Denial of justice continues for journalist on hunger strike

With no sign of improvement in the health of hunger-striking journalist Akbar Ganji since his transfer to hospital, Reporters Without Borders voiced outrage today at the behaviour of the judicial authorities in his case and held them responsible for his slow drift towards death. "Ganji has been on hunger strike for 44 days and has lost two more kilos since his transfer to hospital on 17 July," the press freedom organisation said. "We are also very worried by Tehran state prosecutor Said Mortazavi's insistence that he undergo an operation requiring a general anaesthetic as the general medical view is that his state of health does not allow this." Reached by telephone, Ganji's wife told Reporters Without Borders she has written to the head of the Iranian judiciary, Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahrudi, requesting Mortazavi's removal from the case, the appointment of someone to prepare a detailed report on his state of health, and permission for him to be visited by three negotiators, who are his friends, to let them try to persuade him to accept treatment. She ended the letter by saying she held Shahrudi fully responsible for her husband's case. Ganji's lawyer, 2003 Nobel peace laureate Shirin Ebadi, who has not been allowed to visit her client, told Agence France-Presse (AFP) she has "serious concerns" about his state of health. In a letter posted on several Iranian websites on the day of his transfer to Milad hospital in northern Tehran on 17 July, Ganji said he had been threatened by Mortazavi, who told he was being taken to hospital "to put an end to the international pressure" and so that no one would be able to blame his death on the judicial authorities. ----------------------------------------------------------- 22.07.05 Iran Lack of transparency, denial of justice in hospitalisation of Akbar Ganji Reporters Without Borders voiced outrage today at the lack of transparency and denial of justice surrounding the hospitalisation of imprisoned journalist Akbar Ganji, who has been on hunger strike for 38 days, and the organisation reiterated its call for his immediate release. Ganji's family has also protested about the circumstances of his hospitalisation in an open letter to the head of the Iranian judiciary, Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahrudi, accusing Tehran prosecutor Said Mortazavi of failing to cooperate with the family and condemning the refusal to allow Ganji's lawyers to visit him. Ganji was taken on 17 July to Milad hospital in Tehran, where he has been isolated on the hospital's 12th floor. The ban on visits by his lawyers violates Iranian law. Voicing concern about his condition, Reporters Without Borders called on the director of Milad hospital to issue a daily bulletin on his state of health. The press freedom organisation added: "We call on the daily newspaper Kayhan, headed by Hossin Shariatmadry, to stop spreading rumours accusing the reformists of paving the way for Ganji's death with the aim of blaming it on the Iranian regime." According to judicial officials, Ganji was hospitalised for a knee operation. It has also been reported that he has called off his hunger strike. Ganji was sentenced to six years in prison in 2001 for an article linking senior regime officials to a series of murders of writers and intellectuals. He has been held in Evin prison, where he began his hunger strike on 10 June. He has lost 22 kg since he stopped eating. Calls for his release have been made by US President George Bush, the European Union and many international human rights organisations.