Ganji Calls for 3-day Hunger Strike
July 14 - 16, 2006
July 1, 2006

The human rights situation in Iran continues to deteriorate. Petitions and protests to end the abuses have gone unanswered. During the past year, Mahmud Ahmadinejad’s government has sought to monopolize power in Iran by silencing and suffocating all independent and dissenting voices. The suppression of demonstrators in Azerbaijan, Khuzestan, and Kurdistan, the silencing of labor, women, and student movements and the vicious attacks on demonstrators throughout the past year, are all evidence of the ongoing and abhorrent human rights violations by the Islamic Republic of Iran. By arresting and imprisoning intellectuals, lawyers, political activists, and labor leaders and by forcing the resignation of hundreds of University professors, Ahmadinejad’s government is pursing polices that are reminiscent of some of the darkest days of the Islamic Republic.

In such an atmosphere, Iran’s democracy movement calls for the unity and support of people of conscience from around the world. Without such unity, there is little hope of stemming the appalling human rights violations in Iran and the growing authoritarianism of regime.
In response to this deteriorating situation, we the undersigned lend our support and welcome the suggestion of Akbar Ganji – Iran’s leading dissent intellectual who was recently freed after 2222 days of imprisonment – for a global hunger strike that demands the release of three prominent political prisoners namely: Ali Akbar Mousavi Khoeni, a student leader and former member of parliament, Dr Ramin Jahanbegloo, a philosopher, professor and public intellectual and Mansour Osanloo, a prominent labor leader and executive director of the Worker’s Syndicated Union.

Additionally, we demand the immediate and unconditional release of all political detainees from the Islamic Republic’s jails but we specifically demand the release of the above mentioned persons. Should their release not be secured, we, the undersigned, will begin a co-ordinated global hunger strike from July 14 through July 16, 2006 to draw attention to our demands. We ask for the support and solidarity of people from around the world who share our goals for a democratic Iran and an immediate end to all violations of human rights.
To participate in Toronto's concurrent hunger strike, please contact Binesh Hassanpour (b.hassanpour@utoronto.ca).

Nader Hashemi, Northwestern University
Monireh Mohammadi, York University
Mehrdad Ariannejad, University of Toronto
Victoria Tahmasebi, York University
Niaz Salimi, Centre for Thought, Dialogue and Human Rights in Iran
Binesh Hassanpour, University of Toronto
Sasan Ghahreman, Sepidar Publications
Morteza Abdolalian, Iran Watch Canada
Nazli Kamvari, University of Toronto
Reza Sebti, University of Waterloo
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Visit this site on hunger strike :
http://www.freedomisnotfree.ca/