HUMAN RIGHTS IN IRAN CONTENTS page INTRODUCTION and OVERVIEW 2

HUMAN RIGHTS IN IRAN CONTENTS INTRODUCTION and OVERVIEW Political The Legal System and Freedom of Expression Human Rights RECENT EVIDENCE of SERIOUS BREACHES OF HUMAN RIGHTS page 2 2 2 4 7 9 9 10 11 12 12 13 13 15 15 17 18 19 20 20 23 24 26 HUMAN RIGHTS IN IRAN – THE DETAIL EXECUTIONS and THE DEATH PENALTY AMPUTATIONS STONING ILL TREATMENT OR TORTURE DETENTION FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND ASSOCIATION Freedom of expression Corrupting public morality Freedom of the press Independent political activity Politicians Students Lawyers defending human rights DISCRIMINATION AGAINST RELIGIOUS AND ETHNIC MINORITIES A MAJOR SHIFT? BIBLIOGRAPHY APPENDIX – Extract from the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs Background Note: Iran December 2001 2 HUMAN RIGHTS IN IRAN 14 April 20031 INTRODUCTION and OVERVIEW Political Despite landslide electoral victories in every major election from 1997 to 2002, the reformers (who control the Presidency and the Parliament [Majilis]) were unable to dislodge repressive policies favored by the clerical leadership (who exercise power through the office of the Leader, the Council of Guardians, the judiciary and the armed forces), including far-reaching restrictions on freedom of expression, association, and political participation. 2 In the last two years, more than fifty pieces of reform legislation have been vetoed by the Council of Guardians.3 The Council of Guardians repeatedly blocked bills passed by the Parliament in such areas as women‘s rights, family law, the prevention of torture, and electoral reform. The judiciary, deployed as one of the conservative‘s strongest weapons, further undermined the rule of law with arbitrary closures of newspapers and imprisonment of political activists.4 In a widely circulated letter of resignation, on July 8, 2002, the Ayatollah Jalaluddin Taheri issued a ringing denunciation of the clerical establishment. He accused Iran‘s clerical leaders of directing and encouraging ―a bunch of club wielders‖ and of ―marrying the ill-tempered, ugly hag of violence to religion.‖ He observed that the centers of power were ―unchecked and unbridled ...neither reproached by the executors of justice nor reproved by the law.‖5 The Legal System and Freedom of Expression The Iranian legal system is characterised by prolonged and often incommunicado detention, torture and ill treatment of prisoners, including the use of cruel, inhuman and degrading punishments such as flogging and amputation; the extensive use of the death penalty, arrest without charge, stoning, restrictions on freedom of expression, the deprivation of medical treatment and discriminatory laws, including those relating to women‘s rights.6 Human Rights Watch (February, 2003) reports: 1 This report draws extensively on the sources acknowledged in the footnotes and the bibliography. It is a compilation rather than an original work. 2 3 4 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.441 Human Rights Watch Letter to British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw February 3, 2003 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.441 Human Rights Watch Iran: U.K. Government Should Press for Real Reform New York, February 4, 2003 , 5 6 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.442 See Amnesty International, Iran: A legal system that fails to protect freedom of expression and association, December 2001 (AI Index: MDE 13/045/2001), pp.1-2 Mark Green 14April 2003 3 In recent months, the arbitrary detention of students and the targeting of government critics have increased. Scholars and students who criticize the ruling clerical establishment have faced death sentences, teaching bans or long prison terms. Several government officials and close associates of reformist President Mohammad Khatami have been held incommunicado for months because they published a poll showing that a majority of Iranians favor restoring relations with the United States.7 An Amnesty International Report, Iran: A legal system that fails to protect freedom of expression and association, describes the judiciary system: Vague and overlapping laws limiting freedom of expression and association; a flawed structure of the judiciary, lacking true independence and marred by an unsound system of appointments, hampered by a lack of separation of powers and the judges‘ legal obligation to give a ruling for which they are held personally responsible and which may not be backed up in law, have led to many failures in the administration of justice in Iran. The safeguards of defense normally provided by lawyers and an independent Bar Association have been dramatically weakened by their dependence on the judiciary, resulting in a pattern of irregular procedures both before and during trials, and flawed provisions for appeal. In Iran today there is a pattern of arrest, detention and imprisonment of individuals following unfair trial for no other reason than the expression of their conscientiously held beliefs.8 7 8 Human Rights Watch Iran: U.K. Government Should Press for Real Reform New York, February 4, 2003 , Amnesty International, Iran: A legal system that fails to protect freedom of expression and association, December 2001 (AI Index: MDE 13/045/2001), p.18 At the beginning of the Report, Amnesty International states: The Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran contains many important safeguards of rights and freedoms that are guaranteed in the international instruments to which Iran is a state party (see box), including those relating to freedom of expression and fair trial. These seek to ensure that all individuals enjoy the same rights under law, and the human dignity that follows from this. Human rights treaties that Iran has ratified: • 1968 - International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination • 1975 - International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights • 1975 - International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights • 1976 - Convention relating to the Status of Refugees • 1976 - Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees • 1994 - Convention on the Rights of the Child Amnesty International, Iran: A legal system that fails to protect freedom of expression and association, December 2001 (AI Index: MDE 13/045/2001), p.1 The report continues: Iran‟s Constitution guarantees freedom of belief. However, restrictions on freedom of expression and association in Iranian law go beyond both the Iranian Constitution and the international human rights treaties to which Iran is a state party. Restrictive, contradictory and vaguely worded provisions contained in the Penal Code, the Theologians‟ Law - a body of law that deals with offences committed by clerics - and the Public and Revolutionary Courts‟ Procedural Law undermine the right to freedom of expression. For example, the Penal Code prohibits a range of activities, such as those connected with journalism or public discourse, which do not amount to recognizably criminal offences. The restrictions set out in national law are exacerbated by structural flaws in the judicial system. The judiciary does not enjoy the independence accorded to it by constitutional provisions and the functions of investigator, prosecutor and judge are frequently combined, bringing the impartiality of the judge into question. Lower court judges are under pressure to investigate and prosecute allegations that may be brought by a superior judicial official who is often the official directly responsible for their appointment and continued employment as a Mark Green 14April 2003 4 Judges have no independence in judgement. Speaking to students at the Sharif Technical University on 8 October 2000, the First Deputy of the Head of the Judiciary, Hojjatoleslam val Moslemin Hadi Marvi, reportedly stated that ―no one except for the Leader [Vali Faqih] is qualified to judge; to do so is at the discretion of the Leader. If not, the judgment has no place in religious jurisprudence [Shari‘a] or law. A judge cannot say ―it is my opinion...‖; a judge must obey. The innocent judge is a very part of the Leader and has no independence in judgment.