Obama urged to have dialogue with Iran leader

IRANIAN NOBEL Peace Prize winner Shirin Ebadi yesterday called on US president-elect Barack Obama to meet Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad without preconditions.

She also asked Washington not to ignore Iran's human rights violations or forget democratic principles in its drive to halt Tehran's nuclear programme.

Ms Ebadi, a lawyer and rights activist, stated, "Iraq has shown us that war is not the best means through which to resolve conflicts. At some point or other, you have to sit down at the same table and talk." She said Iran "does not have a transparent government, that's the real problem from which all others flow, from terrorism to nuclear" concerns in the West.

On Sunday, Ms Ebadi's North Tehran Centre for Protecting Human Rights was shut down by police acting without a warrant. The judiciary ordered the raid because the centre had no permit and had issued statements supposedly harmful to the government.

"Shutting down our offices won't make us stop our human rights activities. We will meet again somewhere else and will continue to support the rights of activists and political prisoners," she said. In its annual report published last May, the centre said "freedom of speech and freedom of promulgating information have further declined" since Mr Ahmadinejad took office in 2005.

The centre has campaigned against stoning of adulterers, amputating of limbs as punishment for crimes, and execution of juvenile offenders.

Meanwhile, ahead of tomorrow's visit to Tehran by Iraqi prime minister Nuri al-Maliki, a government commission demanded the expulsion from Iraq to Iran or a third country of 3,500 members of the People's Mujahedin of Iran, a movement seeking regime change in Tehran.

Mr Maliki's Dawa (Enlightenment) party and coalition partner, the Supreme Iraqi Islamic Council, enjoy close ties with Tehran, which has been pressing Baghdad to deport the Mujahedin.

The movement, given a base in Iraq at Camp Ashraf near the Iran border and financial support by the ousted Baathist regime, was allowed to stay even though the US and several European countries designated it a terrorist organisation. The European court of first instance ruled recently the group should not be classified a terrorist organisation.