Posted on 01/15/2005 12:34:43 PM PST by Land_of_Lincoln_John
DAKAR (IRNA) -- President Mohammad Khatami rejected Saturday U.S. charges of human rights violations in Iran, denouncing Washington's own record in abusing prisoners in Iraq, Afghanistan and Cuba.
"Of all the people entitled to speak about human rights, we don't regard the Americans as having the right to talk about the respect for human rights in Iran," he told reporters here.
The United States was quoted Thursday as having expressed 'grave concern' over the human rights situation in Iran and potential court action against 2003 Nobel Prize winner Shirin Ebadi. Khatami said, "I believe the Americans' claims of human rights violations in Iran are lies and they had better stand accountable for their own crimes in Iraq's Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo prisons."
"The Americans had better answer for a ruthless killing which they are routinely perpetrating in the name of democracy and freedom in the world," he said before leaving the Senegalese capital for Sierra Leone on the third stage of a seven-leg African tour.
The Iranian president stressed the need for 'all-out efforts' to observe human rights in the world 'without any discrimination', citing U.S.-backed violation of the Palestinians' rights by Israel. "As regards (respect) for human rights, cultural characteristics of each country must be taken into account; the complete observance of human rights is a process which has to evolve patiently."
Khatami, however stressed that Iran 'respects all the benevolent people who are righteously worried about human rights'.
Ebadi has said she had been summoned to answer unspecified questions by the country's judiciary or risk arrest.
Khatami played down the summons, saying the issue was unlikely to create 'any problem'.
"As head of state, I have personally guaranteed her safety and her freedom to continue her activities," he said when asked by reporters about the summons.
"It is just an ordinary case and I hope it will be settled pretty soon," Khatami added.
AFP quoted Louis Fintor, a State Department spokesman, as saying that the department was monitoring the case.
President Khatami brushed aside the statements, describing Ebadi 'a well-known figure' who is 'freely carrying out her activities'.
"Ms. Ebadi is a Nobel Prize winner and the Iranians are happy that an Iranian woman has scooped this prize," he added.
The 57-year-old Ebadi is the first Muslim woman and first Iranian to win the prize, in recognition of her efforts for upholding the rights of women and children in Iran.
Tehran and Dakar on Saturday signed a joint statement and four cooperation agreements paving the ground for expansion of mutual ties.
Officials from both sides signed documents evidencing the agreements at a meeting attended by the presidents of the two states before the conclusion of President Mohammad Khtatmi's official visit to Senegal.
The agreements include a memorandum of understanding (MoU) providing for Iranian participation in Sengal's development projects, one on cooperation in the mines sector, another on construction of a Samand automobile production line in Dakar and a contract with a bank for a 24-million-euro credit to fund a power transmission project.
The joint statement and the MoU providing for Iranian participation in development projects in Senegal was signed by the visiting Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi and his Senegalese counterpart, Cheikh Ridiane Gadio.
The document on mining cooperation was signed by the Iranian Industries and Mines Minsiter Es'haq Jahangiri and his Senegalese counterpart, Medicke Niang.
The agreement to establish a Samand auto production line was signed by Jahangiri and Senegalese Minister of Economy and Finance Abdulaye Diop.
The contract providing for a 24-million-euro power transmission line was signed between the managing director of Iran's Export Development Bank, Norouz Kehzadi, and the head of Senegal's National Electrical Company.
President Khatami and his entourage are scheduled to leave Senegal for the Republic of Sierra Leone in a few hours.
The president arrived in the Senegalese capital, Dakar, on Thursday afternoon on the second leg of a seven-nation tour of the African continent.
As encouraged by our own fifth-column media.
You missed the point.
Because the unpatriotic dimrats have chosen to magnify unimportant events in order to bring down Bush to regain the White House they have succeded in greatly diminishing our standing in the world.
They didn't just secceed in harming bush but harming the whole country and our war effort. I'm sure our soldiers are worse off because of their unpatriotic efforts.
So much for supporting the troops.
Well the idiots on the left cut of their nose to spite their face again. By incessantly hammering the Abu Ghraib business and making it far worse than it was, they have given the real abusers of the world ammunition to deflect criticism of their "real atrocities" which will ultimately give them a free pass to continue or worsen what they are already doing. So they can all pat themselves on the back for "further enabling" the ba$tards of the world to continue hurting the masses. They don't care about the people, they care about the loss of their own power and the hatred of the right, everthing else is secondary. Including their so called care and compassion for the truly suffering of the world
Hmmmm...panties on my head, or my hand cut off and my tongue cut out.
Tough choice.
I get it. The U.S. has to be held to a higher standard because we are above it, Iran does not have to be held to a higher standard because they are not above it. It being human rights violations.
Moral relativity - the last refuge of scoundrels.
Does this mean we can use Iranian standards when addressing the human rights issue?
Hey isn't that what the dims were saying about clinton during his scandal du'jour.
He had no standards so he could not be held to any.
let's not forget who "broke" the Abu Ghraib story MONTHS AFTER the Pentagon put out a statement about its investigation of the matter. None other than Mary Mapes.
Exactly
Bingo!
The Army already had told about the issue LONG before CBS "broke" the story (After they found some pictures it was news worthy).
Also it was a US service member who blew the whistle.
The whole issue was near finished (investigation) by the time CBS began covering it.
Most of the allegations were just that, they were hollow allegations. It's wrong and terrible what she did to those Iraqis. BUT! No life limb or eyesight was lost. She humiliated them with naked human pyramids and walking them on a leash naked etc. But there was no head cutting, no electrocution, no rape, no real physical torture.
They were idiots that made it easy for the MSM to exploit them (Just like Prince Harry now). Abu Gahrib used to be the prison where people were executed. They took a lot of “cool guy” pictures. The guy with the electrodes hanging from him was never electrocuted by the US guards. Yet CBS aired this for days and never explained that minor detail. Let the viewer’s imagination fill in the blanks.
Ironically, where was CNN and CBS when at Abu Gahrib there used to be REAL executions? When they used to really torture? CNN, to stay “exclusive” in Baghdad covered up and didn’t report about their own local Iraqis that were being killed by the regime when they stepped out of line. Had CNN reported this they would have been thrown out of the country. So they stayed silent as locals WORKING for them were being killed.
This is the MSM from which America gets its news. Scary, isn’t it?
Red6
Of course the Abu Grahib perpetrators are being punished, Khatami forgot to add. one guy was found guilty just yesterday. The organizers of the Iranian stonings probably get promoted up their theocracy.
Those held at Gitmo and Abu Graib aren't human.
Yeah. Khatami apparently has never been to a good fraternity hazing.
LOL........back in the days at Cal we used to put panties on our heads at the out of control frat parties......hell, I didn't even think that we were being tortured at the time.....but of course now I know different (sarcasm)..
The Leftists did not cut off their own noses. They could not care less about "human rights" or the best interests of America.
All they care about is gaining power for themselves and they believe that attacking the Bush Administration any way they can, truthfully or untruthfully, will achieve that goal.
Glad you came around. LOL
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