Denial of justice continues for journalist on hunger strike

Reporters Without Borders:

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. READ MORE

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.