Human Rights Watch: Iran's oppression worsening

[democratic]

http://hrw.org/english/docs/2005/01/13/iran9803.htm

Human Rights Watch

Respect for basic human rights in Iran, especially freedom of expression and opinion, deteriorated in 2004. Torture and ill-treatment in detention, including indefinite solitary confinement, are used routinely to punish dissidents. The judiciary, which is accountable to Supreme Leader Ali Khamene’i rather than the elected president, Mohammad Khatami, has been at the center of many serious human rights violations. Abuses are carried out by what Iranians call “parallel institutions”: plainclothes intelligence agents, paramilitary groups that violently attack peaceful protests, and illegal and secret prisons and interrogation centers run by intelligence services.

Freedom of Expression and Opinion

The Iranian authorities systematically suppress freedom of expression and opinion. After President Mohammad Khatami’s election in 1997, reformist newspapers multiplied and took on increasingly sensitive topics in their pages and editorial columns. Prominent Iranian intellectuals began to challenge foundational concepts of Islamic governance. In April 2000, the government launched a protracted campaign to silence critics: closing down newspapers, imprisoning journalists and editors, and regularly calling editors and publishers before what became known as the Press Court. Today, very few independent dailies remain, and those that do self-censor heavily. Many writers and intellectuals have left the country, are in prison, or have ceased to be critical. Days after the visit of the Special Rapporteur for freedom of opinion and expression, Ambeyi Ligabo, in late 2003, one of the student activists with whom he spoke was re-arrested. In 2004 the authorities also moved to block Internet websites that provide independent news and analysis, and to arrest writers using this medium to disseminate information and analysis critical of the government.

Torture and Ill-treatment in Detention

With the closure of independent newspapers and journals, treatment of detainees has worsened in Evin prison as well as in detention centers operated clandestinely by the judiciary and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Torture and ill-treatment in detention has been used particularly against those imprisoned for peaceful expression of their political views. In violation of international law and Iran’s constitution, judges often accept coerced confessions. The use of prolonged solitary confinement, often in small basement cells, has been designed to break the will of those detained in order to coerce confessions and provide information regarding associates. This systematic use of solitary confinement rises to the level of cruel and inhuman treatment. Combined with denial of access to counsel and videotaped confessions, prolonged solitary confinement creates an environment in which prisoners have nowhere to turn in order to seek redress for their treatment in detention. Severe physical torture is also used, especially against student activists and others who do not enjoy the high public profile of older dissident intellectuals and writers. The judiciary chief, Ayatollah Mahmud Hashemi Shahrudi, issued an internal directive in April 2004 banning torture and inhumane treatment of detainees, but as of yet no enforcement mechanisms have been established.

[RaleighNCDUer]

1. Evil, evil Iran!!! Invade now!!!

[democratic]

2. Quote

As an Iranian-American Democrat i'd like to say that it's no wonder that we're losing every election to the Republicans. Moron supporters of the largest violaters of human rights in the world are making us out to be the party of hate rather than the former party of human rights.

Less of you and more of what we had back in the 70's is what we need.

[RaleighNCDUer]

3. I certainly don't support the Iranian theocracy.

The fact is, though, that the right will use reports like this to try to push the neocon agenda of continuous war in the region. I don't doubt the truth of the report, and have supported Human Rights Watch for decades. I think we should encourage the reformers in every way short of intervention. Iran will have to come to democracy on its own. Iraq is a good example of what happens when we impose democracy.

If we had supported reformers in the 70s, instead of blindly supporting our installed dictator, Khomeini would have found no fertile ground to plant the seeds of theocracy. We created fundamentalist Iran no less than we created Al Queda.

I hope that clarifies my position.

[durutti]

4. HRW has had some shady dealings...

There are some good articles in old issues of Covert Action Quarterly on the topic.

[renaissanceguy]

5. America went about it all wrong.

We went to Iraq because of nonexistant WMD, and the neocons categorized it as part of the war on terror. Now, since there are no WMD, BushCo is saying "Well we did a good thing by removing Saddam. Now Iraqis can have a democracy."

From what I understand, the international community did not agree with the invasion because our rationale was WMD and an "imminent threat" that didn't exist. Had we gone for the sole purpose of removing a dictator and helping Iraqis, we would've had international support, and we probably could've done this in a more peaceful way.

Our dealings with Iraq set a precedent for how we deal with Iran. If BushCo stays in Iraq to make it a virtual US colony and to convert everyone to Christianity, you can bet that they will do the same with Iran. If they are truthful about caring about human rights (which they are apparently not, given their views on torture), they will need international support.

http://www.cafepress.com/liberalissues.16472020

[LynnTheDem]

6. No we wouldn't have had international support as a "humanitarian" invasion

Because there were no ongoing or imminent atrocities happening in Iraq. You can't wage a humanitarian intervention tweny-some years after the fact.

You also don't intervene in nations where citizens haven't asked and don't want you to intervene.

The vast majority of Americans say "humanitarian" is not justification

http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/1114-06.htm

Human Rights Watch; Iraq invasion cannot be justified as humanitarian intervention

http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/0126-07.htm

And "regime change" regardless of ruthlessness of dictator, is ILLEGAL.

[gottaB]

8. We are still the party of human rights, d

What you are viewing as moronic support for the Islamic Republic of Iran--I'm sure you meant that broadly--should be understood in the context of reaction to the war in Iraq. The war has made an historic impact on the American psyche, and we are still in the midst of it. A lot of Democrats feel powerless about what's being done over there, for good reason, and that feeds into a cynicism about news reports from foreign countries. Given that the people have been subjected to brutally stupid propaganda campaigns and been misled into a brutally stupid war, and given that Iran has been identified by the Bush administration as part of the "axis of evil," a bit of skeptism here is to be expected, even encouraged. Call it boogeyman fatique.

So your struggle to raise awareness about human rights abuses in Iran will not be an easy one, and of course you know the hardliners in Iran are fighting back, and that too makes it difficult. Do you remember posting about the case of Hajieh Esmailvand? I was glad to learn that she was given a stay of execution. But how does one interepret that outcome:

1. Fear of imminent execution and new concern: flogging, or
   
2. Iran denies execution by stoning?
   

What I'm saying is that if you want people to get the message, you might want to invest some effort to make the case. Of course you will still meet trolls and ignoramuses and people who strongly disagree with you, but I think by and large you will find that Democrats care about human rights and want to learn about what's happening in Iran.

[Greybnk48]

7. Let's attack the country and kill them all!!

Iran sounds a lot like *'s Amerka. Give me a break. Who are WE to criticize ANY government abuses ever again. Our credibility is gone, shot, zilch.

Thank goodness President Kerry is talking to world leaders. Hopefully he is letting them know that there is a robust resistence movement here against the monsters who have overthrown our govt.