cosmetics and appeared to be having a good time.
Every post-pubescent female in Iran, regardless of her nationality or religion, is obliged to observe the Islamic dress code and cover her hair whenever outside the home.
Police in Tehran have for several months been engaged in a tough crackdown on skimpy dressers, with offenders facing fines, brief custody and lessons in Islamic morality.
According to a police official quoted in the Shargh newspaper, the board of directors of the the Cinema House Festival were all summoned following "repeated protests over the non-observance of the Islamic dress code".
The organisers later told AFP that the director of Monday's event, Abolhasan Davoodi, had been arrested but gave no further details.
The independent film body also promptly issued a statement that acknowledged, "with deep regret", that "some of those invited did not abide by the notices" reminding women to properly cover up.
The annual Cinema House Festival, now into its eighth year, is organised by members of Iran's bustling independent movie scene.
The event shows film clips and then hands out a series of awards. It is often labelled as Iran's answer to the Oscars.
But this year the festival came under fierce attack by two hardline newspapers -- the morning Jomhuri Islami and afternoon Kayhan -- which plastered pictures of several women at the festival wearing flimsy headscarfs, three-quarter length trousers and skimpy coats.
Many of the women were also plastered in cosmetics and appeared to be having a good time.
Every post-pubescent female in Iran, regardless of her nationality or religion, is obliged to observe the Islamic dress code and cover her hair whenever outside the home.
Police in Tehran have for several months been engaged in a tough crackdown on skimpy dressers, with offenders facing fines, brief custody and lessons in Islamic morality.
posted by Anonymous at 8:14 AM
3 comments
Tuesday, September 14, 2004
Call for immediate release of three illegally arrested journalists
Reporters Without Borders has called for the immediate release of three journalists arrested on 7-8 September 2004 in Tehran and of retired film director Said Motallebi, father of exiled journalist Sina Motallebi.
The international press freedom organisation condemned the "unfair detention" of Babak Ghafori Azar, Shahram Rafihzadeh and Hanif Mazroi and raised serious fears about their welfare.
It said it was "extremely worried, based on their families' suspicions of ill-treatment, and because they are being held in a 'special wing' of Evin prison notorious for the use of torture."
"The arrest of Said Motallebi, 62, aimed at gagging his son, Sina, an Iranian journalist who has sought exile in Europe, is a despicable act", it said. "We call on the Iranian judicial authorities to halt this vile blackmail," it added.
Three journalists detained in Evin prison
Three weeks after the authorities shut down the news site Rouydad (Events), journalists Babak Ghafori Azar, Shahram Rafihzadeh and Hanif Mazroi were arrested by Edareh Amaken - the Tehran police unit usually responsible for cases of morals and close to the Tehran prosecutor Said Mortazavi. Evin prison in the north of Tehran where they are being held is notorious for the use of torture, under which Iranian-Canadian photographer Zahra Kazemi died on 10 July 2003.
Fears for their welfare have been heightened by the fact they are being held in a 'special wing' of the prison, under the direct orders of prosecutor Mortazavi.
UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of expression and opinion, Ambeyi Ligabo and Louis Joinet, chair of the working group on arbitrary detention of the UN Human Rights Commission, were refused access to this part of the jail during their visits to Iran in 2003 and 2004.
Not even the prison governor can enter this part of the prison, to which only intelligence service interrogators under the orders of Mortazavi are admitted.
Detention of the father of journalist Sina Motallebi
Said Motallebi, father of journalist Sina Motallebi living in exile in Holland from where he runs the news site www.rooznegar.com, was arrested in Tehran on 8 September.
He was previously summoned by the justice system the day after a press conference in Paris at the headquarters of Reporters Without Borders on 8 June 2004. Sina Motallebi, both at this conference and in several articles published later, spoke out about torture and ill-treatment that he suffered while in solitary confinement from 20 April to 12 May 2003.
The Iranian authorities had threatened to make Said Motallebi "another Pourzand" (a reference to journalist Siamak Pourzand, 75, jailed since 30 March 2003 and whose health has badly deteriorated in prison) if his son did not keep silent. Said Motallebi is in a poor state of health and suffers from heart problems.
posted by Anonymous at 1:22 PM
1 comments
Sunday, September 12, 2004
VOA: Iranian Nobel Peace Prize Winner Says Human Rights Ignored by Tehran
Marlene Smith, VOA, Vienna - 10 Sep 2004
Human rights activist, Shirin Ebadi, says Iran has signed international treaties protecting young people from execution, but constantly ignores the agreements. Ms. Ebadi spke at a news conference in Vienna.
