http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2007/05/2C9A631C-8E8B-4508-B42E-E3FF204
F709C.html
Washington Denies Iran's Accusations Over U.S.-Based Scholar 
 <javascript:newWindow('/features/authors/esfandiari.asp',325,280)> By
Golnaz Esfandiari 
May 23, 2007 (RFE/RL) -- The United States has dismissed Iranian accusations
that a detained American-Iranian scholar was trying to undermine the Islamic
state.


Haleh Esfandiari, director of the Washington-based Woodrow Wilson
Institute's Middle East program (and who is not related to the author of
this report), was detained in Tehran on May 8 and has been accused of
security crimes.

Washington's reaction followed a May 21 statement by Iran's Intelligence
Ministry that accused Esfandiari of links to a U.S.-funded drive to topple
Iran's Islamic establishment. 

The ministry said the Wilson Institute's Iran-related activities are
supported by the Soros Foundation, which it said had played a "key role" in
the so-called color revolutions in former Soviet states. 

The ministry also claimed that the 67-year-old Esfandiari has said in
preliminary interrogations that the Soros Foundation has established an
unofficial network in Iran whose main objective is "overthrowing" the
Iranian government. 

'Utter Nonsense' 

On May 22, U.S. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack dismissed the
Iranian accusations against Esfandiari. He also said she is no threat to the
Iranian government.

"Whether or not the Iranian government actually follows through with these
charges or not, they're just utter nonsense," McCormack said.

The Woodrow Wilson Institute has also denied Iranian suggestions that
Esfandiari has been involved in efforts to promote a "soft revolution" in
Iran. 

Also on May 22, Wilson Center Director Lee Hamilton called on Iran to
release the Iranian-American scholar.

"The Wilson Center's plea to the Iranian government is simple: Let Haleh go.
Let her return to her husband, her family, and her work," Hamilton said.

Iran has said that the United States should not meddle in the detention of
Esfandiari.

Iranian officials have said that the scholar -- who holds Iranian and U.S.
citizenship -- will be treated based on Iranian laws. Iran does not
recognize dual citizenship. 

Nearly Incommunicado 

 Haleh EsfandiariIranian officials have also prevented Esfandiari's
relatives and chosen lawyers from meeting her. She has reportedly only been
allowed to make brief evening phone calls to her 93-year-old mother in Iran.

Abdolfatah Soltani -- a member of the legal team that intends along with
Iranian Nobel Peace Prize winner Shirin Ebadi to defend Esfandiari -- told
Radio Farda that judiciary authorities have so far denied them access.

"[The judge] told us, 'I've spoken to her, she didn't say she wanted a
lawyer,'" Soltani said. "But we said that she had called her 93-year-old
mother and told her she wants to have a lawyer. It was clear that, despite
the laws, they aren't allowing Haleh Esfandiari to have a lawyer. We have
practically no information about [Esfandiari's] fate."

Bizarre Circumstances 

Esfandiari had been visiting her mother -- as she had done in previous years
-- when her nightmare began. 

When she was about to leave Iran in December, her American and Iranian
passports were stolen. Authorities did not issue her a new passport, and
instead a series of lengthy interrogations by security officials began.
Finally she was taken to Evin prison, where she has been jailed for the past
two weeks. 

Several U.S. politicians, academics, and rights groups have called for her
release. Many have praised her work and described her as a voice for
tolerance and peace and an advocate for equal rights for women. They have
also said that she has been active in promoting mutual understanding. 

About 100 Middle East scholars and experts on Iran have, in a joint
statement, described her arrest as the latest "distressing episode" in an
ongoing crackdown by Iran's government against those who strive to bolster
the foundations of civil society and promote human rights in Iran.

Other Cases 

Esfandiari's arrest comes amid heightened tensions between Iran and the
United States. It also comes as human rights advocates and activists in Iran
face an apparent crackdown. 

Esfandiari is not the only Iranian-American to have been prevented from
leaving Iran in recent months. Iranian authorities have confiscated the
passport of Radio Farda broadcaster Parnaz Azima and refused to return it
even though Azima and her family have posted a bail bond worth approximately
$440,000.

"The Washington Post" today reports that Iran has also imprisoned a
consultant for philanthropist George Soros's Open Society Institute
programs. 

According to the report, Kian Tajbakhsh was picked up around May 11. He had
reportedly worked with the Open Society Institute in Iran since 2004 and has
also done some work for the World Bank. 

On  <http://www.kiantajbakhsh.com/> his website, decentralization,
democracy, and urban local governance in Iran are listed among his key
research areas. 

It is unclear whether there is any alleged connection between Tajbakhsh's
and Esfandiari's cases, on one hand, and the Intelligence Ministry's recent
statement accusing the Soros Foundation of involvement in attempts to topple
the Iranian government. 

The Iranian Intelligence Ministry said in its May 21 statement that the head
and representative of the U.S.-based Soros Foundation in Iran has been
identified and will be prosecuted. 

The Soros Foundation's network is run through the billionaire's Open Society
Institute, which is active in many countries. "The Washington Post" reports
that the institute has said that its activities in Iran are centered only on
humanitarian relief, public health, and culture.

 



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