‖ (Hamshahri and other newspapers 9 October 2000)9 Human Rights In a statement to the UNESCO Commission on Human Rights on 3 April 2002, Maurice Copithorne, the Special Representative, made eight points about the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran: 1. Powerful elites continue to use violence to confront those they deem to be enemies of the state or of religion. Activists can be kidnapped off the streets showing up months later in the custody of one of the many security agencies; 2. There has been further harassment and in some cases, further detentions of journalists supporting the cause of reform, and of student activists. They join the significant group already in detention, apparently for advocating peaceful change in the system; 3. Reports, including personal testimony, of the abuse of detainees continue to become public. These include long periods of solitary confinement, coerced confessions, disregard for the medical condition of detainees, refusal of access for relatives and lawyers, as well commonly, of psychological torture, and from time to time, of physical torture as well. There is a recent report that a journalist released on bail after a year in prison, was taken straight to hospital in a state of paralysis; 4. Suspicious deaths and executions continue to be reported, sometimes of ethnic minorities such as the Kurds; judge and judges must provide rulings for which they may be held personally responsible even when there is, as noted in Article 167 of the Constitution, “silence or deficiency of law”. The Bar Association in Tehran and other regional centres in Iran were re-established by the judicial authorities in 1999 after many years in abeyance. Restrictions on its functions weaken its independence and therefore safeguards against unfair trial. The function of the Bar Association to grant licences to newly qualified lawyers and to freely choose its own representatives are, for example, essential safeguards of the independence of the Bar Association. Recent legislation, however, has removed these functions. The judiciary controls who is eligible for apprenticeship places with the Bar Association, entry into the legal profession, and continued functioning as a lawyer. This weakens the independence of the Bar Association and undermines the professional integrity, security and independence required by lawyers and could lead to exclusion on the basis of ethnic origin, religion, or beliefs. Taken together, these flaws have obstructed the delivery of justice. Over recent years there have been a catalogue of victims of arbitrary detention, unfair trial and imprisonment for no reason other than the expression of their conscientiously held beliefs. Such practices are not only contrary to Iran‟s own Constitution but also violate international human rights standards. Amnesty International, Iran: A legal system that fails to protect freedom of expression and association, December 2001 (AI Index: MDE 13/045/2001), pp.2-3 9 Amnesty International, Iran: A legal system that fails to protect freedom of expression and association, December 2001 (AI Index: MDE 13/045/2001), p.10 Mark Green 14April 2003 5 5. The legal profession continues to face intimidation; one prominent defender of human rights activists was recently sentenced by a military court to 5 years in prison and 70 lashes for a variety of alleged offences; 6. With regard to minorities, there is a recent report of the banning of the use of the Azeri language in a provincial newspaper in the largely Azeri speaking city of Tabriz; 7. Much of the Majilis legislation with reformist elements including the budget, the foreign investment bill, efforts to make the election process more transparent and accountable, have been rejected. Other initiatives such as that to raise the minimum age of marriage for girls in particular which is now 9 years of age, are still in limbo after having been rejected. One initiative that has reappeared in the Majilis is an attempt to modernize the child custody laws in favor of the mother; 8. With regard to torture, the Head of the Judiciary himself is reported by the Iranian press to have recently declared that its use is still widespread within the premises of the various security agencies. Just last month, the Majilis passed draft legislation which would ban the use of torture. It remains to be seen whether it will be approved.10 Hanny Megally and Steve Crawshaw of Human Rights Watch wrote to Jack Straw, the British Foreign Secretary, on 3 February 2003. In their letter they note that there are elements within the government who ―continue to tolerate or encourage the activities of shadowy underground paramilitary forces, linked to hardline conservative clerical leaders unwilling to relinquish their continuing grip on power, undermining the rule of law and creating a climate of fear.‖11 More specifically, they report that several scholars, journalists, government officials and students who have criticised the ruling clerical establishment have suffered death sentences, teaching bans or long prison terms. Dr. Hashem Aghajari, a university lecturer, was sentenced to death for his criticism of the role of the clergy in politics. Philosopher Abdol Karim Soroush, one of the intellectual leaders of the reform movement has been banned from teaching since 1995. Ahmad Batebi and at least six other students have been in prison since 1999 for participating in non-violent demonstrations. In recent months several lawyers known for their defense of human rights have been targets of prosecution. Mohammad Dadkhah, Abdolfath Soltani, and Naser Zarafshan have been sentenced to months of imprisonment for carrying out their professional duties.12 . . . Abbas Abdi, a prominent journalist and Hossein Ali Ghazian, a scholar have been in detention, charged with "collaboration with U.S. elements and British intelligence" and of conducting "psychological warfare" against the government.13 Hanny Megally and Steve Crawshaw emphasise that 10 UNESCO Commission on Human Rights, Fifty-eighth session, Statement by Mr. Maurice Copithorne, Special Representative of the Commission on Human Rights on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, Geneva, 3 April 2002. The report reference is E/CN.4/2002/42 11 12 13 Human Rights Watch Letter to British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw February 3, 2003 Human Rights Watch Letter to British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw February 3, 2003 Human Rights Watch Letter to British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw February 3, 2003 14April 2003 Mark Green 6 Since April 2000 more than 90 publications related to reformists have been closed. In recent weeks attacks against the independent news media have further intensified. In January, during one week three newspapers were closed. The conservative-dominated judiciary has convicted several journalists and writers, allied with President Khatami. They include: Emadedin Baghi, Akbar Ganji, Hassan Youssefi Eshkevari, Ali Afshari, Khalil Rostamkhani, and Saeid Sadre, who continue serving sentences for their participation in the March 2000 Berlin Conference - a conference on political reform in Iran, held in Berlin, that became the particular target of criticism from the conservative establishment.14 Meanwhile the treatment of Iran‘s religious and ethnic minorities continues to give cause for concern. They are subject to discrimination and persecution. The banned Kurdish opposition parties claimed that their supporters have received death sentences, and at least five their members were executed during 2002, after unfair trials. Baha'is also continue to face intense persecution, including being denied permission to worship, and access to higher education or to carry out other communal affairs publicly. At least four Baha'is are serving prison terms for their religious beliefs.15 RECENT EVIDENCE of SERIOUS BREACHES OF HUMAN RIGHTS A search, conducted on 13 April 2003, of the Amnesty International Library Online Documentation Archive on Iran produced 146 hits.16 The 18 most recent entries, which document the gravest abuses threatened in the last 12 months, are listed below. It must be noted that these are cases known to Amnesty international, cases where it was believed letters and political action could make a difference. 04/03/2003 Iran: Fear of ill treatment or torture, Qasem Sho'leh Sa'di. (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/006/2003 Iran: Death penalty, Sasan Al-e Kena?n (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/003/2003 Iran: Further Information on Death penalty, Sasan Al-e Kena?n. (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/005/2003 Iran: Fear of imminent amputation (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/001/2003 Iran: Fear for safety/Fear of torture/ill treatment (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/023/2002 Iran: Further information on fear for safety/Fear of torture/ill treatment. ACTIONS) MDE 13/008/2003 Iran: Further information on fear for safety/Fear of torture/ill treatment. ACTIONS) MDE 13/004/2003 (URGENT 19/02/2003 21/02/2003 08/01/2003 11/11/2002 11/03/2003 19/02/2003 (URGENT 07/11/2002 Iran: Threat of execution/medical concern, Dr Seyyed Hashem Aghajari ACTIONS) MDE 13/022/2002 (URGENT 14/02/2003 Iran: Further information on Threat of execution/medical concern, Dr Seyyed Hashem Aghajari (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/002/2003 14 15 16 Human Rights Watch Letter to British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw February 3, 2003 Human Rights Watch Letter to British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw February 3, 2003 http://www.amnesty.org/library/eng-irn/index 14April 2003 Mark Green 7 07/11/2002 13/021/2002 Iran: Release, Abdollah Nouri: Further information on Medical Action. (REPORTS) MDE 06/11/2002 Iran: Abdollah Nouri's release welcomed, but all prisoners of conscience must also be released (NEWS) MDE 13/020/2002 15/10/2002 Iran: Imminent flogging, a named business and several unnamed others ACTIONS) MDE 13/019/2002 (URGENT 02/10/2002 Iran: Fear of imminent execution/Fear of torture and ill-treatment, Said Masouri (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/018/2002 01/10/2002 Iran: Fear of Imminent Flogging, eleven men. (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/017/2002 (URGENT 25/09/2002 Iran: Fear of imminent execution, two named and five unnamed men. ACTIONS) MDE 13/015/2002 30/09/2002 Iran: Fear of imminent execution, two named and five unnamed men. ACTIONS) MDE 13/016/2002 24/09/2002 Iran: Fear of imminent execution (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/014/2002 (URGENT 16/08/2002 Iran: Imminent flogging/arrest without charge/medical concern, Nasser Zarafshan, lawyer. (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/012/2002 27/06/2002 13/010/2002 19/06/2002 13/009/2002 22/05/2002 09/05/2002 06/03/2002 Iran: Abdollah Nouri, prisoner of conscience: Medical Action (REPORTS) MDE Iran: Fear of ill treatment / torture /Detention without charge (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE Iran: Fear of imminent execution/flogging. (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/008/2002 Iran:Fear of imminent executions by stoning (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/006/2002 Iran: Torture/Imminent execution (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/005/2002 Mark Green 14April 2003 8 HUMAN RIGHTS IN IRAN – THE DETAIL EXECUTIONS and THE DEATH PENALTY On 19 February 2003, Amnesty International expressed concern that Sasan Al-e Kena'n, aged 37, was at risk of imminent execution.17 Subsequently, Amnesty International learned that Sasan Al-e Kena'n was hanged at Sanandaj prison in Kordestan province, western Iran, at 4am on 19 February.18 According to an Agence France Presse (AFP) report, Sasan Al-e Kena'n was sentenced to death on around 17 January 2003 in connection with allegations of "sheltering and hiding members of the unauthorized Komala party in the basement of a house in Sanandaj and with moharebeh, or enmity against God". The sentencing court is thought to be Branch 1 of the Revolutionary Court in Sanandaj, in the province of Kordestan, western Iran. Sasan Al-e Kena'n has reportedly been charged with the offence of moharebeh ba khoda ('enmity with God'). The charge can be invoked in cases involving "all members and supporters of a group or an organized association which have waged armed struggle against the Islamic State". Article 190 of the current Penal Code provides for the death penalty for this offence.19 According to reports, the mother of Sasan Al-e Kena‗n arrived at Sanandaj prison to visit her son after 10pm on 19 February and was told to go to the judiciary's local offices. There she learned that Sasan Al-e Kena'n had been executed earlier that morning. She was told not to make a "fuss" and to bury him quickly.20 Two further individuals, allegedly members of Komala, were sentenced to 10 year prison terms in connection to the same case, on similar charges. Komala, the Revolutionary Toilers of Iran, was founded in 1969. It is an illegal party affiliated to the Communist Party of Iran (CPI) and its activists have faced persecution since at least 1980.21 In 2002, Amnesty International recorded a total of 113 executions in Iran22 – the second highest executioner state that year – although, as Amnesty notes, the true figure may be considerably higher.23 Amnesty International reports that Articles 183 to 188 of the Iran Penal Code refer to the crime of moharebeh as including attempts to overthrow the Government by force and use of arms to cause fear or disturb public security.24 17 18 AI Index: MDE 13/003/2003 UA 49/03 Death penalty 19 February 2003 AI Index: MDE 13/005/2003 Further Information on UA 49/03 (MDE 13/003/2003, 19 February 2003) Death penalty 21 February 2003 19 20 AI Index: MDE 13/003/2003 UA 49/03 Death penalty 19 February 2003 AI Index: MDE 13/005/2003 Further Information on UA 49/03 (MDE 13/003/2003, 19 February 2003) Death penalty 21 February 2003 21 22 23 AI Index: MDE 13/003/2003 UA 49/03 Death penalty 19 February 2003 „Amnesty International: China, Iran, U.S. top executioners‟ Reuters/abs-cbnNEWS.com 12 April 2003 AI Index: MDE 13/003/2003 UA 49/03 Death penalty 19 February 2003 14April 2003 Mark Green 9 It is frequently punished by execution. Amnesty International recognizes the rights and responsibilities of governments to bring to justice those suspected of criminal offences but strongly opposes the death penalty as the ultimate cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment. Amnesty International argues the death penalty is in violation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to which Iran is a state party.25 Amnesty International observes that there appears to have been an increase in the use of the death penalty in Iran's Kordestan province since 2002.26 On 24 January 2002, Karim Tuzhali was executed in Mahabad prison, in connection with his former membership of the banned armed opposition group, the Kurdistan Democratic party of Iran (KDPI), although it is not known exactly what he had been charged with. In March 2002 (MDE 13/002/2002). In March 2002, AI expressed its fear of imminent execution and of possible ill treatment or torture of 10 individuals formerly associated with the KDPI (UA 69/02 or MDE 13/005/2002) up to six of whom were reportedly executed in October 2002, and on 7 November 2002, Komala reported that two individuals, former members of the party, were executed in the city of Marivan. On 5 November 2002, Mostafa Jula and Ali Kak Jalil were executed in Marivan prison. According to the KDPI, at least one other Komala supporter has been sentenced to death, in 1993; while eight others are serving prison sentences in connection with their alleged activities and affiliation to Komala.27 Human Rights Watch reports that in October 2002, the authorities carried out public executions of five men convicted of a series of attacks on women in Tehran. Their bodies were hoisted on mobile cranes and driven through the city.28 AMPUTATIONS On 8 January 2003, Amnesty International expressed concern at reports that Reza Nazaarit, Mohamaad Safaavi, Mehdi Boyeri and Hoseyn Amiri were at risk of imminent cross amputations.29 According to reports, a Revolutionary court in Shiraz, south western Iran have sentenced the men on charges of an "armed uprising against the Islamic regime" and theft. They have reportedly been sentenced to have their right hand and left foot amputated.30 Since 2002, Amnesty International has recorded nine amputations, although, Amnesty notes, the true figure may be significantly higher. Of the recorded amputations, one was a cross amputation. Punishment by amputation is imposed often in connection with theft.31 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 AI Index: MDE 13/003/2003 UA 49/03 Death penalty 19 February 2003 AI Index: MDE 13/003/2003 UA 49/03 Death penalty 19 February 2003 AI Index: MDE 13/003/2003 UA 49/03 Death penalty 19 February 2003 AI Index: MDE 13/003/2003 UA 49/03 Death penalty 19 February 2003 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.446 AI Index: MDE 13/001/03 Fear of imminent amputation 08 January 2003 AI Index: MDE 13/001/03 Fear of imminent amputation 08 January 2003 14April 2003 Mark Green 10 Human Rights Watch reports that in Hamedan, on October 15 2002, two thieves convicted of more than thirty robberies each had four fingers amputated in a public ceremony.32 STONING In early December 2002, all eleven female parliamentarians indicated that they would present a bill that would outlaw stoning as punishment for adultery. A few persons were sentenced to death by stoning in 2002, while at least two persons were stoned in 2001.33 On Tuesday, 4 February, 2003, Ayatollah Mahmud Hashemi-Shahrudi, head of Iran's conservativecontrolled judiciary, told the European Union's Commissioner for External Relations, Chris Patten, that execution by stoning would be replaced with other means of punishment. He did not say whether this was a temporary or permanent move, but other high-level officials have defended stoning as part of Islamic law and thus impossible to abolish. 34 A moratorium on stoning was first flagged in December, 2002.35 The US Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2002 notes that according to press reports, the judiciary chief issued an internal directive instructing judges to use prison terms and other forms of punishment in place of stoning for the crime of adultery. However it is not clear if this new directive has been implemented.36 ILL TREATMENT OR TORTURE On 4 March 2003, Amnesty International expressed the fear that Qasem Sho'leh Sa'di, a lawyer and political science professor at Tehran University, may be facing torture or ill treatment in incommunicado detention following his arrest at Tehran's international airport at 5 o'clock in the morning on 24 February. He was detained while members of the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention were visiting Iran.37 At the airport, Qasem Sho'leh Sa'di was permitted a 30 second telephone call to his home following his arrest. The next day, 25 February he informed his family in a telephone call that he was being detained at Evin Prison. He made a further call the following day but was not heard from again for six days until the morning of 4 March when he is reported to have said this that he had been moved to the "public" section of Evin Prison. This has not been confirmed and his family fears that it may not be true.38 31 32 33 AI Index: MDE 13/001/03 Fear of imminent