Iran: Treatment of members of the National Front (Jebhe Melli) and current laws regarding possession and/or distribution of the National Front's pamphlets and leaflets (since March 1996)
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 May 1998 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | IRN29283.E |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Iran: Treatment of members of the National Front (Jebhe Melli) and current laws regarding possession and/or distribution of the National Front's pamphlets and leaflets (since March 1996), 1 May 1998, IRN29283.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6ad3144.html [accessed 30 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
The National Front is not a political party, but a coalition which includes the Iran Nation Party ( INP ( also known as the Iranian National Party and the Party of the People of Iran ( PPI). For details, please see the documents attached to Response to Information Request IRN28108.E of 31 October 1997. In that Response, the National Front is referred to as "Gebhe Melli."
A 22 June 1996 dispatch from AFP reported that two activists of the PPI, Reza Bakhtiari and Parviz Yusef-Shahi, had been arrested on 10 June in Kermanshah and had not been released as of the date of publication. AFP learned of the arrests in a fax from the PPI, which added that the authorities had seized "several hundred books, old publications, a typewriter and a xerox machine."
The Foundation for Democracy in Iran (FDI) reported in its Weekly Newswire of 19 May 1997, posted on the Internet, an announcement by the INP in Tehran on 17 May 1997 that "several hundred" INP activists had been arrested on 16 May 1997. The only detainee identified by name was Khosrow Kordpour, who was arrested in Boukan. The INP claimed that several of the detainees "had been beaten and tortured in jail;" the report did not state whether any of the detainees were released.
On 26 January 1998, the Tehran newspaper Keyhan reported that on the afternoon of 22 January 1998 a gathering to commemorate the third anniversary of the death of Mehdi Bazargan turned into a political meeting at which speakers urged people to join the National Front (NF). Among the speakers at the gathering was the well-known philosopher Abdolkarim Sorush. The article referred to the NF as "disbanded" and an "illegal organization." The article did not state whether any arrests were made at the gathering.
No information on Iran's laws regarding the distribution of pamphlets or leaflets produced by the National Front could be found among the sources, including LEXIS/NEXIS and the Internet, consulted by the Research Directorate.
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.
References
Agence France Presse (AFP). 22 June 1996. "Two Opposition Members Arrested in Iran." (NEXIS)
Foundation for Democracy in Iran (FDI), "Weekly Newswire." 19 May 1997. [Internet] "INP Activist Arrested." < http://www.iran.org:80/news/970519.htm > [Accessed on 24 Apr. 1998]
Keyhan [Tehran, in Persian]. 24 January 1998. "Political Meeting on the Pretext of a Memorial Service." (FBIS-NES-98-026 26 Jan. 1998/WNC)
