Amir Entezam in danger - group
Feb. 10, 1999
URGENT
The honorable Kofi Annan
Secretary General, UN
One United Nations Plaza
New York, NY 10017
Dear Mr. Annan,
The life of one of the most prominent political opponents of the Islamic
regime of Iran , Mr. Abbas Amir Entezam who had served as deputy prime
minister under the government of Mehdi Bazargan after the 1979 revolution
is in grave danger. He is the longest held political prisoner in Iran
for "crimes" in defense of human rights and for advocating democracy
in Iran.
His opposition to the rule of the clerics in Iran, which is shared by
the majority of Iranians, has made him the prime target of assasination
by the regime. In numerous occasions, Mr. Amir Entezam and his wife have
written letters to the President of Iran, Mr. Mohammed Khatami demanding
an open trial with observers from the international body and the right
to select his personal attorney to defend himself against charges he is
accused of. Last week, he barely escaped an assasination attempt by the
guards while in captivity. In chains, he was transferred to a hospital
and gravely ill he was brought back to prison.
The President was notified as well as other officials in the government.
However, no measure has been taken to secure his life. Iranians, residing
abroad in Europe and the United States in a "solidarity" movement
to echo the atrocities of the regime in Iran, are requesting the United
Nations and yourself to use your power to demand the following from the
Islamic regime in Iran :
1. Stop the crimes against humanity and the political assasination of
opponents in Iran.
2. An open trial for the accused parties in the recent murders of the
Forouhars and other political activists.
3.The freedom of all political prisoners in Iran. The Alliance for
defense of human rights in Iran recieved a message from the Archbishop
Desmond Tutu in support of human rights and the Iranian movement for democracy.
(copy attached).
On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Iranian revolution, the
Islamic regime has for the first time invited the American Press and Academic
figures to attend lectures and conferences in Tehran and other cities.
This coincides with the most horrific crimes and murders undertaken by
elements within the Islamic regime against writers, journalists, academicians
and activists inside Iran.
The Islamic regime of Iran as a signatory to the Charter of UN Human
Rights, has lost its legitimacy to represent the Iranian people and to
secure the safety of its citizens. The world and the United Nations must
put pressure on the Islamic regime to accept UN observers to investigate
the recent political murders. The Alliance for defense of human rights
in Iran has organized a series of lectures and conferences for Mr. Arash
Forouhar, the son of the late Iranian patriots, Dariush and Parvaneh Forouhar
who were brutally murdered in Tehran in November 22nd 1998.
Mr. A. Forouhar has crucial evidence and documents which implicates
the Ministry of Informantion of the Islamic Repulic for his parents' murder.
He will be in New York for Press Conferences and other meetings on Feb
11 and Feb 12, 1999. We will be glad to organize an interview with Mr.
Forouhar with any human rights organizations and the Press as the situation
in Iran becomes volatile.
Sincerely,
F. Ardalan
B. Bahramian For the Alliance
cc: President William J. Clinton
President Jimmy Carter
Archbishop Desmund Tutu
Secretary Madeleine Albright
Christopher Stevens, Iran desk The State Department
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