amputation 08 January 2003 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.446 U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Country Reports on Human Rights Practices – 2002 Iran 31 March 2003, Section 1.c. 34 BBC News UK Edition, Sadeq Saba, BBC Iranian affairs analyst, Improve human rights, EU urges Iran Tuesday, 4 February, 2003 35 BBC News UK Edition, Sadeq Saba, BBC Iranian affairs analyst, Improve human rights, EU urges Iran Tuesday, 4 February, 2003 36 U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Country Reports on Human Rights Practices – 2002 Iran 31 March 2003, Section 1.c. 37 38 AI Index: MDE 13/006/2003 UA 62/03 Fear of ill treatment or torture 4 March 2003 AI Index: MDE 13/006/2003 UA 62/03 Fear of ill treatment or torture 4 March 2003 14April 2003 Mark Green 11 On the same day, 4 March, a lawyer chosen by the family went to Evin Prison to meet with Qasem Sho'leh Sa'di so that he could sign the agreement for him to be his lawyer. However, despite being detained in a 'public' section of the prison, the lawyer was not permitted to meet with Qasem Sho'leh Sa'di. His family thus fears that he may not be held in Evin and that his call saying that he was may have been made under duress.39 In March 2002, the Majlis (Islamic Consultative Assembly) passed a bill to end torture and forced confessions. However, the US Country Reports on Human Rights Practices in Iran for 2002, records that the Council of Guardians vetoed the bill in June, arguing that the bill would limit the authority of judges to adjudicate on the admissibility of confessions and therefore was against the principles of Islam.40 DETENTION Human Rights Watch records one notable incident of arbitrary detention. Siamak Pourzand, a seventy-three-year-old journalist, was seized outside his sister‘s house in November 2001. He was then held in an unknown location before being brought to trial, in secret, in March 2002. The proceedings disregarded pre-trial safeguards and flagrantly violated fair trial standards. The journalist was released in November 2002, but remained under threat of prosecution.41 In several urgent communications to the Government, dated 24 July 2001, 29 October 2001 and 28 November 2001, the Special Representative of the Commission on Human Rights on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, Maurice Copithorne, expressed his concern at the issuing of temporary detention orders in apparent disregard for the Iranian Constitution which clearly limits the cases in which judges can resort to this measure and in a situation in which no evidence has been made public in support of the charges brought against the detainees. He has also conveyed his deep concern for the denial of the detainees‘ right to contact their families and lawyers, and the practice of arranging periodic meetings under stressful conditions.42 At least ten supporters of the Freedom Movement of Iran and the Religious-Nationalist Alliance, were detained on 11 March and 7 April 2001. Some of the detainees were released on bail during the summer, but at least ten were still in detention on 15 January 2002. The detainees were held in a military camp, often in prolonged incommunicado detention, exposed to psychological and physical pressure, and some were denied access to medical treatment. The trials by the Revolutionary Court started on 28 November 2001 and 8 January 2002. Both trials were held in camera and it is reported that the lawyers were denied access to the files because they refused to sign commitments 39 40 AI Index: MDE 13/006/2003 UA 62/03 Fear of ill treatment or torture 4 March 2003 U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Country Reports on Human Rights Practices – 2002 Iran 31 March 2003, Section 1.c. 41 42 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.445 United Nations Press Release UN Expert concerned about continued detention of members of Freedom Movement of Iran, Religious-Nationalist Alliance 15 January 2002 Some of these persons were connected with the Freedom Movement of Iran, the unregistered but long-tolerated organization founded by the first post-revolution Prime Minister. Some of the detainees are Muslim reformers of long-standing, active in the struggle against the Shah. Mark Green 14April 2003 12 not to disclose any details.43 More details of these events, and the conditions in the military camp, are provided by Human Rights Watch in its World Report 2003. (See pages 16-17 below.) FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND ASSOCIATION Freedom of expression and association in Iran is curtailed by legal restrictions and by flaws in the administration of justice. It has resulted in a catalogue of unfair trials and the imprisonment of prisoners of conscience.44 Freedom of expression According to Human Rights Watch, prominent writers and journalists, such as Emadedin Baqi, Akbar Ganji, Mohssen Youssefi Eshkevari, Ali Afshari, Khalil Rostamkhani and Saeid Sadre, either remain in prison or face imprisonment charges solely for exercising their right to freedom of expression.45 In April 2002, a prominent reformist journalist, Ahmed Zeid Abadi, received a twenty-three-month jail term for spreading propaganda against the state and insulting officials. He had been detained (for seven months) two years previously. He remained free on bail pending appeal.46 A Revolutionary Court in Hamedan sentenced Hashem Aghajari, a prominent academic, to death for alleged blasphemy and insulting the clergy.47 Behrouz Geranpayeh, the Head of the National Institute for Opinion Polls, is awaiting his sentence after publishing a poll showing a majority of Iranians favour restoring relations with the United States. The heads of the private research institutes that conducted the poll, Abbas Abdi and Hossein Ali Ghazian, have been sentenced to eight and nine years of imprisonment respectively. They have been charged with "collaboration with U.S. elements and British intelligence" and of conducting "psychological warfare" against the government.48 43 United Nations Press Release UN Expert concerned about continued detention of members of Freedom Movement of Iran, Religious-Nationalist Alliance 15 January 2002 44 45 46 47 AI Index: MDE 13/006/2003 UA 62/03 Fear of ill treatment or torture 4 March 2003 Human Rights Watch Briefing to the 59th Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights February 27, 2003 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.445 Human Rights Watch Briefing to the 59th Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights February 27, 2003 According to the World Report 2003, on 2 July 2002, a court in Hamedan announced that it had summoned Hashem Aghajari, a leader of the Mojahedine of the Islamic Revolution Organization (MIRO), to face charges of insulting religious sanctities. The charges followed a celebrated speech he made in June criticizing the clergy‟s role in politics and urging disobedience of senior clerical leaders on religious grounds. MIRO was an important strand of the coalition of reformist groups in the Parliament and Aghajari‟s blunt comments indicated growing frustration among some reformists over the lack of progress. In November, a Revolutionary Court sentenced Aghajari to death for blasphemy and insulting the clergy. His lawyer filed an appeal against the sentence in December. Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.445 48 Human Rights Watch Briefing to the 59th Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights February 27, 2003 14April 2003 Mark Green 13 Senior Shi'a religious leaders and their supporters who dissent from the ruling clerical establishment remain targets of official persecution. Grand Ayatollah Hossain Ali Montazeri, the former designated successor to Ayatollah Khomeini as Leader of the Islamic Republic, cannot, among other things, meet with representatives from independent political groups under a restriction of freedom directive issued by the Iranian judiciary.49 According to the US Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, in January 2002 two teachers, Mohammad-Ebrahim Ahmad-Nia and Akhtar Ghassem -Zadeh-Moin, were hospitalized for injuries received at a demonstration. They were arrested during a demonstration against low wages and poor working conditions. Their families were not allowed to visit them. According to the Report, the families were told to refrain from public comment on the cases if they wanted their loved-ones to live. By March 2002, the families had heard nothing and believed that they might have died in custody. There was no further information available on these cases at the end of 2002.50 Corrupting public morality In July 2002, in a new effort to combat "un-Islamic behaviour" and social corruption among the young, the Government announced the formation of a new "morality force." The force was meant to enforce the Islamic Republic's strict rules of moral behaviour. According to the US Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, press reports indicated that members of this force chased and beat persons in the streets for offences such as listening to music, or in the case of women, wearing makeup or clothing that was not modest enough.51 Two high-profile prosecutions in 2002 exemplified attempts by hard-line conservatives to generate public concern over a supposed decline in public morality, of which they were the self-appointed guardians.52 According to Human Rights Watch, in June 2002, an Iranian dancer, Mohamad Khordadian, who had been living in Los Angeles for twentytwo years before returning to visit his family, was arrested on charges of corrupting public morality. At his trial he received a ten-year suspended prison term and was banned from returning to the United States. In September, an actress, who kissed a film director at a film festival, was also prosecuted for corrupting public morality.53 Freedom of the press 49 Human Rights Watch Briefing to the 59th Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights February 27, 2003 According to Sadeq Saba, BBC Iranian affairs analyst in an article entitled, Improve human rights, EU urges Iran published in BBC News UK Edition on Tuesday, 4 February, 2003, Ayatollah Hussain-Ali Montazeri was recently released from house arrest which was seen partly as a concession to the EU. The release was confirmed by Human Rights Watch in a press release Iran: U.K. Government Should Press for Real Reform in New York on February 4, 2003. 