|
Amnesty
International is alarmed at reports that human
rights defenders in Sanandaj, Iranian Kordestan,
working on children and women's rights are facing
threats in connection with their human rights work.
It is feared that such harassment may increase
towards International Women's Day on 8 March.
The organisation appeals to the Intelligence Section
of the Law Enforcement Forces (LEF, or Hefazat-e
Ettela’at-e Nirou-ye Entezami) in Kordestan to stop
its apparently unjustified interference with these
activists and to work towards protecting human
rights.
In recent days members of the legally recognised
non-governmental organisation (NGO), Association for
the Defence of Children's Rights (ADCR, or Kanoun-e
Defa’ az Hoqouq-e Koudekan) and the unrecognised
Association of Kurdish Women Defending Peace and
Human Rights (AKWDP&HR or Kanoun-e Zanan-e Kord-e
Modafa’ Solh va Hoqouq-e Bashar) have endured
summons, interrogation, telephone threats and
harassment, apparently in connection with their
human rights work.
Azad Zamani (m), a member of the ADCR, has stated
that the activities of the group, which received
legal recognition as an NGO from the Ministry of the
Interior around two years ago, have been carried out
in the open and have concerned all Iranians without
regard to race or religion. The organisation has
raised concerns about the administration of criminal
cases of minors and expressed opposition to the use
of cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment on
children. Referring to the Convention on the Rights
of the Child (CRC), to which Iran is a state party,
it has called for the prohibition of the use of the
death penalty on juveniles and, latterly, the total
abolition of the death penalty.
It has been reported that the Intelligence Section
of the LEF in Sanandaj, which issued the summons and
carried out the interrogations of Azad Zamani, Diba
Alikhani (f) and other board members of the ADCR,
may seek to have the organisation's license revoked,
possibly in advance of International Women's Day on
8 March, when the ADCR is expected to take part in
events marking the day.
The Association of Kurdish Women Defending Peace and
Human Rights has had its application for NGO status
rejected (rad-e salahiyat) by the Intelligence
Section of the Sanandaj LEF, although the grounds
are not clear. Amnesty International has repeatedly
campaigned against the use of vague gozinesh, or
selection and approval criteria which are frequently
used to limit citizens' freedom of association.
Activist Doctor Roya Tolou'ie, a founding member of
the organisation has also faced summons in
connection with her activities.
Background
According to a report on the internet news site,
Payk-e Iran on 2 March 2005, Diba Alikhani has been
summoned and interrogated in connection with her
defence of women's and children's rights. It also
said that over the past month, the frequency of the
summons, interrogations and pressures on civil
society activists has increased.
In an unrelated incident in Tehran, in the evening
of 1 March 2005, a fire bomber attacked the premises
of Roshangaran Publishers, which publicises works on
women's issues. The director, Shahla Lahiji, is a
former prisoner of conscience. She was detained,
charged and imprisoned in connection with her
participation at a conference on Iran, which took
place in Berlin, in April 2000.
www.amnesty.org
Top |
® 