The Voice of Mirza Xazar

Human rights groups established a new committee:
Committee Against Torture of Azerbaijani Political Prisoners in Iran (referred to here on as the Committee)

August 27, 2007

The advocates for human rights of Azerbaijani population in Iran are under growing pressure as the Iranian regime has initiated a new wave of arrests against the Azerbaijani activists. Such activists who are engaged in a peaceful struggle for their cultural and national rights are brutally persecuted while a number of activists arrested during and soon after the popular uprisings of May 2006 remain in prisons.

Dozens of activists, recognized as prisoners of conscience by Amnesty International and other human rights organizations, are under physical and psychological torture in Iranian prisons. Following the clandestine and preemptive arrests, their right to legal representation is denied, their prisoners’ rights are violated, and their families are threatened and harassed.

The groups involved in defending human rights of the Azerbaijani prisoners in Iran, journalists and scholars have decided to join efforts to organize an international protest against torture of Azerbaijani activists by creating the Committee.

The increasing evidence of torture against dozens of Azerbaijani prisoners has concerned and alarmed the founders of this Committee. There are factual evidence on the torture of Azerbaijani activists such as Saeed Matinpour, Saleh Kamrani, Abdullah Abbas Javan, Jalil Qanilu and Behrouz Seferi who are kept incommunicado in Evin prison of Tehran. Many others are believed to suffer from torture and cruelty in various Iranian jails and prisons. These include women rights activist, Shahnaz Qolami, who is vanished since his arrest on 20 August in Tabriz.
The Committee urges media, human rights groups and anti-torture centers to protest against illegal arrests and tortures in Iran.

The Committee calls on Iranian government to stop illegal detention of prisoners, who are kept in prison without being charged in accordance with Iranian legislation.

The Committee will continue its activity until all Azerbaijani activists are released from prison.

The group initiating the Committee welcomes any support from other groups and individuals who condemn torture political prisoners in Iran.

For information about the Committee’s activity and last developments on situation of Azerbaijani political prisoners in Iran or to offer support please contact spokespersons:

Fakhteh Zamani +1 604 677 2524
fakhteh.zamani@gmail.com
Alirza Javanbakht + 90 538 442 6523
quluncu@gmail.com
e-mail: committee.stoptorture@yahoo.com

In a joint letter to the supreme leader of Iran, Ayatollah Khamanei, 20 Swedish parliamentarians sitting in the Parliamentary Human Rights Group express their concerns over Abbas Lisani´s imprisonment and demand his immediate release since they believe Mr. Lisani is a prisoner of conscience detained solely for the non-violent expression of his opinions. The undersigned parliamentarians also ask the Iranian authorities to give details of the procedure before the Ardabil Appeal Court, particularly as the review of Lisani's case was conducted so quickly and may not have provided a genuine review of his case. Furthermore they express their concerns that the authorities have reportedly been harassing and intimidating Abbas Lisani´s family, including threatening to arrest them.

The joint letter was initiated by the Azerbaijani Youth Association in Sweden and realized in cooperation with Amnesty International?s Swedish lobby section and the chairwoman of the Parliamentary Human Rights Group Ms. Inger René.

Since the Azerbaijani Youth Association in Sweden started their campaign in connection with Abbas Lisani´s hunger strike in January 2007, numerous European parliamentarians have engaged in Mr. Lisani´s case in order for him to be released. In Sweden all seven parties represented in the Swedish Parliament such as the Social-Democratic Party, the Liberal-Party, the Left Party, the Green-Party, the Christian-Democratic Party, the Centre Party and the Conservative-Party, have raised their concerns for Mr. Lisani´s health situation, condemned the Iranian authorities imprisonment of him and demanded his immediate release. Thus, his case is today well known and closely followed by members of the Swedish Foreign Affairs Committee.

During the campaign Mr. Lisani´s case has also been highlighted within the European Parliament, the European Commission and by members of the European Council.


(Nergiz Nedayi)

After the request of the Portuguese Member of the European parliament, Mr. Paulo Casaca (who is also a member of the Iran delegation in the European Parliament), the President of the European Commission Mr. José Manuel Barroso has decided to look specifically into the case of Mr. Abbas Lisani. In a letter dated the 20th of March, Mr. Barroso explains to Mr. Casaca that he is aware of Mr. Lisani´s case and that Mr. Lisani is imprisoned because of his peaceful activities in favour of the cultural and linguistic rights of South-Azerbaijanis. Furthermore the President writes that the EU through diplomatic channels is following the human rights situation in Iran closely, including the linguistic and cultural rights of people belonging to minorities and that the EU will continue to monitor the case of Mr. Lisani very closely.

(NNergiz Nedayi)