Open Letter to the Lawyers of the World - Iranian Case

To read a Farsi version of this letter, go to the following link:
http://www.puyeshgaraan.com/lawyers.htm

PLEASE PERSUADE ALL LOVERS OF HUMAN RIGHTS TO SIGN THIS PETITION

July 27, 2005

To:

International Bar Association (IBA)
10th Floor
1 Stephen St
London, W1T 1AT
United Kingdom

International Association of Democratic Lawyers
International Headquarters
Rue Brialmont 21
1210 Brussels, Belgium

International Association of Democratic Lawyers
Office of the Secretary General
Beinusz Szmukler, Argentina

International Association of Democratic Lawyers
Office of the President
Jitendra Sharma, India

International Association of Democratic Lawyers
Office of the United Nation Representative in New York
116 W 111 St New York,
NY 10026
U.S.A.

The Human Rights Lawyers Association:
2nd Floor,
289-293 High Holborn,
London WC1V 7HZ, DX 240 LDE


Dear Madams / Sirs,

The world has a huge legal problem at hand: A group, with a proven track-record of extreme atrocities, seized the political apparatus of a modern nation-state 26 years ago a nation with a three-thousand-years-old history that had begun with pronounced concerns for human rights, a nation that was a founding member of the United Nations, a country known an Iran.

Apart from the fact that the whole world has experienced hardship due to this take-over, those who have been deeply suffering are the people of Iran. The majority of them have been struggling to get rid of this unexpected nightmare and, for a quarter of century, have been exposed to non-stop workings of this horrendous machine of torture and execution.

Recently, an internal report on the conditions of prisons in Iran, surprisingly prepared by an officer of the regimes justice department, has painted such a bleak picture that no honorable member of the human race can move his/her head away and ignore the plight of this suffering nation.

Apart from the atrocities of the regimes agents towards non-political prisoners, there are many documented reports that show the worsening condition of prisoners of conscious in Iran. These prisoners, who are the best and most knowledgeable men and women of their society whose numbers are constantly on the rise, have committed no crime. They have just spoken up and/or have written about the injustices, atrocities and corruption of this regime. Recent reports show that the exercise of torture and putting physical and psychological pressures on them has been on rise. Your honorable colleague, Dr. Shirin Ebadi, the Noble Prize Laureate of 2003, who is the defense attorney of some of these prisoners, has constantly been barred from performing her legal duties in this respect. She, together with a huge number of human rights activists, have reported these problems to world organizations in many occasions.

Through this futile experience we, the undersigned, have come to realize that no individual government and no United Nations organization has the ability or stamina to challenge this inhumane situation. Nevertheless, we cannot possibly give up hope. We are sure that there are other organizations and conscientious legal professionals in the world who are poised to have a deeper look at the situation in Iran and get acquainted with the atrocities of its legal system. We know that by taking up such a case as an international legal issue they will create a new precedence that could help other nations who are or will be caught in the web of a ferocious and blood-thirsty political machine.

It is upon these assumptions that we, some advocates of human rights in all its dimensions and capacities, see no other resort but to address the conscious of your members, begging them to study this case and, based on their knowledge and experience, come up with a legal solution that could end the miseries inflicted by a group of ruthless thugs on an innocent.

We impatiently look forward to hear from you and, in the meanwhile, will keep this petition open on the Internet, so that anyone interested could join our desperate clamor for help. We will keep you posted on the new signatures they are added every day.

Contact:
Fax: 509-352-9630
E-mail: [email protected]

The first patch of signatures, in order of receipt:

Shokooh Mirzadegi Writer and Activist for Womens Rights USA
Dr. Esmail Nooriala Writer, Critic and Analyst USA
Reza Allamehzadeh Writer and Film Director Netherlands
Abbas Maroufi Writer and Journalist Germany
Massoud Assadollahi Film and Theatre Artist and Director - USA
Mirza Agha Asgasri Member of Union of German Writers - Germany
Shima Kalbasi - Writer and Activist for Womens Rights USA
Niloofar Beizaei Writer and Theatre Director Germany
Alireza Maybody Writer and Radio-TV Journalist USA
Dr. Ardavan Bayani Lawyer - USA
Farhang Farrahi - Writer and Radio-TV Journalist USA
Kambiz Ghaemmagham Writer and Political Activist - USA
Dr. Mohsen Ghaemmagham Physician, Writer and Political Activist - USA
Abbas Pahlavan - Writer and Journalist USA
Parviz Ghazi-Said - Writer and Journalist USA
Omid Habibinia Journalist and Researcher
Behrouz Souresrafil - Writer and Journalist USA
Effat Mahbaz - Writer and Activist for Womens Rights Germany
Dr. Hossein Bagherzadeh - Writer and Political Activist UK
Dr. Reza Joshani Physician - Germany
Gholamreza Baghaei Writer
Hamid Nemati Artist and Webmaster: Barabari.com - Sweden
Dr. Saideh Ghazi Lawyer Canada
Alma Ghovanlou TV host - USA
Dr. Siamak Akhavan Professor of Sociology - Australia
Vida Farhoudi Poet France
Azar Mahlujian Writer Sweden
Hadi Ebrahimi Writer and Journalist Canada
Mahrad Ommidmehr Master Media Designer
Dr. Mahzad Omidmehr Physician
Ashrafossadat Omidmehr Teacher
Dr. Ali Akbat Omidmehr Ex-diplomat
Amir Hossein Afrasiabi Poet
Nushin Shahrokhi Writer Germany
Nasser Karami Architect and Political Activist
Sasan Ghahreman Poet and Writer Canada
Ahmad Zahedi Langarudi Writer, poet and Filmmaker

(The main body of signatures is reflected in the petition signature section)