Ms. Ebadi told reporters that Iran is violating international obligations on human rights especially those concerning women and children.
She said Iran's legal system is not in tune with the country's international obligations.
Ms. Ebadi, who is a lawyer, said she represented a 16-year -ld in a court case who is now awaiting the death penalty in an Iranian prison.
Ms. Ebadi has been imprisoned several times herself, and is leader of the Association for the Support of Children's Rights in Iran.
The Nobel Peace Prize Winner says women are also victims of discrimination by the Iranian justice system. As an example Ms. Ebadi said women injured in a car accident only receive half the compensation paid out to men involved in similar cases.
Ms. Ebadi said young women in Iran today are highly educated and make up almost two-thirds of all students at the universities. But the human rights activist does not think they will spark large-scale protests or a revolution. Rather, she says, she expects gradual reforms to continue.
Ms. Ebadi also said she hopes for a peaceful resolution of the dispute between the United States and Iran on Tehran's nuclear program.
Ms. Ebadi says no country needs nuclear weapons, not the United States, not Israel, not Iran.
The United States says Iran is working on a secret nuclear weapons program, but this is strongly denied by Tehran.
Next week the International Atomic Energy Agency board meets in Vienna to discuss whether concerns over Iran's nuclear program should go the U.N. Security Council for possible sanctions.
Ms. Ebadi was in Vienna at the invitation of the Austrian Foreign Minister, Benita Ferrero-Waldner, who takes over the post of European Commissioner for Foreign Affairs in November.
Ms. Ferrero-Waldner promised, in her new job, to promote a dialogue between the European Union and Iran on human rights issues.
Human rights activist, Shirin Ebadi, says Iran has signed international treaties protecting young people from execution, but constantly ignores the agreements. Ms. Ebadi spke at a news conference in Vienna.
Ms. Ebadi told reporters that Iran is violating international obligations on human rights especially those concerning women and children.
She said Iran's legal system is not in tune with the country's international obligations.
Ms. Ebadi, who is a lawyer, said she represented a 16-year -ld in a court case who is now awaiting the death penalty in an Iranian prison.
Ms. Ebadi has been imprisoned several times herself, and is leader of the Association for the Support of Children's Rights in Iran.
The Nobel Peace Prize Winner says women are also victims of discrimination by the Iranian justice system. As an example Ms. Ebadi said women injured in a car accident only receive half the compensation paid out to men involved in similar cases.
Ms. Ebadi said young women in Iran today are highly educated and make up almost two-thirds of all students at the universities. But the human rights activist does not think they will spark large-scale protests or a revolution. Rather, she says, she expects gradual reforms to continue.
Ms. Ebadi also said she hopes for a peaceful resolution of the dispute between the United States and Iran on Tehran's nuclear program.
Ms. Ebadi says no country needs nuclear weapons, not the United States, not Israel, not Iran.
The United States says Iran is working on a secret nuclear weapons program, but this is strongly denied by Tehran.
Next week the International Atomic Energy Agency board meets in Vienna to discuss whether concerns over Iran's nuclear program should go the U.N. Security Council for possible sanctions.
Ms. Ebadi was in Vienna at the invitation of the Austrian Foreign Minister, Benita Ferrero-Waldner, who takes over the post of European Commissioner for Foreign Affairs in November.
Ms. Ferrero-Waldner promised, in her new job, to promote a dialogue between the European Union and Iran on human rights issues.
posted by Anonymous at 11:00 AM
2 comments
Friday, September 10, 2004
Iran arrests second dissident who risked interview with Canadian newspaper
Sep 9, 2004, 13:55
Ottawa Citizen
46-year-old grabbed outside UN offices
By Michael Petrou
A second Iranian dissident who risked his life to speak with a reporter from the Ottawa Citizen in Iran this spring has been arrested and jailed by security forces of the Islamic regime.
Bina Darabzand was arrested on August 17th outside the offices of the United Nations in Tehran, where he and several other dissidents had gone to ask the international organization to help persecuted Iranian democrats.
Mr. Darabzand, 46, met several times with this reporter in Tehran this April, putting himself at danger on each occasion. He is a cheerful and strongly-built man with a greying moustache and thick wavy hair. He spends hours on the road, driving across Iran from his home on the Black Sea coast to meet with other dissidents.