50 U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Country Reports on Human Rights Practices – 2002 Iran 31 March 2003, Section 2.b. 51 U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Country Reports on Human Rights Practices – 2002 Iran 31 March 2003, Section 1.c. 52 53 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.445 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.445 14April 2003 Mark Green 14 Human Rights Watch noted, in its World Report 2003, that throughout 2002, the Iranian judiciary ignored a press law requirement for a public court hearing in front of a jury before any order to close a publication was made.54 ―Any pretense that legal principles would be observed in regulating the press disappeared. Iran‘s press courts acted as a law unto themselves, issuing closure orders by decree without legal basis.‖55 Attacks against the independent news media began in April 2000 with a speech by the Leader identifying the reformist press as ―bases of the enemy.‖56 In a briefing to the 59th Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights, Human Rights Watch reported: The government assault on the independent news media in which more than eighty-five newspapers have been closed and scores of journalists imprisoned since April 2000, has continued unabated. Recent cases include: Mohammad Salamati, editor of Our Era (Asr-e Ma), sentenced to 26 months in jail57 for views he expressed in the journal;58 Ali Hamed Iman, publisher of Shams-i Tabriz weekly, sentenced to seven months in jail and 74 lashes59 for allegedly publishing lies, stoking ethnic tensions, and "insulting Islamic sanctities and officials"; Mohsen Mirdamadi, managing editor of Norouz, a daily newspaper in Tehran, sentenced to six months in jail;60 and the closing of two major reformist newspapers, Hayato-no and Bahar.61 Other cases are recorded in the World Report 2003. In November 2001, the daily Nation (Mellat) was closed for cultural bias by order of the head of the Tehran Press Court, Judge Said Mortazavi. In In December 2001 and January 2002, the provincial newspapers in Tabriz, Hormuzgan, Luristan, and Zanjan were closed and their editors received prison terms of up to eighteen months for inciting public opinion and insulting Islamic sanctities. In January 2002 specialist film magazines were accused of offending moral decency. In May 2002, the influential reformist newspaper Foundation (Bonyan) was banned and the pro-reformist newspaper Iran was closed for twenty-four hours (because of an allegedly blasphemous article suggesting that the Prophet Muhammad enjoyed listening to women sing and play music). In July 2002, the Tehran daily Mirror of the South (Ayineh-e Jonub), launched nationwide only a week previously was closed for allegedly publishing articles contrary to the law and spreading propaganda against the Islamic revolution. Then a press court subsequently banned the Daily Report (Guzarish-i Ruz), which had previously been ordered closed temporarily. The judiciary also threatened to prosecute Iran‘s official Islamic Republic News 54 55 56 57 58 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.442 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.443 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.442 On December 15, 2001 Salamati‟s sentence was reduced to seventeen months on appeal in March, and suspended after the intervention of the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance. Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.442 59 60 In April 2002 In July 2002. Norouz, which was shut for 6 months, was the most important of the remaining reformist dailies and acted as the voice of the biggest reform political faction, the Participation. Front.Mirdamadi was also fined and banned from press activities for four years. Another press court banned New Day (Ruz-e Now) merely because its name was similar to Norouz. Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.443 61 Human Rights Watch Briefing to the 59th Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights February 27, 2003 14April 2003 Mark Green 15 Agency for printing a statement by the recently banned opposition party, the Iran Freedom Movement (IFM).62 Independent political activity In its World Report 2003, Human Rights Watch laments that Iran‘s courts have restricted independent political activity through a series of political trials of supporters of the National Religious Alliance (NRA), a loose alliance of reform minded activists, who had been detained in March and April 2001. According to the Report, in November 2001, more than thirty members of the IFM, a fifty-year-old political party, went on trial before the Tehran Revolutionary Court, accused of acts against national security and planning to overthrow the government. They had been among those detained in March and April 2001. Six of the IFM detainees — Abolfazl Bazargan, Mohammad Tavasoli, Hashem Sabaghian, Khosro Mansourian, Mohammad Naeimpour, and Alireza Hendi — were held in detention until March 2002 and released while the trial was in session.63 The Report continues: Many of the defendants were held incommunicado for months and coerced into making incriminating statements. At trial, the prosecution presented no credible evidence that the IFM defendants had engaged in anything other than legitimate, peaceful political activity. In July, the court sentenced more than thirty defendants to prison terms. Senior figures in the IFM received sentences of between eight and ten years. The court also ordered the complete dissolution of the party. Ibrahim Yazdi, the leader of the banned party, returned to Iran in April from medical treatment in the United States. He, too, was facing criminal charges based on his political activities, although his trial had not started at this writing.64 In a related case, fifteen NRA activists were tried before the Tehran Revolutionary Court in January on charges of seeking to overthrow the government. Ezzatollah Sahhabi, arrested in December 2000, was held in an unknown location.65 The other fourteen, arrested in March 2001, were held incommunicado, most often in solitary confinement, in a Tehran detention center known as Prison 59.66 Nine of the detainees—Mohammad Maleki, Mohammad Hossein Rafiei, Alireza Rajaei, Reza Alijani, Mohammad Basteh Negar, Mahmoud Omrani, Massoud Pedram, Morteza Kazemian, and Mohammad Mohammadi Ardehali—were released on bail in 2001.67 The other five—Taghi Rahmani, Habibollah Payman, Reza Raeis-Toussi, Saeid Madani, and Hoda Saber—remained in Prison 59 until March 2002 and were only released after paying 62 63 64 65 66 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, pp.442-3 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.443 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.443 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.443 Prison 59, located in a Revolutionary Guard military installation in Eshratabadin central Tehran, is an unregulated detention facility outside the official penal system. Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.444 67 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.444 14April 2003 Mark Green 16 large bail sums. One detainee, Saeid Madani, paid one billion rials, a sum equivalent to more than U.S.