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In a shocking acknowledgement about the inhuman prison conditions in Iran, head of the clerical regime's Prisons Organization announced that the prison space allocated to each prisoner is seven times smaller than the standard. Instead of 17.5 square meters, the international standard, only 2.5 square meters is allocated to every prisoner, he said. Some 70 million dollars are needed to provide for the minimum necessary space.
Morteza Bakhtiari pointed out that presently there are 160,000 prisoners in Iran. In light of the new round of arrests, shortage of space has become more and more acute, he said. The number of prisoners has increased 16% in the past year, according to the official figures.
The actual number of prisoners is much
higher than 160,000. Various organs of suppression, including the Revolutionary
Guards Corps, the State Security Force, the Ministry of Intelligence, the
Prosecutor's Office, and the Mostaz'afan Foundation have hundreds of public
and secret prisons and detention centers throughout the country which are
outside the scope of the prisons organization and hold thousands of prisoners.
Press Watchdog Says Iranian Journalist Disappeared, Reuter, December 3
PARIS - The Paris-based media watchdog Reporters Sans Frontieres (Reporters Without Borders) expressed deep concern on Thursday about what it said was the disappearance of a journalist in the Iranian capital Tehran.
The group said in a letter to Iranian President Mohammed Khatami that Pirouz Davani, editor-in-chief of the publication Pirouz, had been missing since the end of August.
It said another Iranian newspaper,
Kar e Karagar wrote on November 28 about rumors that he had been
executed.
Germany Denies Report Of New HERMES Loans for Iran, Reuter, December 3
BONN - Germany denied reports on Thursday that it was about to extend new loans to Iran through its export credit guarantee agency, HERMES. A spokesman for the Economics Ministry in Bonn said that Germany had not extended Iran HERMES loans nor were there plans to supply new lending.
"There are no credits for Iran and nothing is planned," the spokesman said.
Iran has used up its limit of 150 million marks in HERMES export credits.
A senior Iranian banker said in London on Thursday that Iran had achieved a breakthrough in its efforts to negotiate a $3 billion bridging loan from its major trading partners to enable it to service foreign debt due by next March.
Ahmad Azizi, chairman and managing director of the state-owned Bank of Industry and Mines, said Germany's export credit guarantee agency had agreed in principle to give Tehran a $1 billion credit line.
Negotiations for similar sums were
under way with Japan and Italy.
Economic Indicators Paint A Grim Picture, The Indian Hindu Daily, December 2
Continued from BOI No. 1038
TEHERAN — … Parliament also approved a financial package which, inter alia, permits the Government to borrow $2 billions from local banks, raise $1.83 billion by taking advance payments on oil deliveries or through foreign loans, issue bonds worth $667 million and take advance payments worth about $800 millions from those signing up for the Haj [holy pilgrimage to Mecca]. The Government has also been asked to cut costs by as much as $667 millions. Meanwhile, the protracted wrangling over the budget has caused much confusion and it is rumored that many departments and ministries have not even got their rial [Iran's currency] allocations for the year.
While the boniyads (foundations) which are controlled by the conservatives and which run sprawling business empires have made a major contribution to Iran's economic mess they are not directly in the public eye.
Those in the public eye are the technocrat heads of the Central Bank and Plan and Budget Organization who are both identified with the Executives of the Reconstruction party, which supports the Government. The resentment against the Executives could spread to cover the whole government especially when there are political forces working towards this end.