A middle-aged man among student activists in their 20s, Mr. Darabzand has campaigned for political change in Iran since 1979.
Mr. Darabzand has been arrested several times before. This spring he described the mental torture he suffered while interrogated during a previous arrest.
"At first I wouldn?t tell them anything," he said. "Then they told me what they'd do to my wife. I told them what they wanted to hear."
Among those arrested with Mr. Darabzand is Behrouz Javid Tehrani, a young democratic crusader who also secretly met with this reporter in April.
Mr. Tehrani has been arrested four times since his story was originally published in the Ottawa Citizen.
He is now in solitary confinement in cellblock 209 of Tehran's Evin prison, where he was tortured over a 10-month period in 1999 and 2000, and where Canadian photojournalist Zahra Kazemi was murdered last summer.
It is impossible for Mr. Tehrani to get messages to anyone outside the prison from the solitary wing. However, late last week a prisoner in another cellblock reported hearing Mr. Tehrani screaming to protest his lack of cigarettes, which suggests he is still alive.
Mr. Darabzand is reportedly alive as well.
Ottawa Citizen
46-year-old grabbed outside UN offices
By Michael Petrou
A second Iranian dissident who risked his life to speak with a reporter from the Ottawa Citizen in Iran this spring has been arrested and jailed by security forces of the Islamic regime.
Bina Darabzand was arrested on August 17th outside the offices of the United Nations in Tehran, where he and several other dissidents had gone to ask the international organization to help persecuted Iranian democrats.
Mr. Darabzand, 46, met several times with this reporter in Tehran this April, putting himself at danger on each occasion. He is a cheerful and strongly-built man with a greying moustache and thick wavy hair. He spends hours on the road, driving across Iran from his home on the Black Sea coast to meet with other dissidents.
A middle-aged man among student activists in their 20s, Mr. Darabzand has campaigned for political change in Iran since 1979.
Mr. Darabzand has been arrested several times before. This spring he described the mental torture he suffered while interrogated during a previous arrest.
"At first I wouldn?t tell them anything," he said. "Then they told me what they'd do to my wife. I told them what they wanted to hear."
Among those arrested with Mr. Darabzand is Behrouz Javid Tehrani, a young democratic crusader who also secretly met with this reporter in April.
Mr. Tehrani has been arrested four times since his story was originally published in the Ottawa Citizen.
He is now in solitary confinement in cellblock 209 of Tehran's Evin prison, where he was tortured over a 10-month period in 1999 and 2000, and where Canadian photojournalist Zahra Kazemi was murdered last summer.
It is impossible for Mr. Tehrani to get messages to anyone outside the prison from the solitary wing. However, late last week a prisoner in another cellblock reported hearing Mr. Tehrani screaming to protest his lack of cigarettes, which suggests he is still alive.
Mr. Darabzand is reportedly alive as well.
posted by Anonymous at 6:32 AM
0 comments
Three journalists arrested in continued crackdown against Internet
Reporters Without Borders said it was outraged at the latest escalation in a crackdown against news on the Internet as three journalists contributing or having contributed to a reformist site were arrested on 7-8 August.
They were Babak Ghafori Azar, Shahram Rafihzadeh and Hanif Mazroi - the latest victims of a wave of arrests and closures launched by Iranian judicial authorities against news sites with reformist leanings.
"Reporters Without Borders is outraged at this latest escalation against the right to inform the public via the Internet in Iran.
"After closing or blocking several sites and arresting several of their staff, the Tehran authorities are summoning, arresting and threatening journalists suspected of having links to these sites, said the international press freedom organisation.
"We call on the Iranian authorities to immediately release the three journalists arrested this week and end its crackdown against Internet news sites."
Security forces arrested Babak Ghafori Azar, of the financial daily Hayat-e now at his home on 7 August after searching the premises.
Shahram Rafihzadeh, head of the cultural section of the newspaper Etemad, was summoned by the Tehran prosecutor's office last week but did not answer his summons. He was arrested on 7 August at the newspaper, apparently by the morals police, a department of the Tehran police forces seen as close to the intelligence services.
Hanif Mazroi, former journalist on several reformist press titles, was arrested after answering a summons from the 9th chamber of the Tehran prosecutor's office on 8 August.
The three journalists appeared to have detained in connection with the blocking on 21 August of the Internet news site Rouydad (www.rouydad.info), on the order of the Tehran prosecutor's office.
