Confessions acquired by force has no legal value

کانون گفتگو و حقوق بشر در ایران-
تورنتو

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Centre for Thought , Dialogue & Human Rights in Iran – Toronto
C.T.D.H.R.




Press Release
June 25, 06
Confessions acquired by force has no legal value

According to sources within Iran, state officials working for security or judicial organs in that country have compelled Mr. Jahanbegloo to provide incriminating confessions in English, French and Farsi. Since his arrest, Mr. Jahanbegloo has been held in prison without being officially charged and has been denied access to counsel.

Given the long-standing concerns about Human Rights violation systematically occurring in Iranian prisons, and given the confessions of individuals previously held in Iranian prisons that they were coerced into providing the Iranian government with fabricated confessions due to repeated exposure to mental and physical torture, such confessions cannot be used to charge the prisoners or be manipulated to establish the culpability of the accused.

We demand that the Iranian Government respect the rights of all prisoners, in particular prisoners of conscience, and that it respect the right of all prisoners to due process by ensuring that those arrested are officially charged within 24 hours of their arrest, that they uphold the rights of all prisoners to unimpeded access to counsel during interrogations, and to refrain from subjecting such prisoners to any type of mental or physical torture or abuse.

We demand that a lawyer selected by Mr. Jahanbegloo's family be immediately allowed to meet on an unrestricted basis with Mr. Jahanbegloo.

We also demand the immediate release of all those arrested in connection with the peaceful assembly held on 25 Khordad to support the rights of women, such as Mr. Khoeiniha.

We demand the prosecution of all Iranian officials responsible for the Human Rights violations occurring in Iranian prisons.

Centre for Thought, Dialogue and Human Rights in Iran
www.cdhriran.blogspot.com