$500,000 at the official exchange rate.68 Human Rights Watch reports that a third trial arising from the March and April 2001 arrests involved Habibollah Peyman, leader of the Militant Muslims Movement (Junbash-i Musalmanan-I Mubarez).69 His closed-door trial began in Tehran on April 7 [2002]. He, too, was released on payment of substantial bail, after spending more than a year in detention, much of it incommunicado in solitary confinement. His lawyer complained that he was deprived of access to prosecution documents relating to the case. There was no outcome in this trial at this writing.70 According to the US Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, in July 2002, the Government permanently dissolved the Freedom Movement and sentenced over thirty of its members to jail terms ranging from 4 months to 10 years on charges of trying to overthrow the Islamic system. Other members were barred from political activity for up to 10 years, and ordered to pay fines in amounts up to more than $6,000 (US).71 Politicians Human Rights Watch reported that the judiciary convicted several politicians allied with President Khatami. In January 2002, Member of Parliament (M.P.) Hossein Loghmanian was sentenced to ten months in prison. He had been convicted for insulting the judiciary in a speech he gave to Parliament, criticizing the arbitrary closure of newspapers, and protesting the imprisonment of political prisoners. Leader of the Islamic Republic Ayatollah Ali Khamenei pardoned the jailed reformist M.P. after a walkout by members of Parliament.72 68 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.444 According to the Report: All of the detainees, many of whom were elderly, complained of harsh treatment while in detention, including being beaten by their captors and, for much of the time, being held in small cells where they could only lie in a cramped position. Detention conditions for several elderly prisoners were a cause of particular concern. Ezzatollah Sahhabi, more than seventy years old, was hospitalized twice with heart attacks. His medications were adjusted, but he was not been permitted to meet with his own doctor. Another prisoner, Dr.Habibollah Payman, sixty-six, a dentist, suffered from severe kidney and urinary tract problems, but was given only limited toilet access. He was forced to use the drinking vessel in his cell to relieve himself, rinsing it out when given access to the bathroom. Dr. Raeis Toussi, sixty- five, a law professor at Tehran University, had one interrogation session that lasted more than twenty-four hours and three that exceeded eighteen hours each, all of which exacerbated a serious back injury. He was held in solitary confinement for 168 days. During the detentions, the judiciary blocked access to the detainees and prevented President Khatami from sending an observer to visit them. Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.444 69 70 71 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.444 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.444 U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Country Reports on Human Rights Practices – 2002 Iran 31 March 2003, Section 1.d. 72 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, pp.444-5 14April 2003 Mark Green 17 Students Human Rights Watch suggests that it continues to be dangerous for students to protest. In November 2002, after a nationwide student protest against the death sentence imposed on Hashem Aghajari, senior clerical leaders threatened the students.73 On November 22, Ayatollah Khamenei issued an ultimatum stating that students should ―return to their homes‖ or ―the people will intervene‖ against them, a thinly veiled threat to unleash the same paramilitary forces that the authorities had used in July 1999 to crush student protests.74 According to Human Rights Watch, the protests subsided. But the US Country Reports on Human Rights Practices 2002 reports the story differently In November the Aghajari . . . verdict sparked large and ongoing student protests at universities throughout the country. Students boycotted classes for almost 2 weeks and in the largest pro-reform demonstrations in 3 years, crowds of up to 5,000 students at college campuses called for freedom of speech and major political reforms, and denounced the Aghajari death sentence as "medieval." Four student leaders who were arrested in the wake of the demonstrations by "plainclothes" forces working for the Intelligence Ministry were released after being held for one day. In late December, two students were given jail terms for their protests against the Aghajari sentence. Hojatollah Rahimi was sentenced to 2 years in prison and 70 lashes for "insulting religious sanctities and issuing an insulting declaration." Co-defendant Parviz Torkashvand was sentenced to 4 months in jail and forty lashes.75 A government clampdown through the use of Basiji and other forces led to a quiet period of two weeks that ended on December 7, when there was a large demonstration at the University of Tehran. It was attended by over 2,000 within the walls of the campus, with a larger crowd outside. The demonstrators demanded freedom for all political prisoners, a referendum, and the resignations of the President and the head of the judiciary. Press reports indicated that law enforcement officials and the "plainclothes" force broke up the demonstration using batons, whips, and belts, and arrested over 200 persons, many of whom were still being held at the end of the year. Demonstrations on December 9 and 10 were also broken up violently by Basiji forces.76 Earlier in the year, in July, there was a march in Tehran to protest and commemorate a 1999 raid by paramilitary forces on student dormitories at Tehran University. Several thousand marched, but apart from some sporadic clashes, there was no serious disturbance.77 However, ―At least four 73 74 75 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.447 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.447 U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Country Reports on Human Rights Practices – 2002 Iran 31 March 2003, Section 2.b. 76 U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Country Reports on Human Rights Practices – 2002 Iran 31 March 2003, Section 2.b. 77 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.447 14April 2003 Mark Green 18 students detained in 1999—Ahmed Batebi,Mehrdad Lohrassbi,Akbar Mohammadi and Manouchehr Mohammadi — remained in prison serving long prison terms.‖78 Lawyers defending human rights Several lawyers, known for their defense of human rights, were targets of prosecution in 2002, according to Human Rights Watch. Mohammad Dadkhah, part of the defense team of the Iranian Freedom Movement, was sentenced to five months in prison in May. He was also banned from practicing law for ten years.79 In 2002, the judiciary confirmed the sentences of several lawyers associated with reformist causes, including cases relating to the assassinations of writers and intellectuals in 1998.80 One lawyer, Nasser Zarafshan, was sentenced to five years in prison and fifty lashes. The bar association described the flogging sentence as indefensible and unjustifiable. The appeal was dismissed. Zarafshan had probed the involvement of Ministry of Intelligence officials in the 1998 murders and claimed in the press that there were more victims of these killings than had been mentioned in the trial of officials involved in the killings.81 DISCRIMINATION AGAINST RELIGIOUS AND ETHNIC MINORITIES According to Human Rights Watch, Iran‘s religious and ethnic minorities continue to be subjected to discrimination and persecution. For instance, the lack of public school education in the Kurdish language remains a perennial source of Kurdish frustration. Followers of the Baha'i faith continue to face persecution, including being denied permission to worship or to carry out other communal affairs publicly. And at least four Baha'is are serving prison terms for their religious beliefs.82 Other instances of persecution and discrimination are discussed in the extracts from the World Report 2003, reproduced below. Representatives of the predominantly Sunni Muslim Kurdish minority protested the appointment of a new governor of Kurdistan province from the Shi‘a majority. The authorities overlooked Sunni candidates for the post put forward by Kurdish parliamentarians. . . .83 The banned Kurdish opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party of Iran (PDKI), which had engaged in armed opposition to the government, announced that the Iranian government had executed Karim Toujali in Mahabad on January 24, 2002. Toujali had sought political asylum in Turkey, but had been unsuccessful in his claim. Turkish police then forcibly 78 79 80 81 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.447 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.447 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.447 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.447 Human Rights Watch Briefing to the 59th Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights February 27, 2003 Human Rights Watch Briefing to the 59th Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights February 27, 2003 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.446 14April 2003 82 83 Mark Green 19 returned him to Iran. In October, another PDKI prisoner, Hamzeh Ghaderi, was executed in Orumieh. The PDKI claimed that another five supporters were executed with Ghaderi. Other PDKI supporters reportedly remained in jail facing execution.84 The ten Jewish Iranians sentenced to prison in Shiraz in 2000 were released in October after appeals for their release by the representative of the Jewish community in Parliament, Maurice Motamed. Some of the prisoners had served longer than their allotted sentences. Throughout the year, Motamed also drew attention to institutional discrimination against religious minorities, including continued limits on access to educational opportunities and employment. In August, in a bold move, he proposed a bill calling for equivalence in the amount of Diyeh (blood money) between Muslims and non-Muslims. The Qisas (retribution) system of criminal law specifies penalties for various crimes which differ according to the religion of the victim and the perpetrator. In general, non-Muslims are subject to harsher penalties and enjoy fewer protections than Muslims. Motamed‘s bill, which remained under consideration at the end of the year [2002], would remove these discrepancies although it would not apply to Iran‘s largest religious minority, followers of the Baha‘i faith.85 Baha‘is also continued to face persecution, including being denied permission to worship or to carry out other communal affairs publicly. At least four Baha‘is were serving prison terms for their religious beliefs. Bihnam Mithaqi and Kayvan Khalajabadi, imprisoned since 1989 ,were informed in January that their sentences would run until 2004. Musa Talibi, imprisoned in 1994, was held in Isfahan. It was not clear whether his death sentence had been commuted. Zhabihullah Mahrami, imprisoned since 1995 and convicted of apostasy, had his death sentence commuted in March.86 84 85 86 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.446 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.446 Human Rights Watch World Report 2003, p.446 14April 2003 Mark Green 20 A MAJOR SHIFT? At the time of writing, US-led forces have taken control of Iran‘s neighbour Iraq. This turn of events may prompt some of Iran‘s hardliners to soften their opposition to political and social change in Iran. As a result, there could be some improvement in the human rights situation. On 14 April 2003, there were reports that Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, Iran‘s former president, who still heads the Expediency Council, 87 has softened his stance towards restoring ties with the US. He was quoted by the official Islamic Republic News Agency as saying that the question of restoring ties could be resolved through a referendum, or by sending the question to the powerful advisory body he heads.88 Ayatollah Khamenei has repeatedly rejected as "treason and stupidity" any talk about restoring ties with Washington, which have been cut since militants stormed the US Embassy in Tehran in 1979. However, the mention of a referendum represents a marked shift by Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who has openly sided with hardliners since stepping down as president in 1997.89 There are also reports that more than 200 political activists signed a petition calling on the judiciary to release all political prisoners, lift closure of newspapers and stop arbitrary disqualification of candidates in general elections. "The way to avoid serious foreign threats, nullify the subject of foreign intervention and get out of the current [political] deadlock is to remove the obstacles in the way of national demands," the petition says.90 In the ensuing weeks and months, US intentions will become clearer. In Iran, the anxiety of the hardliners about the US presence in Iraq may be the catalyst the reformers need to assert and implement more of their political and social reform agenda. Whether religious and judicial officials operating in the Provinces, towns and villages are persuaded remains to be seen. Prepared by: Mark Green 15 Lancewood Avenue PEREGIAN BEACH QUEENSLAND 4573 mgreen@zeta.org.au 0405 808 882 07 4558 2395 87 88 89 90 This body advises the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, on state matters. Associated Press „Iranian hardliner plants seed for restoring US ties‟ The Australian 14 April 2003 p.14 Associated Press „Iranian hardliner plants seed for restoring US ties‟ The Australian 14 April 2003 p.14 Associated Press „Iranian hardliner plants seed for restoring US ties‟ The Australian 14 April 2003 p.14 14April 2003 Mark Green 21 BIBLIOGRAPHY AI Index: MDE 13/001/03 Fear of imminent amputation 08 January 2003 AI Index: MDE 13/003/2003 UA 49/03 Death penalty 19 February 2003 AI Index: MDE 13/005/2003 Further Information on UA 49/03 (MDE 13/003/2003 19 February 2003) Death penalty 21 February 2003 AI Index: MDE 13/006/2003 UA 62/03 Fear of ill treatment or torture 4 March 2003 Amnesty International Iran: A legal system that fails to protect freedom of expression and association December 2001 (AI Index: MDE 13/045/2001) ‗Amnesty International: China, Iran, U.S. top executioners‘ Reuters/abs-cbnNEWS.com 12 April 2003 Associated Press ‗Iranian hardliner plants seed for restoring US ties‘ The Australian 14 April 2003 p.14 BBC News UK Edition, Sadeq Saba, BBC Iranian affairs analyst Improve human rights, EU urges Iran Tuesday, 4 February, 2003 Human Rights Watch Briefing to the 59th Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights 27 February 2003 Human Rights Watch Iran: U.K. Government Should Press for Real Reform New York 4 February 2003 Human Rights Watch Letter to British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw 3 February 2003 Human Rights Watch Stifling Dissent: The Human Rights Consequences of Inter-Factional Struggle in Iran May 2001 Vol.13 No.4 (E) Human Rights Watch World Report 2003 U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor International Religious Freedom Report: Iran 7 October 2002 U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Country Reports on Human Rights Practices – 2001 Iran 4 March 2002 U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Country Reports on Human Rights Practices – 2002 Iran 31 March 2003 U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs Background Note: Iran December 2001 UNESCO Commission on Human Rights, Fifty-eighth session, Statement by Mr. Maurice Copithorne, Special Representative of the Commission on Human Rights on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, Geneva 3 April 2002 Mark Green 14April 2003 22 United Nations Press Release UN Expert concerned about continued detention of members of Freedom Movement of Iran, Religious-Nationalist Alliance 15 January 2002 Other Amnesty International Documents 04/03/2003 Iran: Fear of ill treatment or torture, Qasem Sho'leh Sa'di. (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/006/2003 19/02/2003 Iran: Death penalty, Sasan Al-e Kena?n (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/003/2003 21/02/2003 Iran: Further Information on Death penalty, Sasan Al-e Kena?n. (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/005/2003 08/01/2003 Iran: Fear of imminent amputation (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/001/2003 11/11/2002 Iran: Fear for safety/Fear of torture/ill treatment (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/023/2002 11/03/2003 Iran: Further information on fear for safety/Fear of torture/ill treatment. (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/008/2003 19/02/2003 Iran: Further information on fear for safety/Fear of torture/ill treatment. (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/004/2003 07/11/2002 Iran: Threat of execution/medical concern, Dr Seyyed Hashem Aghajari (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/022/2002 14/02/2003 Iran: Further information on Threat of execution/medical concern, Dr Seyyed Hashem Aghajari (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/002/2003 07/11/2002 Iran: Release, Abdollah Nouri: Further information on Medical Action. (REPORTS) MDE 13/021/2002 06/11/2002 Iran: Abdollah Nouri's release welcomed, but all prisoners of conscience must also be released (NEWS) MDE 13/020/2002 15/10/2002 Iran: Imminent flogging, a named business and several unnamed others (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/019/2002 02/10/2002 Iran: Fear of imminent execution/Fear of torture and ill-treatment, Said Masouri (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/018/2002 01/10/2002 Iran: Fear of Imminent Flogging, eleven men. 13/017/2002 (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 25/09/2002 Iran: Fear of imminent execution, two named and five unnamed men. (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/015/2002 30/09/2002 Iran: Fear of imminent execution, two named and five unnamed men. (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/016/2002 24/09/2002 Iran: Fear of imminent execution (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/014/2002 Mark Green 14April 2003 23 16/08/2002 Iran: Imminent flogging/arrest without charge/medical concern, Nasser Zarafshan, lawyer. (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/012/2002 27/06/2002 Iran: Abdollah Nouri, prisoner of conscience: Medical Action (REPORTS) MDE 13/010/2002 19/06/2002 Iran: Fear of ill treatment / torture /Detention without charge ACTIONS) MDE 13/009/2002 22/05/2002 Iran: Fear of imminent execution/flogging. 