The
International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) today called on Iranian authorities to release journalist Abdolreza
Tajik who has been in detention for 50 days without being charged. His family
claims he has been ill treated in jail.
"The
failure to produce evidence that he has broken the law and the fears that he is
being abused in jail should be enough to indicate that there is a terrible
injustice here," said Aidan White,
IFJ General Secretary. "If there is no case to answer he should be freed
immediately and all the allegations of ill treatment must be investigated."
According
to media sources Tajik was arrested more than a month ago. No reason for his
arrest has been announced. He has since complained to the head of the judiciary
about his degrading treatment during interrogation. The family also claims that
Tajik, who has been arrested three times since the June 2009 controversial
elections in Iran, is being denied
contact with them, his lawyer and with doctors.
The
IFJ is backing a petition which has been signed by a group of about 100 Iranian journalists calling on the prosecutor in Tehran to investigate the
allegations and to release Tajik.
"The
authorities must get to the bottom of this case," added White. "This man is
being held in appalling circumstances and is being denied all of his rights."
For more information contact the IFJ
at +32 235 2207
The IFJ represents over 600,000 journalists
in 125 countries worldwide