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www.pomed.org ♦ 1820 Jefferson Place NW, Suite 400 ♦ Washington, DC 20036 Human Rights and Democratic Reform in Iran Senate Foreign Relations Committee Subcommittee on Near Eastern and South and Central Asian Affairs 419 Dirksen Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20515 Wednesday 10:00 – 12:00 pm On Wednesday, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Subcommittee on Near Eastern and South and Central Asian Affairs held a hearing entitled “Human Rights and Democratic Reform in Iran.” Senator Robert P. Casey (D-PA) chaired the committee hearing, Senators James Risch (R-ID), Tom Udal (D- NM) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) were also present. Assistant Secretary of State Bureau for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, Michael H. Posner; Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs , Mr. Philo L. Dibble; Mr. Kambiz Hosseini, from Voice of America; Senior Program Manager from Freedom House, Mr. Andrew Apostolou; and Ms. Rudi Bakhtiar, Communications Director International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, all testified before the subcommittee. For full testimonies, click here. Senator Casey opened the hearing by discussing the momentous events and democratic uprisings that have taken place across the Middle East this spring. In this context, he stated that the pro-democracy movement in Iran is the greatest challenge to the Islamic authority in Iran. He asserted: “During the uprising in 2009 pro-democracy protesters took to the streets demanding the same rights that have been demanded across the region this spring.” Since then, he stated, the security forces have used live ammunition and “deplorable” tactics to suppress the Iranian opposition. Senator Casey highlighted a number of political activists who are serving lengthy prison sentences for working for human rights and democracy in Iran. He also discussed his legislation that he introduced in 2010 to recognize and address the human rights abuses across Iran, along with the newly established special human rights rapporteur that was created by the UN Human Rights Council to address the human rights abuses in Iran. He finished by stating, the United States must work with the international community to support the democratic movement in Iran and end the ongoing human rights abuses. “The United States has a moral obligation to stand in support of the Iranian peoples struggle for democracy.” Michael Posner began: “Now more than ever we need to be redoubling our efforts to both speak out against the systematic violations of human rights but also engage our allies to amplify the voices of democratic promotion from in Iran.” Mr. Posner highlighted the killing of protesters in February in Tehran along with minority ethnic community members who were killed in April, as recent examples of the continued violence. Mr. Posner stated that universities that teach liberal arts have been forced to close their doors because they are un-Islamic. This was just one example of countless other hindrances of free speech within the country. Mr. Posner also noted a few activists who have faced overtly oppressive punishment for being involved in democratic activities. Mr. Posner stated that the United States is seeking to spotlight Iran’s gross human rights violations at the UN and multilaterally with our allies. Mr. Posner also highlighted that $22 million dollars has been spent on internet freedom projects and another $28 million dollars was appropriated for continued efforts this spring. These programs, he stated, www.pomed.org ♦ 1820 Jefferson Place NW, Suite 400 ♦ Washington, DC 20036 seek to counter censorship technologies and secure mobile communications while protecting online activists against cyber attacks. Mr. Dibble stated that the Iranian Government’s repression has intensified and that “we (the U.S.) have increased our diplomatic efforts” to combat these gross human rights violations. He argued that the Obama administration has spoken out against these offenses nearly a dozen times this year, seeking to end these human rights violations. He also highlighted the establishment of the special rapporteur at the UN Human Rights Council to attempt to combat and shed light on the grave human rights situation in Iran. Mr. Dibble also articulated that the U.S. Government is seeking to work multilaterally to establish sanction programs to put pressure on the Iranian Government to cease its human rights abuses and oppressive tactics. He stated that the U.S. Government is seeking to work with their European counterparts and other allies to ensure that the Iranian human rights issue is at the forefront of policy in dealing with Iran. Sen. Casey asked the panel who in the U.S. Government is taking the lead on this issue. Mr. Posner responded and stated that the administration is working to appoint special envoys along with making the Iranian issue an everyday issue of the U.S. Government. “The main messengers of this issue are the President and the Secretary of State,” he went on to state that there is no issue that they have spoken out on more. He stated that he hopes to keep it this way so that they are taking the lead on addressing the Iranian human rights issue. “We are all in alignment here, this is a priority for the United States.” When asked about the importance of the rapporteur by Sen. Casey, Mr. Posner responded that this person will be the focal point of activists both in Iran and outside who are seeking to tell their stories and have a UN official listen. This person, according to Posner, will be responsible for shining a light on the issues and gathering information from activists. Mr. Posner also stated that this will also force all governments of the world not just the United States to address human rights concerns in Iran, because it is not just a western discussion but a UN effort. Mr. Dibble highlighted that the effort was able to secure votes not only from Europe, but from other countries who Iran was counting on to counter the effort. When asked by Sen. Casey how the rapporteur will function, Mr. Posner stated that the individual will be chosen at the June session of the UN Human Rights Council. The individual will seek approval of the Iranian Government to enter Iran, but Mr. Posner stated that it would not be surprising that this will not be granted. He asserted that this individual will seek to meet and speak with individuals both within Iran and outside to gather information and transfer this information to increase efforts to end the human rights abuses. Senator Udal asked if there is any evidence that the Iranian regime is changing its actions in response to the work taking place at the UN Human Rights Council. Mr. Posner responded that the Iranian Government has not appeared to change or respond, but he stated that the Iranian Government seems “hyper-sensitive” to thwart UN efforts to address human rights issues in the country. Senator Shaheen asked what the Arab spring has done to affect the internal dynamics within the Iranian regime, and how the U.S. should respond to this. Mr. Dribble responded that it is very difficult to see any direct connection, but disagreements between institutions have been present for “some time” in Iran and that it appears that the rifts have more to do with power than regional events. Sen. Casey asked how the sanctions seem to be affecting the regimes behavior, and also if there are sanctions that the U.S. can pursue to enhance efforts thus far. Mr. Dribble stated that the U.S. Government www.pomed.org ♦ 1820 Jefferson Place NW ♦ Washington, DC 20036 has not seen a change in Iran’s “strategic calculus” in response to sanctions. He also stated that what they have seen is that Iran has had to work harder to seek out strategies to deal with their economic isolation. In respect to human rights he stated that this is not an “easy sell” and that the Iranian Government is going to resist as hard as it can especially in light of the Arab uprisings. However, he stated that this is strong international solidarity and it must be exploited as soon as possible. Also he stated that the U.S. must seek out support from the “non-aligned” countries. He also stated that he hesitates to suggest any sanction efforts and stated that the administration feels like it has the power to do all that it can. Ms. Rudi Bakhtiar described the Iranian human rights situation has hitting an "unprecedented new low." She stated that following the 2009 elections that Iran has gone on an "execution binge." The increased suppression and the broader policies of crackdowns on all opposition forces are part of an effort by the Iranian Government "to terrorize Iranian citizens." She went on to argue that the Iranian judiciary is becoming increasingly politicized and is being used as a tool of state security to have sham trials and obscene sentences for political prisoners. Ms. Bakhtiar stated that the current administration's efforts are strongly in support of democracy and human rights in Iran and that although severe repression exists the reformist elements of Iranian society continue to fight for freedom. Mr. Apostolou argued that that the Arab revolts must be supported, especially in Syria, because the repressive tactics there are supportive of the Iranian regime. He asserted that a democratic Syria would "cut an arm off of Iran." He stated that the crackdown on human rights defenders in Iran needs to be directly addressed by high ranking U.S. officials. These efforts combined with sanctions and multilateral support are necessary, he stated, so that activists are able to easily report human rights abuses and are prepared for "their next opportunity" to foment revolution.
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