Amnesty International condemns widespread and arbirtrary arrests in Iran on the verge of forthcoming presidential elections

Excerpts fo the AI Public Statement issued on 15 May 2009 are as follows:
Amnesty International has today called on the Iranian authorities to ensure that the forthcoming presidential election to be held on 12 June 2009 are free of discrimination – particularly against women – and that candidates and voters are guaranteed effective exercise of their rights to freedom of expression and assembly during the election campaign. The organization’s appeal was made in a letter addressed to Ayatollah Jannati, the Chair of the Council of Guardians1, following the recent closure of registration of candidates for the presidential election.

Amnesty International is also concerned at ongoing repression of dissent in Iran, which has
worsened in recent months, and fears that Iranians who wish to express their opinions or exercise their right to assembly during the election campaign may face restrictions including harassment,arbitrary arrest and unfair trial.

Amnesty International has received reports suggesting increased waves of arbitrary arrests and harassment targeting in particular members of Iran’s religious and ethnic minority communities, students, trade unionists and women’s rights activists.
On 28 April 2009, a Revolutionary Court judge said that eight students, including the three still detained, had been accused of cooperating with the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran, an Opposition group based in exile. He said that they had intended to “carry out some activities in the university” during the forthcoming election.

Amnesty International has been campaigning for many years for an end to a variety of human rights violations in Iran. Impunity, arbitrary arrest, torture and other ill-treatment, as well as the use of the death penalty remain prevalent. Some sectors of society – including ethnic minorities – continue to face widespread discrimination, while the situation for other groups – notably some religious minorities – has significantly worsened since the Islamic Revolution in 1979. Those seen as dissenting from stated or unstated official policies face severe restrictions on their rights to freedom of belief, expression, association and assembly. Women continue to face discrimination -both in law and practice. Impunity for human rights abuses is widespread.