Tag Archives: Human Rights

26May/08

Middle East transfer: The continuing Iranian persecution of its Ahwazi Arab population

Human Rights, Iran, , , ,

By Nir Boms and Roee Nahmias, Henry Jackson Society,

6th September 2007

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

  • Over a million Arabs have been deported from the district of Al-Ahwaz, home to some eight million Arabs, in Southern-East Iran, near the Iraqi border. They have been replaced with Persian Iranians.
  • Human rights activists in this area have been arrested and placed in detention centres. Detainees have been subject to torture and at times execution.
  • As part of a broader Iranization policy, the teaching of Arabic is forbidden in Ahwaz while it is compulsory for students to learn Farsi.
  • This process is leading to greater Arab discontent in the region along with the Arabs associating Iran’s “imperialism” with that of Israel and the United States.
  • There are regional repercussions to the Farsi-Arab tensions. Clashes recently erupted between Iranian military forces and ethnic Arab Iranians who are calling for an independent state in southern Iran. Hussain Shariatmadari, presidential aide to president Ahmadinejad suggested uniting neighboring Bahrain with its “motherland” Iran. The Baharenis, on their part responded in furious demonstrations demanding the “liberation of Ahwaz” from Iranian occupation.
  • Iran’s belligerent posture towards its neighbors and Arab population echoes a dark European past of WWII. It is natural that an autocratic regime, lacking human rights values will manifest the same approach in its foreign policy vis a vis neighboring states.

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22May/08

Rights for Some Humans

Human Rights, UN,

The UN established the HRC, an institution that promised to respect human rights and fundamental freedoms. Outrageously, instead of focusing on human rights violators such as Iran, Uzbekistan and China it adopted nine condemnatory resolutions against Israel.

Nir Boms (5/17/2007)

About a year ago, in March 2006, the UN adopted Resolution 60/251 to establish the Human Rights Council (HRC), an institution that promised to “respect human rights and fundamental freedoms for all, without distinction of any kind as to race, color, sex, language or religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.” According to its own mandate, the work of the council should be “guided by the principles of universality, impartiality, objectivity and non-selectivity.”

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14May/08

North Korea: A Time for Action

Human Rights, North Korea, , ,

By Nir Boms
FrontPageMagazine.com | March 9, 2005

North Korea human rights abuse has reached a new peak last month in the midst of another nuclear crisis that was initiated by Pyongyang. Amid North Korea’s announcement that it possesses nuclear weapons and is suspending its participation in “six-nation” nuclear talks, Kim Jong Il’s Stalinist regime also found time to execute 70 refugees who were recently captured en-route to China.

The Commission to Help North Korean Refugees, a highly reputable NGO, said that eight or nine of the 70 who were executed were put to death publicly in order to discourage others from attempting to slip across the border into China. Continue reading →

14May/08

The Start of a New Year in Iran

Human Rights, Iran, ,

 

In 2008 let us help bring some ray of hope to those working towards freedom in Iran. The fate of Iran’s political prisoners, whose numbers are estimated at 30,000, should accompany every international meeting and diplomatic engagement

Nir Boms

While in many parts of the world people were just starting to recover from New Year’s Eve hangovers, it was business as usual in Iran. On January 2, thirteen Iranians, including the mother of two young children, were executed, giving Iran a solid lead in the execution count for the new year. According to Agence France Presse, Iran carried out at least 297 executions in 2007, a 40% increase compared to the 177 executions reported by Amnesty International in 2006.

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