Second day of Reporters Without Borders hunger strike in support of Roxana Saberi

Four members of Reporters Without Borders, including its secretary-general, Jean-François Julliard, began a hunger strike yesterday in support of Iranian-American journalist Roxana Saberi, who has been sentenced to eight years in prison in Iran on a charge of spying for the United States. Saberi has herself been on hunger strike since 21 April. “Roxana has been considerably weakened by her hunger strike and, like her family, we are very concerned for her health,” Reporters Without Borders said. “We are therefore symbolically taking over her hunger strike in a gesture of solidarity, so that she does not have to continue it herself.” The members of Reporters Without Borders have been stationed outside the Iran Air office in Paris, located at 63 Avenue des Champs-Elysées, since 11 a.m. yesterday. “We appeal to all those who care about the defence of human rights and freedom in Iran to join us, and to sign the petition and the book for messages of support for Roxana,” Reporters Without Borders added. “Roxana Saberi needs to know she is not alone, and that she can now take a rest. We will not abandon her.” The hunger strike by Reporters Without Borders in France is spreading to other countries. Reporters Without Borders sections in Belgium, Canada, the United States and Spain have begun to take up the protest. Saberi’s father, Reza Saberi, confirmed on 26 April that she was on hunger strike. After visiting her in Tehran’s Evin prison, he said she appeared “much weaker” but was “determined and ready to go all the way.” What he said contradicted comments by Iranian judiciary spokesman Ali Reza Jamshidi denying that Saberi was refusing to take food. “She is in good physical condition and she is not on hunger strike,” the official news agency IRNA quoted him as saying. Saberi’s lawyer, Shirin Ebadi, has deplored the fact that she has not yet been allowed to visit her in Evin prison. Seven journalists and two bloggers are currently imprisoned in Iran, which was ranked 166th out of 173 countries in the 2008 Reporters Without Borders press freedom index. Timeline of Saberi case - 31 January: Roxana Saberi is arrested. - 1 March: The US public radio network NPR breaks the news of her arrest (after being alerted by her father on 10 February). - 2 March: Foreign ministry spokesman Hassan Ghashghavi says Saberi was working “illegally” in Iran. - 3 March: Judiciary spokesman Alireza Jamshidi says she has been “arrested on the order of the Tehran revolutionary court and is being held in Evin prison.” - 9 April: Saberi is charged with spying by deputy prosecutor Hassan Zare Dehnavi. This charge is often used by the Iranian authorities to arrest journalists and tighten the muzzle on freedom of expression. - 13 April: Saberi is tried in a closed-door hearing on a charge of spying for the United States. - 18 April: Saberi is sentenced to eight years in prison. - 20 April: Nobel peace laureate Shirin Ebadi announces that she will join the Saberi defence team. - 21 April: Saberi begins her hunger strike. - 25 April: Her lawyer files an appeal against her conviction.