Some six to eight people working for Internet service providers, who were summoned then arrested by the Tehran prosecutor's office about two weeks ago, have been released.
All of them spoke of harassment and threats and said they had been warned not to communicate with anyone about their arrests if they wanted to be released.
They were Babak Ghafori Azar, Shahram Rafihzadeh and Hanif Mazroi - the latest victims of a wave of arrests and closures launched by Iranian judicial authorities against news sites with reformist leanings.
"Reporters Without Borders is outraged at this latest escalation against the right to inform the public via the Internet in Iran.
"After closing or blocking several sites and arresting several of their staff, the Tehran authorities are summoning, arresting and threatening journalists suspected of having links to these sites, said the international press freedom organisation.
"We call on the Iranian authorities to immediately release the three journalists arrested this week and end its crackdown against Internet news sites."
Security forces arrested Babak Ghafori Azar, of the financial daily Hayat-e now at his home on 7 August after searching the premises.
Shahram Rafihzadeh, head of the cultural section of the newspaper Etemad, was summoned by the Tehran prosecutor's office last week but did not answer his summons. He was arrested on 7 August at the newspaper, apparently by the morals police, a department of the Tehran police forces seen as close to the intelligence services.
Hanif Mazroi, former journalist on several reformist press titles, was arrested after answering a summons from the 9th chamber of the Tehran prosecutor's office on 8 August.
The three journalists appeared to have detained in connection with the blocking on 21 August of the Internet news site Rouydad (www.rouydad.info), on the order of the Tehran prosecutor's office.
Some six to eight people working for Internet service providers, who were summoned then arrested by the Tehran prosecutor's office about two weeks ago, have been released.
All of them spoke of harassment and threats and said they had been warned not to communicate with anyone about their arrests if they wanted to be released.
posted by Anonymous at 6:29 AM
2 comments
Thursday, September 09, 2004
Blogger/Journalists arrested over Reformist websites (Stop Censoring Us)
posted by Anonymous at 1:47 AM
3 comments
Warning by Legal Experts in Iran about imminent execution of three children
Source: FARDA-URL
Following the execution of Atefeh, a 16 year old girl in the northern city of Neka in Iran, who was accused of having had an extramarital sexual affair, the legal experts are now worried about the faith of three young people who are condemned to death by the Islamic courts. Under international pressure the Judiciary has now announced that they are waiting for three young boys to reach the age of 18 before they are executed. The authorities have not revealed what the boys are convicted of.
Under Islamic Law children are exempt from judicial punishment but the same legal system considers girls at the age of 10 and boys at 16 as adults and punishable.
Although in the past two years the IRI have not carried out some of the court verdicts which contravened the international law of Human Rights, but at the same time no amendments have been made to the Islamic legal system in these respects.
ISNA, the student痴 news agency in Iran says they received letters which warns them the boys have just turned 18 and if the international public opinion remains silent they will have the same faith as Atefeh, the 16 year old girl from Neka.
Following the execution of Atefeh, a 16 year old girl in the northern city of Neka in Iran, who was accused of having had an extramarital sexual affair, the legal experts are now worried about the faith of three young people who are condemned to death by the Islamic courts. Under international pressure the Judiciary has now announced that they are waiting for three young boys to reach the age of 18 before they are executed. The authorities have not revealed what the boys are convicted of.
Under Islamic Law children are exempt from judicial punishment but the same legal system considers girls at the age of 10 and boys at 16 as adults and punishable.
Although in the past two years the IRI have not carried out some of the court verdicts which contravened the international law of Human Rights, but at the same time no amendments have been made to the Islamic legal system in these respects.
ISNA, the student痴 news agency in Iran says they received letters which warns them the boys have just turned 18 and if the international public opinion remains silent they will have the same faith as Atefeh, the 16 year old girl from Neka.
posted by Anonymous at 1:33 AM
4 comments
Sunday, September 05, 2004
Saturday, September 04, 2004
World: International medical experts urge an end to child executions
News
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
PRESS RELEASE
AI Index: POL 30/033/2004 (Public)
News Service No: 218
3 September 2004
Embargo Date: 3 September 200401:00GMT
World: International medical experts urge an end to child executions
Amnesty International and medical experts from seven countries have sent an open letter to the heads of government in China, Pakistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Philippines, Iran, Sudan and the USA urging them to stop using the death penalty against children.