13/008/2002 09/05/2002 Iran:Fear of imminent executions by stoning 13/006/2002 06/03/2002 (URGENT MDE MDE (URGENT ACTIONS) (URGENT ACTIONS) Iran: Torture/Imminent execution (URGENT ACTIONS) MDE 13/005/2002 Mark Green 14April 2003 24 APPENDIX EXTRACT FROM THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs December 2001 Background Note: Iran PEOPLE Almost two-thirds of Iran's people are of Aryan origin--their ancestors migrated from Central Asia. The major groups in this category include Persians, Kurds, Lurs, and Baluchi. The remainder are primarily Turkic but also include Arabs, Armenians, Jews, and Assyrians. The 1979 Islamic revolution and the war with Iraq transformed Iran's class structure politically, socially, and economically. In general, however, Iranian society remains divided into urban, markettown, village, and tribal groups. Clerics, called mullahs, dominate politics and nearly all aspects of Iranian life, both urban and rural. After the fall of the Pahlavi regime in 1979, much of the urban upper class of prominent merchants, industrialists, and professionals, favored by the former Shah, lost standing and influence to the senior clergy and their supporters. Bazaar merchants, who were allied with the clergy against the Pahlavi shahs, have also gained political and economic power since the revolution. The urban working class has enjoyed somewhat enhanced status and economic mobility, spurred in part by opportunities provided by revolutionary organizations and the government bureaucracy. Unemployment, a major problem even before the revolution, has many causes, including population growth, the war with Iraq, and shortages of raw materials and trained managers. Farmers and peasants received a psychological boost from the attention given them by the Islamic regime but appear to be hardly better off in economic terms. The government has made progress on rural development, including electrification and road building but has not yet made a commitment to land redistribution. Most Iranians are Muslims; 89% belong to the Shi'a branch of Islam, the official state religion, and about 10% belong to the Sunni branch, which predominates in neighboring Muslim countries. NonMuslim minorities include Zoroastrians, Jews, Baha'is, and Christians. HISTORY The ancient nation of Iran, historically known to the West as Persia and once a major empire in its own right, has been overrun frequently and has had its territory altered throughout the centuries. Invaded by Arabs, Seljuk Turks, Mongols, and others--and often caught up in the affairs of larger powers--Iran has always reasserted its national identity and has developed as a distinct political and cultural entity. Archeological findings have placed knowledge of Iranian prehistory at middle paleolithic times (100,000 years ago). The earliest sedentary cultures date from 18,000-14,000 years ago. The sixth millennium B.C. saw a fairly sophisticated agricultural society and proto-urban population centers. Mark Green 14April 2003 25 Many dynasties have ruled Iran, the first of which was under the Achaemenians (559-330 B.C.), a dynasty founded by Cyrus the Great. After the Hellenistic period (300-250 B.C.) came the Parthian (250 B.C.-226 A.D.) and the Sassanian (226-651) dynasties. The seventh century Arab-Muslim conquest of Iran was followed by conquests by the Seljuk Turks, the Mongols, and Tamerlane. Iran underwent a revival under the Safavid dynasty (1502-1736), the most prominent figure of which was Shah Abbas. The conqueror Nadir Shah and his successors were followed by the Zand dynasty, founded by Karim Kahn, and later the Qajar (1795-1925) and the Pahlavi dynasties (1925-1979). Modern Iranian history began with a nationalist uprising against the Shah (who remained in power) in 1905, the granting of a limited constitution in 1906, and the discovery of oil in 1908. In 1921, Reza Khan, an Iranian officer of the Persian Cossack Brigade, seized control of the government. In 1925, he made himself Shah, ruling as Reza Shah Pahlavi for almost 16 years and installing the new Pahlavi dynasty. Under his reign, Iran began to modernize and to secularize politics, and the central government reasserted its authority over the tribes and provinces. In September 1941, following the Allies' (U.K.-Soviet Union) occupation of western Iran, Reza Shah was forced to abdicate. His son, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, became Shah and ruled until 1979. During World War II, Iran was a vital link in the Allied supply line for lend-lease supplies to the Soviet Union. After the war, Soviet troops stationed in northwestern Iran not only refused to withdraw but backed revolts that established short-lived, pro-Soviet separatist regimes in the northern regions of Azerbaijan and Kurdistan. These were ended in 1946. The Azerbaijan revolt crumbled after U.S. and UN pressure forced a Soviet withdrawal and Iranian forces suppressed the Kurdish revolt. In 1951, Premier Mohammed Mossadeq, a militant nationalist, forced the parliament to nationalize the British-owned oil industry. Mossadeq was opposed by the Shah and was removed, but he quickly returned to power. The Shah fled Iran but returned when supporters staged a coup against Mossadeq in August 1953. Mossadeq was then arrested by pro-Shah army forces. In 1961, Iran initiated a series of economic, social, and administrative reforms that became known as the Shah's White Revolution. The core of this program was land reform. Modernization and economic growth proceeded at an unprecedented rate, fueled by Iran's vast petroleum reserves, the third-largest in the world. In 1978, domestic turmoil swept the country as a result of religious and political opposition to the Shah's rule and programs--especially SAVAK, the hated internal security and intelligence service. In January 1979, the Shah left Iran; he died abroad several years after. On February 1, 1979, exiled religious leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini returned from France to direct a revolution resulting in a new, theocratic republic guided by Islamic principles. Back in Iran after 15 years in exile in Turkey, Iraq, and France, he became Iran's national religious leader. Following Khomeini's death on June 3, 1989, the Assembly of Experts--an elected body of senior clerics--chose the outgoing president of the republic, Ali Khamenei, to be his successor as national religious leader in what proved to be a smooth transition. In August 1989, Ali Akbar Hashemi-Rafsanjani, the speaker of the National Assembly, was elected President by an overwhelming majority. He was re-elected June 1993, with a more modest majority; some Western observers attributed the reduced voter turnout to disenchantment with the Mark Green 14April 2003 26 deteriorating economy. (Ali) Mohammad Khatami-Ardakani, elected President in August 1997 with an overwhelming majority, was re-elected, again with a majority in June 2001. GOVERNMENT The December 1979 Iranian constitution defines the political, economic, and social order of the Islamic republic. It declares that Shi'a Islam of the Twelver (Jaafari) sect is Iran's official religion. The country is governed by secular and religious leaders and governing bodies, and duties often overlap. The chief ruler is a religious leader or, in the absence of a single leader, a council of religious leaders. The constitution stipulates that this national religious leader or members of the council of leaders are to be chosen from the clerical establishment on the basis of their qualifications and the high esteem in which they are held by Iran's Muslim population. This leader or council appoints the six religious members of the Council of Guardians (the six lay members--lawyers--are named by the National Consultative Assembly, or Majles); appoints the highest judicial authorities, who must be religious jurists; and is commander-in-chief of the armed forces. The Council of Guardians, in turn, certifies the competence of candidates for the presidency and the National Assembly. The president of the republic is elected by universal suffrage to a 4-year term by an absolute majority of votes and supervises the affairs of the executive branch. The president appoints and supervises the Council of Ministers (members of the cabinet), coordinates government decisions, and selects government policies to be placed before the National Assembly. The National Assembly consists of 290 members elected to a 4-year term. The members are elected by direct and secret ballot. All legislation from the assembly must be reviewed by the Council of Guardians. The Council's six lawyers vote only on limited questions of the constitutionality of legislation; the religious members consider all bills for conformity to Islamic principles. In 1988, Ayatollah Khomeini created the Council for Expediency, which resolves legislative issues on which the Majles and the Council of Guardians fail to reach an agreement. Since 1989, it has been used to advise the national religious leader on matters of national policy as well. It is composed of the heads of the three branches of government, the clerical members of the Council of Guardians, and members appointed by the national religious leader for 3-year terms. Cabinet members and Majles committee chairs also serve as temporary members when issues under their jurisdictions are considered. Judicial authority is constitutionally vested in the Supreme Court and the four-member High Council of the Judiciary; these are two separate groups with overlapping responsibilities and one head. Together, they are responsible for supervising the enforcement of all laws and for establishing judicial and legal policies. The military is charged with defending Iran's borders, while the Revolutionary Guard Corps is charged mainly with maintaining internal security. Iran has 28 provinces, each headed by a governor general. The provinces are further divided into counties, districts, and villages. Mark Green 14April 2003