OSI Calls on Iran to Release Prisoners on the 100th Day of Their Detention

Press Release
August 16, 2007

Contact:

Laura Silber
lsilber@sorosny.org
1-212-548-0640

NEW YORK—On the 100th day of their imprisonment, two American scholars remain unjustly targeted by the Iranian government. Drs. Kian Tajbakhsh and Haleh Esfandiari, taken into custody in May, have languished in Tehran’s notorious Evin prison for more than three months without seeing lawyers. They have been let out only to be forced to appear on Iranian television, where they read coerced statements. This attempt by the Iranian government to justify their detention has only brought their innocence into starker relief.

The Open Society Institute, for whom Dr. Tajbakhsh is a consultant, denounces Iran’s continued detention of these distinguished citizens, who have committed no crime. With the full knowledge of the Iranian government, Dr. Tajbakhsh had been working to help the people of Iran through projects focusing on public health, earthquake relief, and urban planning. We are concerned about his health and safety and call on the Iranian government to release the two scholars without delay.

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The Open Society Institute, a private operating and grantmaking foundation, works to build vibrant and tolerant democracies whose governments are accountable to their citizens. To achieve its mission, OSI seeks to shape public policies that assure greater fairness in political, legal, and economic systems and safeguard fundamental rights. OSI works in over 60 countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East, as well as in the United States.