The letter has been signed by 17 medical experts with outstanding credentials in the field of child and adolescent psychology, psychiatry and social development.
"Although adolescents generally know the difference between right and wrong, they can suffer from diminished capacities to reason logically, to control their impulses, to think through the future consequences of their actions, and to resist the negative influences and persuasion of others," says the letter. "They should face punishment for criminal actions, but the sanctions which can be imposed on mentally competent adolescent offenders should not be the same as those faced by adults found guilty of the same offences."
Endorsing the call of the experts to abolish juvenile executions, Irene Khan, Secretary General of Amnesty International, said, "Child offenders should not be punished as if they were adults. Governments must amend their laws and practices to confirm with international human rights standards and end the death penalty for offenders under the age of 18."
Background Information
International standards prohibit the execution of child offenders -- people who were under 18 years old at the time of the crime. These standards include the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the American Convention on Human Rights and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. This prohibition is now so widely accepted as to constitute a principle of customary international law. The relevant standards are respected by the overwhelming majority of the 80 countries which still retain and use the death penalty.
For more information on Amnesty International's campaign "Stop Child Executions!", see:
http://www.amnestyusa.org/abolish/juveniles/
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
PRESS RELEASE
AI Index: POL 30/033/2004 (Public)
News Service No: 218
3 September 2004
Embargo Date: 3 September 200401:00GMT
World: International medical experts urge an end to child executions
Amnesty International and medical experts from seven countries have sent an open letter to the heads of government in China, Pakistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Philippines, Iran, Sudan and the USA urging them to stop using the death penalty against children.
The letter has been signed by 17 medical experts with outstanding credentials in the field of child and adolescent psychology, psychiatry and social development.
"Although adolescents generally know the difference between right and wrong, they can suffer from diminished capacities to reason logically, to control their impulses, to think through the future consequences of their actions, and to resist the negative influences and persuasion of others," says the letter. "They should face punishment for criminal actions, but the sanctions which can be imposed on mentally competent adolescent offenders should not be the same as those faced by adults found guilty of the same offences."
Endorsing the call of the experts to abolish juvenile executions, Irene Khan, Secretary General of Amnesty International, said, "Child offenders should not be punished as if they were adults. Governments must amend their laws and practices to confirm with international human rights standards and end the death penalty for offenders under the age of 18."
Background Information
International standards prohibit the execution of child offenders -- people who were under 18 years old at the time of the crime. These standards include the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the American Convention on Human Rights and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. This prohibition is now so widely accepted as to constitute a principle of customary international law. The relevant standards are respected by the overwhelming majority of the 80 countries which still retain and use the death penalty.
For more information on Amnesty International's campaign "Stop Child Executions!", see:
http://www.amnestyusa.org/abolish/juveniles/
posted by Anonymous at 3:33 AM
0 comments
Wednesday, September 01, 2004
Reuters.com - Leading Iranian Dissident Demands Trial by Jury
TEHRAN (Reuters) - A top Iranian dissident demanded trial by jury Wednesday, refusing to be tried by one Hardline judge on charges including "acting against state security."
Ebrahim Yazdi, head of the Freedom Movement of Iran (FMI) which advocates the separation of religion and state, is due in court this month where he must answer several other charges including insulting Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
"It is impossible to expect justice to be administered at a court where the judge, prosecutor and interrogator are the same person," Yazdi told Reuters.
"According to the constitution, I should be tried in an ordinary open court in the presence of a jury," he added. "I will only attend such a court."
Yazdi, who said he had been interrogated 52 times since April 2002, denies all the charges.
He was a close aide to Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the spiritual father of the 1979 Islamic revolution, and was a Foreign Minister in the first post-revolutionary government.
The FMI, termed religious nationalists, formed the backbone of the interim government after the revolution. But its moderate politicians were swiftly replaced by radical revolutionaries and Islamic hard-liners.
The conservative judiciary, which outlawed the FMI four years ago, sentenced dozens of members of the movement to 10 years in jail in 2002.
"Thirty-five or 36 members have appealed against their sentences and are waiting for the results," Yazdi said.
Yazdi's lawyers, who include Nobel Peace Price laureate Shirin Ebadi, said they would not attend the one-judge Revolutionary Court.
"We respect our client's decision, so neither Shirin Ebadi nor I will attend the court," one of his lawyers Mohammad Ali Dadkhah said. "We think his decision is legal," he added.
