May 25, 2005

His Excellency, Dr. Seyed Mohammad Ali Mousavi, Ambassador
The Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran
245 Metcalfe St.
Ottawa, Ontario
K2P 2K2 Canada

Excellency,

I am writing on behalf of Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE), a non-profit, non-governmental organization that works to promote and protect press freedom and freedom of expression around the world.

CJFE welcomes the news that Evin prison authorities have reportedly agreed to provide journalist Akbar Ganji with the immediate medical attention he requires. Ganji today ended the hunger strike he had started on May 19, 2005, to protest conditions in Evin prison. Ganji, who suffers from asthma, had apparently been denied access to necessary medical care recommended by doctors for his back problems and asthma. He also has had his "morakhasi" or days out of prison, severely limited, although these are allowed under the law.

Akbar Ganji is a leading journalist who wrote for the daily Sobh-e-Emrooz. He has been in prison for over five years. He was originally sentenced to ten years in prison, a sentence that was reduced to six months and then reimposed at six years. The charges are based on Ganji's writing about the death squad killings of journalists in late 1998, in which several prominent officials were implicated, and in his participation in a conference in Berlin about reform in Iran.

CJFE recognised Akbar Ganji's courageous work in 2000 with its International Press Freedom Award. It is clear now as it was then, that Akbar Ganji is being persecuted for simply exercising his right to free expression. CJFE calls on the government of Iran to address this grave wrong and release Akbar Ganji immediately and unconditionally. In the meantime, we will continue to monitor Akbar Ganji's situation and the authorities' treatment of him.

I look forward to receiving your prompt reply.

Yours truly,

Arnold Amber
President
Case File Number: PL05-04

C.C.: Mr. Gordon Venner, Ambassador, the Canadian Embassy to the Islamic Republic of Iran
The Hon. Pierre Pettigrew, Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs