Canadian 'to be Buried in Iran'
July 22, 2003
BBC News
BBCi
The body of a Canadian journalist who died in custody in Iran is to be buried there despite demands for it to be returned to Canada, Iranian officials have said.
Zahra Kazemi, an Iranian Canadian, died as a result of a severe blow to the head on 10 July after her arrest in Tehran on 23 June.
"Her body was taken to Shiraz (her birthplace) this evening and the funeral will be held at 0800 (0330 GMT) on Wednesday morning," an unnamed official told AFP news agency.
Ottawa previously expressed concern over Tehran's unwillingness to return the body to Canada, despite the wishes of both her Iranian and Canadian relatives.
Foreign Minister Bill Graham said that only the "full and swift prosecution" of those responsible for Ms Kazemi's death would "clearly demonstrate that [Iranian] officials are not allowed to act with impunity".
Arrest
Ms Kazemi, a 54-year-old photographer, was reportedly arrested for taking pictures of a Tehran prison.
It is thought she was never formally accused of a crime.
An Iranian presidential report released on Monday said she died in custody from a severe blow to the head which fractured her skull and caused a brain haemorrhage.
The report failed to say how and why the injury was inflicted, but called for an independent investigator to conduct an investigation.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3088357.stmTruth Bump...
Kazemi buried in Iran: reports
Globe and Mail Update
POSTED AT 2:42 AM EDT Wednesday, Jul. 23, 2003
Montreal photojournalist Zahra Kazemi was buried in Iran Wednesday morning, the Agence-France Presse is reporting.
AFP cites the Iranian state news agency, IRNA, as the source of the information. The burial took place in the southwestern city of Shiraz.
The news comes two weeks after Ms. Kazemi's death, which followed her arrest for taking pictures of family members of political prisoners in Tehran.
Iranian officials have since admitted that Ms. Kazemi was beaten and died from an injury to her skull.
Saeed Mortazavi was appointed to investigate Ms. Kazemi's fate. He is a conservative hard-liner who is also a suspect in her death.
A ministerial inquiry report ordered by President Mohammed Khatami says Mr. Mortazavi was present during one of her interrogation sessions.
Officials in Ottawa said late Tuesday that the federal government had hired an Iranian lawyer to try to get a court order to stop any burial in Iran. Failing that, Ottawa said it will seek an order to have the remains exhumed and returned to Canada.
Stephen Hachemi, Ms. Kazemi's son, called a burial in Iran "unacceptable." He wants his mother's body returned to Canada.
Canadian diplomats thought they had resolved earlier family differences about the place for burial. They said they had obtained the mother's agreement on Sunday for Ms. Kazemi's body to be returned to Canada.
But Mr. Hachemi told reporters yesterday that men went to his grandmother's house, put a gun to her head and forced her to sign a declaration authorizing the burial.
With reports from Jeff Sallot and Tu Thanh Ha
http://www.globeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20030723.wkaze0723/BNStory/International/