01/10/2009 Political Affairs and Democracy
Strasbourg, 01.10.2009 – The Political Affairs Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), meeting during the Assembly’s plenary session in Strasbourg, today adopted the following declaration:
“The Political Affairs Committee expresses great sorrow about the developments in Iran after the last elections. The violent reactions of the Iranian authorities to peaceful protests are a very serious breach of the human rights of Iranian citizens. The committee is also greatly saddened by the irresponsible continuation of the Iranian nuclear programme, which is a clear breach of international law.
In a situation in which the safety and security of people in Iran who protest against the behaviour of the Iranian authorities are under great threat, the Political Affairs Committee calls upon governments of other countries not to expel Iranian citizens to Iran. The committee calls on the government of Iraq not to expel refugees who are living in Camp Ashraf to Iran, and to respect the Iraqi courts’ judgements on these citizens.
The Political Affairs Committee urges the Iranian Government to stop its violence against its own citizens, to end immediately its breach of international law with regard to its nuclear programme and to collaborate with the so-called ‘six plus one’ talks.”