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Iran opposition leaders call for release of detained protesters

By Bernard Hibbitts (editor) and University of Pittsburgh School of Law students.

[JURIST] Iranian opposition leaders called Tuesday for the release of persons detained for their alleged involvement in protests following last month's disputed presidential election. The request was brought jointly by candidates Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi and former president Mohammad Khatami, who also called for the government immediately to stop the allegedly baseless arrests of dissidents. The opposition leaders stressed the importance of ending what they called a newly formed security state, saying that the current situation would result in further political unrest. The country's police chief last week maintained that two-thirds of the people arrested during the protests have been released. Iran's Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Monday warned Western nations to stay out of the country's internal affairs, claiming that relations with meddling countries would suffer. Iran has been experiencing turmoil in Tehran and elsewhere since President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was declared the winner the election in June. Last week, a conservative paper called for Mousavi and Khatami to be tried for treason for their involvement in post-election protests. Also last week, the Iranian government barred the publication of a newspaper linked to Karroubi, attempting to quash political dissidence. The country's Guardian Council of the Constitution recently certified the contested results, officially sanctioning the re-election of Ahmadinejad. Authorities stated that those arrested would be dealt with by the court system. Human rights groups have viewed the arrests as political repression, saying that Iranian forces are using the protests to "engage in what appears to be a major purge of reform-oriented individuals."

Full post as published by JURIST - The Paper Chase on July 07, 2009 (boomark / email).