iran Campaign - Freedom to Write Page 1 of 1
INTERNATIONAL PEN
Writers in Prison Committee
IRAN CAMPAIGN
MAY 7-28, 2002
Continued Clampdown on Freedom of Expression in Iran
The Writers in Prison Committee of International PEN is
currently working for the release of seven writers and
journalists serving lengthy prison sentences in Iran and is
,
[ J 4 monitoring the cases of 23 more who are sentenced or facing
S ! charges PEN believes these cases are all part of a pattern of
repression by the conservative judiciary against reformist and
independent figures that has been gathering momentum in Iran since the
parliamentary elections of February 2000. In the wake of the reformist victory in
those elections, the hard-line conservative establishment has used its control of the
judiciary to launch a serious oLensive on President Khatami's Reform movement,
targeting in particular writers, journalists, and publishers. Over 50 publications have
been closed down, and dozens of editors, journalists, publishers, and intellectuals
have been imprisoned. According to the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Iran
in his January 2002 report, there has been no improvement in the state of free
expression in Iran since the spring of 2000. He notes, “Indeed, in the present
circumstances, it is perhaps surprising how fearless the public discourse generally
is.”
In addition to the ongoing imprisonment of writers and journalists in Iran, the
campaign centers on existing concerns about fair trial and the ill treatment of writers
and journalists in prison. Throughout the four weeks, the campaign will
consecutively highlight four cases: KhaIiI Rostamkhani, Akbar Ganji,
Hojjatoleslam Hasan Yousefi Eshkevari, and Siamak Pourzand. PEN members
and friends are asked to send at least one letter on behalf of each of these men
during May to the Iranian authorities and Iran's diplomatic representatives in the
United States.
TAKE ACTION NOW
KhaIiI
Rostamkhani
Akbar
Ganji
H.Hasan
Yousefi
Eshkevari
I
I I
I Siamak
Pourzand
SP00089
http://www .pen .org/ffleedomIiran.htrn 5/10/2002
