Foreign Minister Bishop challenged on Iran visit

Foreign Minister Bishop challenged on Iran visit

Supporters of democracy in Iran today urged Foreign Minister the Hon Julie Bishop to cancel her planned April visit to Tehran because of human rights concerns in Iran and Iraq, and the nuclear negotiations.

“The Minister’s visit to Tehran is all about expanded trade between Australia and Iran, but there should be a pause,” said Mr Mohammad Sadeghpour, spokesperson for Australian Supporters of Democracy in Iran.

“Iran is an Islamic fundamentalist dictatorship which continues to operate an extraordinary policy of capital punishment. The ‘moderate’ President Rohani has had the highest ever number of executions, 753 including 13 juveniles in 2014. Executions continue at an accelerated pace in 2015. Human rights in Iran are a global disgrace,” said Mr Sadeghpour. “Does Australia want to expand trade with this regime?”

Iran’s Qods Force, the section of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps tasked for external operations, has at least 30,000 fighters in Iraq, under the command of Major General Qasem Soleimani.

“While the Iranian forces in Iraq are fighting the murderous Islamic State, they are also engaged in widespread repression of Sunni populations there,” said Peter Murphy, a co-secretary of Australian Supporters of Democracy in Iran. “Sectarian conflict is at the heart of Iraq’s problems, and so the present Iranian intervention is adding to Iraq’s problems. Major General Soleimani appears to be in command of the Iraqi Army and therefore is broadly directing the Australian Special Forces now deployed to Iraq as trainers. Does the Minister really endorse this Iranian sectarian role in Iraq?”

The group is also very concerned for 2,600 Iranian democracy activists, asylum seekers under UN protection, trapped in Camp Liberty near Baghdad Airports since the end of 2011. They have been attacked by missile fire three times by Iranian forces sheltering in the Iraq Military Zone around the airport, with over 50 killed and hundreds wounded. They have been subjected to a blockade of fuel, food, medicine, visits by family, doctors and lawyers, as well as spare parts for vital equipment. This siege has also caused many deaths. “This gross abuse of international law is directed by Tehran,” said Mr Sadeghpour.

The group warned that the nuclear talks due to conclude next week, on March 31, may not succeed, and it was premature for the Minister to plan the visit to Iran.

“We sincerely hope that this nuclear agreement can be reached, but all past experience shows that the odds are against this. Therefore, we question the timing of the announcement of the Foreign Minister’s visit to Tehran, and feel that it is too early to ‘reward’ Tehran with the prospect of expanded trade while an agreement on the vexed nuclear weapons issue is yet to be concluded,” said Mr Sadeghpour.

ENDS

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