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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
| Rafsanjani demands prisoner rights amid accusations |
| 2009-08-12 |
| Amid reports of prisoner abuse following the events that ensued Iran's disputed presidential election, head of the Assembly of Experts Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi-Rafsanjani demands officials to respect the rights of the detainees. The issue of the alleged torture and abuse of protesters, who had been detained after the vote, took a new turn after defeated presidential candidate and leading Reformist cleric Mehdi Karroubi raised questions about sexual abuse at a detention center. In a letter to Rafsanjani, Karroubi urged a probe into "jail rape" reports, according to which the male and female Kahrizak detainees are said to have fallen victim to sexual abuse. "The people who informed me about these events hold sensitive positions in the country ... these officials told me of the things that happened in the detention centers that even if one count is true, it would be a tragedy for the Islamic Republic... and it would whitewash the sins of many dictatorships including that of the deposed shah," Karroubi said in the letter. The letter prompted Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani to call for an investigation into the allegations. Ayatollah Rafsanjani, in a meeting with judiciary lawyers on Tuesday, touched upon the issue by insisting that respecting detainee rights is a vital necessity for passing a fair and just verdict. "Judgment and proxy as well as (protecting) the rights of the accused can provide guarantees for the presence of justice in the final verdict," Rafsanjani was quoted as saying by the Iranian Labor News Agency (ILNA). His remarks come as Iran is trying hundreds of opposition figures, protesters and journalists on charges of plotting to topple the government in the wake of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's re-election on June 12. The vote result was met by an outpouring of anger by supporters of defeated presidential candidates Karroubi and Mir-Hossein Mousavi in massive protests. The crackdown on the demonstrations, which were held despite bans by the Interior Ministry, led to the arrests of thousands of protesters, many of whom have been released. According to Iranian officials, at least 30 people were killed in the post-vote unrest. The opposition, however, puts the number at 70. |
| Posted by:Fred |