The FMI was sidelined after it opposed the Islamic Republic's more radical acts, such as the seizure of the U.S. embassy in 1979.
It gained more leeway to appeal to students and radical reformers after the election of liberal President Mohammad Khatami in 1997. But hard-liners have accused three of its members of provoking last summer's student protests.
Ebrahim Yazdi, head of the Freedom Movement of Iran (FMI) which advocates the separation of religion and state, is due in court this month where he must answer several other charges including insulting Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
"It is impossible to expect justice to be administered at a court where the judge, prosecutor and interrogator are the same person," Yazdi told Reuters.
"According to the constitution, I should be tried in an ordinary open court in the presence of a jury," he added. "I will only attend such a court."
Yazdi, who said he had been interrogated 52 times since April 2002, denies all the charges.
He was a close aide to Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the spiritual father of the 1979 Islamic revolution, and was a Foreign Minister in the first post-revolutionary government.
The FMI, termed religious nationalists, formed the backbone of the interim government after the revolution. But its moderate politicians were swiftly replaced by radical revolutionaries and Islamic hard-liners.
The conservative judiciary, which outlawed the FMI four years ago, sentenced dozens of members of the movement to 10 years in jail in 2002.
"Thirty-five or 36 members have appealed against their sentences and are waiting for the results," Yazdi said.
Yazdi's lawyers, who include Nobel Peace Price laureate Shirin Ebadi, said they would not attend the one-judge Revolutionary Court.
"We respect our client's decision, so neither Shirin Ebadi nor I will attend the court," one of his lawyers Mohammad Ali Dadkhah said. "We think his decision is legal," he added.
The FMI was sidelined after it opposed the Islamic Republic's more radical acts, such as the seizure of the U.S. embassy in 1979.
It gained more leeway to appeal to students and radical reformers after the election of liberal President Mohammad Khatami in 1997. But hard-liners have accused three of its members of provoking last summer's student protests.
posted by Anonymous at 2:08 PM
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Iranian Nobel laureate agrees to defend dissident despite threats
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) -- Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi said Tuesday she has agreed to defend an Iranian dissident despite threats against her.
Ebadi will serve as defense counsel for Ebrahim Yazdi, a former foreign minister who faces trial on accusations of plotting against the ruling clerical establishment.
"It would be treason if I stop working out of fear of prison,'' Ebadi said at a news conference.
Yazdi is an outspoken leader of the freedom movement of Iran and a former Iran's Foreign Minister after 1979 Islamic Revolution.
She demanded a jury trial and said it should be open to the public.
Ebadi, who was given bodyguards after receiving threatening letters last year, said that twice in the last 10 days her garage door had been broken by people entering her residence. She said the intruders left without touching anything. She suggested the forced entries were meant as a warning to her.
"Apparently someone who thinks he is beyond the reach of the law is angry about my activities,'' Ebadi said.
The lawyer was known to have angered Iran's hard-line judiciary in July while leading a team representing the mother of an Iranian-Canadian photojournalist murdered in prison
The judiciary acquitted the defendant, Mohammad Reza Aghdam Ahmadi, and later claimed Kazemi might have died because of complications from a hunger strike.
Ebadi protested the court verdict and demanded the summoning of a dozen top officials as witnesses.
Ebadi will serve as defense counsel for Ebrahim Yazdi, a former foreign minister who faces trial on accusations of plotting against the ruling clerical establishment.
"It would be treason if I stop working out of fear of prison,'' Ebadi said at a news conference.
Yazdi is an outspoken leader of the freedom movement of Iran and a former Iran's Foreign Minister after 1979 Islamic Revolution.
She demanded a jury trial and said it should be open to the public.
Ebadi, who was given bodyguards after receiving threatening letters last year, said that twice in the last 10 days her garage door had been broken by people entering her residence. She said the intruders left without touching anything. She suggested the forced entries were meant as a warning to her.
"Apparently someone who thinks he is beyond the reach of the law is angry about my activities,'' Ebadi said.
The lawyer was known to have angered Iran's hard-line judiciary in July while leading a team representing the mother of an Iranian-Canadian photojournalist murdered in prison
The judiciary acquitted the defendant, Mohammad Reza Aghdam Ahmadi, and later claimed Kazemi might have died because of complications from a hunger strike.
Ebadi protested the court verdict and demanded the summoning of a dozen top officials as witnesses.
posted by Anonymous at 2:07 PM
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