A Letter by Iranian -Canadian to Three Party Leaders On The Eve Of Federal Election

Follow Up Seriously And Act Firmly On Human Rights Situation In Iran

Right Honourable Stephen Harper, P.C., M.P. The Honourable Thomas Mulcair, M.P. Mr. Justin Trudeau , M.P. Dear Prime Minister, Messrs., Mulcair, and Trudeau, In these final days of the electoral campaign and just days away from 

voting day, we are reminded of the importance of Canadian democracy

and the right to free elections. Electoral excitement and battles reflect 

the process which we, as Iranian-Canadians, enjoy and cherish. A free 

and fair election is one of many rights and freedoms of which 

we are deprived in our native country of Iran. That is why we, as members of Iranian-Canadian community with

various political orientations, believe that Canada has to uphold its 
values and 

principles regardless of the outcome of the elections. We hold firm

the belief that nothing should fade 

Canadian support of human rights in Iran. We have not forgotten yet that Zahra Kazemi, the Iranian-Canadian

photojournalist, was killed in Iranian regime’s prisons, and that two

Canadian residents, Mostafa Azizi and Saeed Malekpour, remain in 

prison in Iran after being convicted in unfair trials. We still remember that Maziar Bahari, the Iranian-Canadian 

journalist, was arrested and subject to duress while in an

Iranian jail. Press TV, Iranian regime’s English-speaking

International TV, broadcast his false confessions extracted 

under torture. We, the undersigned, ask you to seek justice for Zahra Kazemi. 

We also implore you to block any cooperation with Press TV, 

a state-media which engages in despicable act of broadcasting

self-incriminating confessions that are obtained under torture.

Moreover, we request that the cases of Mostafa Azizi and Saeed 

Malekpour not be forgotten. In short, please follow-up seriously 

and act firmly on human rights situation in Iran. We hope that 

one day Iranians will have the same rights and freedom which 

Canadians are enjoying today. Yours Sincerely,

Morteza Abdolalian, Journalist & human rights advocate - board member of CJFE Afshin Afshin Jam, Human rights Activist Nasrin Almasi, Journalist Mehrdad Ariannejad, Community Activist Mohsen Ghafghazi, Assistant professor of civil engineering at University of Toronto Ata Hoodashtian, Ph.D Professor in Political Science and Philosophy Siavosh Jalili, Translator and Human Rights Activist Fakhteh Luna Zamani, Human Rights Activist Ezat Mossallanejad, Policy Analyst at Canadian Centre For Victims Of Torture Kevin ROD, Lecturer University of Toronto DFCM Hossein Raeesi, visiting scholar and Instructor University Ottawa and Carleton University Kaveh Shahrooz, Lawyer & human rights advocate Salman Sima, Former political prisoner in Iran & human rights activist Sima Tajdini, painter & human rights Activist Borzumehr Toloui, PhD in Physics Ashkan Yazdchi, Former political prisoner in Iran Farrokh Zandi, Professor of Economics at Schulich School of Business, York University