Iran ups oil output to 4.2 million barrels per day
SPECIAL TO WORLD TRIBUNE.COM
Thursday, November 20, 2003
Iran has reached a crude oil production level of 4.2 million barrels per day.
Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh attributed the oil production increase to the completion of projects that expanded capacity. Zanganeh said Iran had additional oil production capacity and required the money to fund development projects.
"Undoubtedly Iran can boost its production to higher levels," the minister said. "The country needs to develop its oil sector to use the revenues for promotion of other sectors."
About 75 percent of Iran's hard currency revenue stems from oil exports. Zanganeh said oil exports play a significant role in the five-year economic development plan.
http://www.worldtribune.com/worldtribune/front_2.htmlGeneral Assembly committee approves resolution expressing concern at Iran rights violations
11-22-03
San Francisco Chronicle
A U.N. General Assembly committee approved a resolution Friday expressing serious concern at human rights violations in Iran.
The Canadian-sponsored draft resolution was adopted by a vote of 73-49 with 50 abstentions. It now goes to the full General Assembly where a similar vote is expected.
The United States and most European countries supported the resolution while Islamic nations opposed it.
The resolution expresses serious concern at "the continued deterioration of the situation with regard to freedom of opinion and expression" and at the use of torture and other forms of cruel and inhuman punishment.
At the same time, it welcomed Iran's invitation to human rights groups in April 2002 to visit the country and the opening of a human rights dialogue with a number of countries.
Before the vote, Iran's representative said that a journalist with dual Iranian and Canadian citizenship had died in Iranian custody, and said it was regrettable. The government has taken all necessary measures to bring those responsible to justice and an inquiry is under way, the diplomat said.
An Iranian intelligence agent has been charged in the murder of photojournalist Zahra Kazemi, who died July 10 after suffering fatal head injuries during 77 hours of interrogation following her June 23 detention.
The Iranian diplomat stressed that the incident involving Kazemi was not enough to determine that there was no freedom of press in Iran.
Iranian hard-liners have jailed several dozen reformist journalists and political activists and closed about 100 pro-democracy publications during the past 31/2 years for criticizing the rule of the country's unelected hard-liners.
President Mohammad Khatami, who was elected on promises of introducing social and political reforms to Iran, has said newspaper closures and arrests of intellectuals and writers without trial or in closed, jury-less trials violated the constitution. Hard-liners have ignored his warnings.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/news/archive/2003/11/22/international0419EST0461.DTLPrecisely why the oil workers have to go on strike if the regime is to crumble in Iran.